Departmental Sustainable Development Strategy: Departmental Website Component of the 2012-2013 Report on Plans and Priorities

The Lake Simcoe Clean-up Fund provides financial and technical support to implement high-impact, priority projects to reduce phosphorus inputs, rehabilitate habitats to achieve nutrient reductions, restore the cold-water fishery in Lake Simcoe, and enhance research and monitoring capacity deemed essential for the restoration of Lake Simcoe and its watershed. The Fund is in place until March 31, 2012.

Examples of funded projects include:

• Phosphorus reduction through best management practices (e.g. manure management, cattle fencing, stormwater management);
• Near-shore monitoring to better understand, evaluate, manage, and potentially predict impacts to Lake Simcoe’s near-shore zone;
• Research to improve methods for estimating the amount of phosphorous being deposited into the atmosphere;
• Collecting data on phosphorous inputs from rural and urban sources; and,
• Projects that aim to rehabilitate priority habitats in order to restore the health of the aquatic ecosystem and the cold water fishery.

Environment Canada administers the fund in consultation with Fisheries and Oceans Canada, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, the Province of Ontario, the Lake Simcoe Conservation Authority and other key stakeholders. For more information, please visit the Cleaning Up Lake Simcoe website.

Performance expectations:

• Progress is being tracked through estimated phosphorus reductions, leveraged funding from other partners and accelerated adoption of Best Management Practices.

Too many phosphates in our water can lead to an over production of blue-green algae. Though blue-green algae are naturally-occurring, in large quantities they can emit a harmful level of toxins. This can lead to poor water quality and force the closure of beaches in warm temperatures. Restricting the level of phosphates in laundry and dishwasher detergent can have a positive impact on reducing the growth of blue-green algae in our rivers, lakes and streams; they are key to improving water quality and protecting the health of Canadians.

The new phosphorus concentration limitations in household cleaning products came into force on July 1, 2010 and reduce the phosphorus content in products manufactured or imported on or after that date. Information on the concentration limitations is available on the Canadian Environmental Protection Act Registry.

Performance expectations:

• Compliance Promotion products were developed and delivered to regulatees in FY 2011–2012.
• Compliance Promotion activities will be conducted if needed, upon the results of the 2012–2013 Enforcement verifications.