GBA 2021 - Fall Flippingbook
the Ontario and federal governments’ poor understanding of the challenges that face water-access communities.
Progress on Water Quality We have good progress to report on other threats to water quality. MPP Norm Miller’s dock foam bill is now enacted – it is likely to take about two years to iron out the regulations. GBA will continue to work with Georgian Bay Forever (GBF) and others to ensure we get regulations that will be effective in preventing new docks and dock repairs being made using unencapsulated foam and ultimately remove this pollutant from our waters. Bill 279, which requires new clothes washing machines to have filters installed, passed first reading in the legislature. It will further reduce plastics pollution once in place. GBA will support final approval of this bill and will keep you informed on how you can help. Since our October 2020 water levels symposium, GBA and GBF made presentations to all your coastal municipal councils to ensure a solid understanding of the drivers of water levels and what to expect in the future. The upcoming fall H2O 2021 webinar series on the impacts of, and the strategies to address, extreme water levels will continue these discussions. At the time of writing, we are in the midst of a federal election. So far, environmental issues are playing second fiddle to other more urgent debates around COVID vaccination policies and how to get Canada back on its feet. It is important that we all try to ensure that politicians do not ignore environmental issues. To that end, GBA published our usual election readiness memo which aims to attract attention to issues that are important to all of us. Indigenous Concerns Despite a very difficult year for Canada on Indigenous concerns, political parties are not prioritizing them. Earlier this year I had a heartwarming discussion with a Shawanaga elder who offered a constructive approach to how we should be dealing with the distressing news of the children’s graves discovered at residential schools. The message is that rather than getting overwhelmed by sadness and recriminations, we should instead use this as an opportunity to come together to address challenges through greater understanding, empathy, and mutual respect. We must all move on from the past “them and us” thinking – there is only “us” – and we need to work together to solve issues such as climate change. Although this sounds like a simple response, it is equally difficult for both Indigenous and non-Indigenous people to fully embrace.
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GBA UPDATE Fall 2021
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