Government of Canada Announces Funding for Great Lakes Clean-Up Projects in Detroit River Area of Concern

LASALLE, ONTARIO--(Marketwire - Nov. 9, 2009) - On behalf of Canada's Environment Minister Jim Prentice, Jeff Watson, Member of Parliament for Essex, today announced $410,000 in funding from the Great Lakes Sustainability Fund for four projects to clean up the Detroit River Area of Concern. Thirty-seven projects throughout the Great Lakes are receiving $2.2 million in funding this year.

"The Government of Canada is using the Great Lakes Sustainability Fund to support partnered projects to restore water quality in the Canadian Areas of Concern," said M.P. Watson. "Locally, the Great Lakes Sustainability Fund is supporting projects like the LaSalle Riverfront Park Habitat Restoration. These types of projects represent real action to ensure that Canada's communities and families can thrive in a healthy environment."

With the LaSalle Riverfront Park Habitat Restoration project, the Essex Region Conservation Authority and the Town of LaSalle will be using soft shoreline engineering techniques to restore a stretch of Detroit River Shoreline in a way that will create and enhance wetland and fish habitat. Irregular rock shoreline habitats will be built to encourage fish habitat.

"We're very pleased to be able to help this community come closer to the goal of restoring water quality in the Detroit River. The Government of Canada is committed to maintaining and advancing the progress that has been made in cleaning up the Great Lakes," said Minister Prentice.

"The LaSalle Riverfront Park Fish Habitat Restoration Project will provide important habitat for a large number of the 60 or so fish species that inhabit the Detroit River. This will complement similar projects completed throughout the Area of Concern," stated Ray Renaud, Past Chair of the Essex Region Conservation Authority. "Additional projects focused on water quality and habitat improvements will be undertaken in the Area of Concern and across the region, thanks to the support of the Great Lakes Sustainability Fund."

Using the Great Lakes Sustainability Fund, the Government of Canada is partnering with provincial and local governments and community organizations to help clean up the 15 Canadian Areas of Concern in the Great Lakes Basin. The fund supports environmental restoration activities in three priority areas: fish and wildlife habitat rehabilitation and stewardship, contaminated sediment assessment and remediation, and innovative approaches to improve municipal wastewater effluent quality.

More information about the Great Lakes Sustainability Fund is available at sustainabilityfund.gc.ca.

For more information and to view backgrounders on this announcement, please visit: www.ec.gc.ca.

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