Protecting the Great Lakes
Learn about Ontario’s plan to protect and restore the health of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin and create more opportunities for individuals and communities to get involved in local protection and restoration efforts.
The importance of the Great Lakes
Most Ontarians live within the watersheds of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River system. We all benefit from the Great Lakes — their resources provide us with drinking water and energy, food and recreational opportunities. The Lakes also provide the province with numerous economic advantages.
The Great Lakes regional economy is the world’s 3rd largest. Almost 50% of Canada’s manufacturing along with 83% of Ontario’s power generation and 95% of Ontario’s agricultural lands depend on the Great lakes-St. Lawrence River basin.
The Lakes support a rich array of plants, animals and ecosystems and are the foundation for Ontario’s strength and success.
The Great Lakes are under stress
The health of the Great Lakes is under threat from several factors:
- increased levels of harmful pollutants such as excess road salt and plastic pollution
- urban growth
- increasing harmful and nuisance algae
- hardened shorelines
- invasive species
Over the last 15 years, changes in the Great Lakes have revealed disruptions to the food chain.
Climate change is also challenging the ability of the Great Lakes to be resilient to the impacts that can arise from severe weather and changes in water levels and in the thaw-and-freeze cycle.
We must protect the Great Lakes and, where we find they are in decline, we must restore them to good health so they remain drinkable, swimmable and fishable.
Given the importance of the Great Lakes to our economy, quality of life and environment, in 2015 Ontario established the Great Lakes Protection Act, which provides flexible tools to protect and restore the Great Lakes.
Strengthening Great Lakes protection
Protecting and restoring the Great Lakes is part of Ontario’s plan to protect our air, land and water.
One of the ways we protect the Great Lakes is through the Great Lakes Protection Act, which:
- ensures we establish and maintain monitoring and reporting programs
- commits to establishing at least 1 target to reduce algal blooms (established in 2018)
- allows the Minister of Natural Resources and Forestry to establish targets to prevent the loss of wetlands
- improves consultation and engagement requirements and requires consideration of traditional ecological knowledge
- requires that we table comprehensive progress reports in the legislature every 3 years
- requires that we review Ontario’s Great Lakes Strategy every 6 years
- creates more opportunities for Ontarians to become involved in the protection and restoration of the ecological health of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin
- improves the capacity of the Great Lakes-St. Lawrence River Basin so it can be resilient to the impacts of climate change
Funding for Great Lakes Program projects
Since 2018, Ontario has invested $83.4 million in 679 projects to safeguard the Great Lakes. During that time, 52 environmental clean-up actions have taken place across 14 Areas of Concern in the Great Lakes.
In 2025, Ontario invested over $5.5 million in 36 new multi-year projects that will help restore the health of the Great Lakes. This investment supports Ontario’s commitments in the Canada-Ontario Agreement on Great Lakes Water Quality and Ecosystem Health (COA)— a 5-year agreement that sets out specific actions that the federal and provincial governments as well as Great Lakes partners will take to restore, protect and conserve the Great Lakes. It also supports implementation of Ontario’s Great Lakes Strategy.
These projects focus on science and on-the-ground work to address critical issues facing the world’s largest surface freshwater lake system, such as:
- adoption of agricultural best practices and green infrastructure
- public awareness and education on the important role of water
- advancing climate change adaptation and resilience efforts
- contaminants in fish for consumption
- fish habitat, invasive species and delisting of Areas of Concern
- plastics
- road salt
- stormwater and groundwater management, and shoreline rehabilitation
- water quality and pollution
The following table features the 36 projects receiving multi-year funding through the Great Lakes Program to restore, protect and conserve the Great Lakes.
| Recipient | Description | Location | Multi-year funding $ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Canadian Geographic (Royal Canadian Geographical Society/50 Sussex Drive Inc.) | Increase knowledge and education about Chemicals of Concern and other harmful pollutants found in consumer products. It will focus on outreach initiatives to inform the public about the risks associated with these pollutants and promote actions to reduce their use and release. | Basin-wide | $174,500 |
| Swim Drink Fish Canada | Engage First Nations and Métis communities in reducing exposure to harmful pollutants found in fish. Using an Indigenous-led approach, the project will develop a culturally appropriate framework for monitoring and managing aquatic environments. It will ensure that Indigenous-specific consumption habits are considered, and that fish consumption advisories are both culturally relevant and effectively communicated to these communities. | Basin-wide | $285,000 |
| Halton Region Conservation Authority | Support the administration, communication and coordination of the Hamilton Harbour action plan to support progress towards delisting Hamilton Harbour as an Area of Concern – a historically degraded area. This project includes: assessing, reporting on and restoring ecological and recreational aspects of the Hamilton Harbour that have become degraded by human-caused environmental disturbances; and supporting activities of the various groups working on this plan. | City of Hamilton | $168,000 |
| Lakehead University | Support provincial and federal agencies by coordinating engagement with the public, Indigenous communities and stakeholders on progress towards redesignation of beneficial use impairments in Thunder Bay, Peninsula Harbour and Jackfish Bay Areas of Concern, and implement activities to support the potential delisting of Peninsula Harbour and Nipigon Bay Areas of Concern. | City of Thunder Bay, Township of Terrace Bay, Municipality of Marathon, Township of Nipigon | $86,250 |
| Friends of the St. Clair River | Increase public awareness of the St. Clair River Area of Concern by conducting outreach and engagement, to support action towards delisting this it as an area of concern. | City of Sarnia | $50,000 |
| St. Clair Region Conservation Authority | Assess the restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption, which is “impaired” for the St. Clair River Area of Concern. This project work is part of the action needed to get closer to removing the St. Clair River as an Area of Concern – a historically degraded area. | City of Sarnia | $35,000 |
| Bare Point Developments Inc. | Restore a valuable coastal wetland habitat at the Superior Fine Papers site in the Thunder Bay Area of Concern to make significant progress with the goal of remediating fish and wildlife populations to a healthy status. | City of Thunder Bay | $130,000 |
| The Corporation of the City of Thunder Bay | Restore wetland and nearshore wildlife habitat and improve drainage at the Pool 6 lands in the Thunder Bay Area of Concern to make significant progress towards returning the fish and wildlife populations to an abundant, healthy status. | City of Thunder Bay | $130,000 |
| Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority | Coordinate the implementation of actions needed to improve fish and wildlife populations and habitat in the Niagara River Area of Concern. This project will also implement actions to improve populations of aquatic invertebrates and restrictions on fish consumption in the area. | Regional Municipality of Niagara | $300,000 |
| St. Lawrence River Institute of Environmental Sciences | Improve the ecological health, manage environmental data and foster community engagement and climate resilience along the St. Lawrence River, including the Cornwall/Akwesasne Area of Concern, by taking actions such as: evaluating current restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption and assessing the effects of harmful algae; creating an accessible, up-to-date geodatabase to visualize contaminant levels across various zones; and improving accessibility to relevant information on the impacts of climate change on local water quality and ecosystem health. | St. Lawrence River (City of Cornwall) | $435,829 |
| Raisin River Conservation Authority | Protect and restore the Charlottenburgh Marsh in the St. Lawrence River Area of Concern by developing and implementing local strategies and actions to restore the marsh. This includes actions such as reducing phosphorus loading in key waterways, establishing plant cover along the St. Lawrence River shoreline, and assessing and updating plans with the overall goal of restoring and maintaining the wetland and its associated habitats. | St. Lawrence River (Township of South Glengarry) | $330,000 |
| Quinte Conservation Association | Monitor and analyze water quality in the area, including mercury and nutrient analyses, in important coastal wetlands in the Bay of Quinte. This project will also evaluate fish and wildlife habitat to help assess Lake Ontario’s nearshore health and seek to identify emerging threats such as climate change and invasive species. | Bay of Quinte (City of Belleville) | $99,378 |
| Pine River Watershed Initiative Network | Complete priority restoration projects to improve nearshore water quality along the Lake Huron Southeast Shore and provide improved habitat and food source for wildlife. This project will also enhance the environmental awareness and capacity of the Pine River Watershed community and surrounding area by performing community outreach. | Pine River watershed, Lake Huron (Township of Huron-Kinloss, Bruce County) | $120,000 |
| Sault Ste. Mary Innovation Centre | Provide stewardship, innovation and community engagement along the St. Mary’s River and the North Channel of Lake Huron by conducting invasive species removal, revitalizing local ecosystems, creating public materials to inspire connections to Lake Huron, continuing to support the wildlife observation program, installing fishing recycling stations, planting to improve soil health and facilitating community events. | St. Marys River (City of Sault Ste. Marie) | $120,000 |
| Manitoulin Streams Improvement Association | Work with various groups including First Nations community members, school groups, interest groups (i.e., Manitoulin Phragmites Group), municipalities, ENGO’s and academia on rural lands to restore streams and improve water quality by removing aquatic invasive species, increasing aquatic biodiversity and removing plastic waste in the Lake Huron watersheds. | Blue Jay Creek, Manitoulin Island (Township of Manitowaning) | $100,000 |
| Oneida Nation of the Thames | Develop and implement the First Nation Thames River Youth Stewardship and Great Lakes Engagement Program. This project will be tailored to the specific needs and interests of First Nation youth and community members, including elders, knowledge keepers, and community leaders. It aims to foster environmental stewardship and engagement through culturally relevant programming and activities. | Thames River (Oneida Nation of the Thames) | $35,000 |
| Chippewas of the Thames First Nation | Develop and implement the First Nation Thames River Youth Stewardship and Great Lakes Engagement Program. This project will be tailored to the specific needs and interests of First Nation youth and community members, including elders, knowledge keepers, and community leaders. It aims to foster environmental stewardship and engagement through culturally relevant programming and activities. | Thames River (Chippewas of the Thames First Nation) | $35,000 |
| Walpole Island First Nation | Develop and implement the First Nation Thames River Youth Stewardship and Great Lakes Engagement Program. This project will be tailored to the specific needs and interests of First Nation youth and community members, including elders, knowledge keepers, and community leaders. It aims to foster environmental stewardship and engagement through culturally relevant programming and activities. | Thames River Walpole Island First Nation) | $35,000 |
| Caldwell First Nation | Develop and implement the First Nation Thames River Youth Stewardship and Great Lakes Engagement Program. This project will be tailored to the specific needs and interests of First Nation youth and community members, including elders, knowledge keepers, and community leaders. It aims to foster environmental stewardship and engagement through culturally relevant programming and activities. | Thames River (Caldwell First Nation) | $35,000 |
| Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation | Develop and implement the First Nation Thames River Youth Stewardship and Great Lakes Engagement Program. This project will be tailored to the specific needs and interests of First Nation youth and community members, including elders, knowledge keepers, and community leaders. It aims to foster environmental stewardship and engagement through culturally relevant programming and activities. | Thames River (Chippewas of Kettle and Stony Point First Nation) | $35,000 |
| Munsee Delaware Nation | Develop and implement the First Nation Thames River Youth Stewardship and Great Lakes Engagement Program. This project will be tailored to the specific needs and interests of First Nation youth and community members, including elders, knowledge keepers, and community leaders. It aims to foster environmental stewardship and engagement through culturally relevant programming and activities. | Thames River (Munsee Delaware Nation) | $35,000 |
| Grand River Conservation Authority | Advance plans to reduce phosphorus loadings to Lake Erie by monitoring and measuring phosphorus levels to identify loading trends and understand nutrient dynamics better. The project will also support rural landowners and farmers by promoting agricultural stewardship and encouraging the adoption of Best Management Practices to minimize phosphorus runoff. | Grand River (City of Cambridge) | $112,434 |
| Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation | Engage community members of all ages and experience levels to take an active part in observing and improving the quality of nearshore waters and beaches in Saugeen Ojibway Nation Territory. This project will promote community science initiatives at the Lake Huron Coastal Centre including training volunteers to monitor changes to the shoreline once a week from May-October. This data will monitor the health of the Lake Huron environment through reporting on atmospheric conditions, algae blooms, storm damage, wildlife, plastic pollution and human activity. | Town of Goderich; Saugeen Ojibway Nation Territory | $30,000 |
| Chippewas of Nawash Unceded First Nation | Create a centralized data repository that allows project partners to efficiently enter, access and analyze data related to key indicators for dikameg (lake whitefish) rehabilitation. This database will improve data accessibility, foster collaborative analysis, and support informed decision-making. | Saugeen Ojibway Nation Territory | $134,000 |
| EcoSuperior Environmental Programs | Restore and protect the Lake Superior ecosystem through community stewardship including climate change adaptation actions, installing rain gardens, shoreline and underwater clean-ups and creating information resources for local residents. Includes a one-day student conference to engage students and teachers on tangible environmental solutions for Lake Superior shorelines. | City of Thunder Bay | $216,515 |
| Georgian Bay Mnidoo Gamii Biosphere | uild on the successful "State of the Bay initiative to improve ecosystem health awareness in Georgian Bay. Through extensive community outreach and engagement, this initiative will set regional and local priorities based on scientific and cultural insights. By incorporating respectful cultural protocols and reconciliation, the project aims to establish a collaborative framework, which will guide the development of the 2028 State of the Bay indicators and themes, and map essential collective actions needed along the coast. | Georgian Bay (Town of Parry Sound) | $150,000 |
| Toronto and Region Conservation Authority | Improve municipal road salt practices, support coastal resilience and enhance Great Lakes educational opportunities for students. To support coastal resilience, create a training course for municipal officials to estimate costs and benefits of natural assets to enhance informed decision-making. Also organize an event for 100 high school students and their teachers to learn about the Great Lakes ecosystem and participate in practical stewardship activities, leading to tangible environmental improvements along the Lake Ontario shoreline. | City of Toronto | $530,622 |
| Aquanty Inc. | Enhance understanding of how greenhouse nutrient discharges affect surface water quality in the Leamington area, including Lake Erie. The findings will support the development of best management policies by evaluating the environmental impacts of greenhouse nutrient loads under various weather and wastewater management scenarios. | Municipality of Leamington | $96,360 |
| Zuzek Inc. | Engage Mississaugas of the Credit, Caldwell First Nation and the Saugeen Ojibway Nation in establishing native beachgrass and producing dune-building plants to support nature-based restoration projects along shorelines. | Long Point, Point Pelee, and Sauble Beach areas | $250,000 |
| The Corporation of the City of Windsor | Implement a portion of Windsor’s Sewer Master Plan by installing rain catchers to lower the risk of flooding during extreme weather events. | City of Windsor | $271,000 |
| The Corporation of the Municipality of Chatham-Kent | Engage local residents in three priority urban neighbourhoods vulnerable to the impacts of climate change, such as flooding and heatwaves, in the creation and implementation of neighbourhood-scale resiliency action plans that address these vulnerabilities. | Municipality of Chatham-Kent | $385,000 |
| Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority | Create, restore and enhance critical Great Lakes’ habitat that supports migratory birds, wetland-reliant wildlife and species-at-risk such as the Fowler’s Toad. The project will conserve and protect existing site ecology, re-establish functional and self-sustaining ecosystems and restore a climate resilient shoreline. | Regional Municipality of Niagara | $54,500 |
| Credit Valley Conservation | Assess how future changes in temperature and precipitation may impact water quality in the Credit River and nearshore Lake Ontario by using modeling techniques and data from real-time water quality stations. This project will also develop a sediment budget for the West Credit River catchment, supporting future sediment transport studies across the Credit River watershed. | Municipality of Mississauga | $345,000 |
| Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority | Engage 100 high school students and their teachers in hands-on learning and stewardship activities along the Lake Huron and Georgian Bay shoreline, fostering environmental leadership and community stewardship among the youth. | Lake Huron/Georgian Bay | $25,000 |
| Upper Thames River Conservation Authority | Engage Ontario’s education community in activities supporting Lake Erie’s restoration and protection. The summit will raise awareness and address harmful and nuisance algal blooms and low-oxygen zones, which have been increasing over the past decade and pose risks to both the environment and human health. The summit will also cover plastic pollution and the impacts of climate change. | Lake Erie | $75,000 |
| Lakehead Region Conservation Authority | Assess whether culverts restrict access or pose a flood risk on municipal roads and determine if perched culverts are impacting fish passage. This project will also increase public understanding and fill knowledge gaps about cyanobacteria, harmful algal blooms and nuisance algal blooms through targeted outreach and engagement activities. | Municipality of Neebing and Thunder Bay region | $79,900 |
Great Lakes Local Action Fund
Our Great Lakes Local Action Fund is supporting community projects that protect and restore coastal, shoreline and nearshore areas of the Great Lakes.
For the third round of the Great Lakes Local Action Fund, almost $1.8 million was invested in 27 projects to protect and improve the health of the Great Lakes and their connecting rivers, which have social and or economic benefits to local communities.
Learn more about the Great Lakes Local Action Fund.
Setting clear targets
One clear way to strengthen protection of the Great Lakes is by setting targets. The Great Lakes Protection Act allows the Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks, in consultation with other Great Lakes ministers, communities and stakeholders, to set specific or general targets for local and lake-wide areas.
We have a goal to reduce phosphorus loadings to the western and central basins of Lake Erie by 40% by 2025 — a target set under Ontario's Great Lakes Protection Act to address algal blooms. The Canada-Ontario Lake Erie Action Plan serves as Ontario’s plan to achieve this target.
The Act will also provide the Minister of Natural Resources with authority to establish one or more targets for preventing the loss of wetlands.
The ability to set clear targets could help all partners work towards common restoration and protection outcomes. Setting targets will also help Ontario to manage the cumulative impacts of activities on the Great Lakes, including climate change, and respond to specific areas when needed.
Geographically-focused initiatives
The Act enables geographically-focused initiatives (GFIs), as a tool for developing and implementing policies to address priority issues in a specific location.
Initiatives will be developed through a collaborative local process and will build on existing work. Some of the activities associated with protecting the Great Lakes that could be addressed with GFIs could include:
- protecting natural heritage or hydrologic features
- coordinated efforts to improve beaches
- efforts to reduce excessive algae
Based on local input, geographically-focused initiatives could be developed by a municipality, conservation authority or the province.
In addition, developing these GFIs would require engagement with First Nations and Métis communities within the area, municipalities, the scientific community, environmental organizations, farming organizations, conservation authorities, and industrial, recreational and tourism sectors.
Great Lakes Guardians' Council
The Great Lakes Guardians’ Council was established by the Great Lakes Protection Act as a forum where Great Lakes Ministers, partners and stakeholders can talk about the environmental, economic and social importance of the lakes. Learn more about the Great Lakes Guardians’ Council and what was discussed during council meetings.
Strengthening reporting and monitoring
The Great Lakes Protection Act requires public progress reports on the Great Lakes every 3 years, with reports tabled in the Legislature. These reports would include results of monitoring programs, actions taken and a description of new and emerging issues. In addition, the act will also ensure that monitoring and reporting programs are established and maintained.
Read the latest Great Lakes progress report.