Ministers Wilkinson and Gould focus on Great Lakes protection at Burlington's Canada Centre for Inland Waters

BURLINGTON, ON, July 25, 2019 /CNW/ - Today, the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, and Minister of Democratic Institutions and Member of Parliament for Burlington, Karina Gould visited the Canada Centre for Inland Waters and the CCGS Limnos. During the visit, they received updates on a number of DFO science and operational programs conducted at these world class research labs and met many dedicated research scientists working to protect the Great Lakes.

Minister Wilkinson meets the Captain and crew of the CCGS Limnos, the Canadian Coast Guard Ship dedicated to Great Lakes science at its home port in Burlington, Ontario. (CNW Group/Fisheries and Oceans Central & Arctic Region)

Minister Wilkinson tests the DFO-developed, mobile version of the Ontario Baitfish Primer. Ensuring live bait is neither an invasive species that could damage the ecosystem, such as Asian carps, nor an endangered species that must be returned unharmed to the water, is a critical element in protecting the Great Lakes and all Ontario waterways. (CNW Group/Fisheries and Oceans Central & Arctic Region)

The Limnos is a critical platform for binational efforts to understand the status and function of Great Lakes ecosystems. Each year, Canadian scientists from Environment and Climate Change Canada and Fisheries and Oceans Canada join colleagues from the Province of Ontario and Canadian academic institutes and United States Federal, State and academic scientist to focus on efforts on collaborative science and monitoring in the Great Lakes. This year, the focus is Lake Erie, where the Limnos joins with the Lake Guardian, the research vessel of the United States Environmental Protection Agency to study the off-shore changes in that threatened ecosystem. Lake Erie, home of the most productive and valuable commercial and recreational fisheries in the Great Lakes, is threatened by continuing harmful algal blooms caused by excess nutrients. The Limnos is a critical research platform for cross boarder efforts to understand and respond to these threats.

This site visit was also a first-hand opportunity for the Ministers to be briefed on the current status and latest innovations Fisheries and Oceans Canada scientists and staff are using to address Aquatic Species at Risk, protect fish habitat, and prevent the introduction of Aquatic Invasive Species, including critical efforts to prevent Asian Carps from entering the Great Lakes. Through Budget 2017, the Government of Canada allocated $43.8 million over five years, to help prevent, respond to, and manage the spread of aquatic invasive species. Management of aquatic invasive species is a responsibility the federal government shares with provincial and territorial governments and we continue to work closely with them, along with our US counterparts to support prevention and response activities to protect our Great Lakes.

Related Link :

Ontario Baitfish Primer

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SOURCE Fisheries and Oceans Central & Arctic Region

Jocelyn Lubczuk, Press Secretary, Office of the Minister of Fisheries, Oceans and the Canadian Coast Guard, 343-548-7863, [email protected]; Media Relations, Fisheries and Oceans Canada, 613-990-7537, [email protected]