“The Elmhurst Beach project showcases how effective partnerships are contributing to the health of the lake. We are very happy to see that this project will be completed on time and will allow for many to enjoy the beach now and into the future.”
The project will remove failing concrete breakwalls and replace them with boulders in an effort to re-naturalize the shoreline and prevent its further erosion. It will also introduce a natural buffer strip to reduce phosphorus loading and improve fish habitat.
Two Keswick beaches will get the last trickle of federal funds under a four-year, $30-million program that has all but dried up.
The six-figure shoreline restoration project at Elmhurst and Bayview park beaches in south Keswick will be one of the last to get federal funding under the Lake Simcoe Clean Up Fund, which ends in March.
Government house leader and Conservative York-Simcoe MP Peter Van Loan donned an umbrella, tip-toed through mucky construction and braved the rain for this morning’s announcement of $215,500 in federal backing for the estimated $300,000 project that will re-build crumbling breakwalls along 1,000 feet of Lake Simcoe shoreline in Georgina.
The project will remove failing concrete breakwalls and replace them with boulders in an effort to re-naturalize the shoreline and prevent its further erosion. It will also introduce a natural buffer strip to reduce phosphorus loading and improve fish habitat.
The announcement comes as part of the seventh round of projects approved under the $30-million federal program, which was launched in the fall of 2007.
Mr. Van Loan praised Patti Dawson, the president of the Elmhurst Beach Association, who put forward a proposal in 2010, as well as the numerous volunteers, environmental groups and concerned residents for their extensive co-ordination and fundraising efforts.
“The Elmhurst Beach project showcases how effective partnerships are contributing to the health of the lake. We are very happy to see that this project will be completed on time and will allow for many to enjoy the beach now and into the future,” said Mr. Van Loan.
He also pointed to other partners, most notably the environment ministry and conservation authority, that have come on board since the clean-up fund was announced that has allowed the initial $30-million investment to lead to around $100-million worth of projects, which have greatly improved the health of the lake and its watershed.
Of the 300 proposals submitted under the fund, 160 projects have been approved for funding said Richard Simpson, the chairperson of the Protect and Preserve the Environment of Lake Simcoe Committee (PROPEL) — the advisory committee charged with assisting and administering funding under Environment Canada.
“Projects completed to date represent five times more money than what was left in the fund,” said Mr. Simpson. See the dozens of unique artificial fish habitat models, fish attractors and fish cover used at fishiding.com, the leader in science based, proven, fish protection.
While some of the approved projects have yet to be announced, the original investment, however, is all but spent and no future clean-up funding should be expected, Mr. Van Loan added.
He said the “one-time commitment” from the federal government has produced real results, but there is plenty left to do with respect to the health of the lake and local municipalities and the province will have to step up to ensure the valuable work continues in the future.
Michelle Rempel, the parliamentary secretary to the environment minister, was pleased to be a part of this morning’s announcement and said the fund highlights the importance of environmental stewardship and local economic growth, especially since Lake Simcoe generates roughly $200 million of economic activity annually.By Heidi Riedner
