The Walkerton tragedy; Selling off Ontario’s water; Global warming; …
Each of these highly publicized issues leads back to one fundamental truth. Ontario’s abundant water resource cannot and must not be taken for granted.
“We need a province-wide water resources conservation policy based on good science and the principals of sustainable use, equitable allocation, public education and volunteerism,” says Mike Reader, Executive Director of the 83,000-member Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters (O.F.A.H.).
In a 49 page document entitled Water Resources in Ontario, the O.F.A.H. has produced a template for long term, sustainable and effective water resource management.
“We want to share this template. We want to share the knowledge we’ve amassed through conservation efforts that extend back to 1928 and earlier. The O.F.A.H. is, and has been, in a unique position to work on projects that cover the widest spectrum of conservation work,” explains Reader whose organization has been instrumental in reforestation, water quality enhancement, wildlife species reintroduction, habitat protection and a multitude of other programs to conserve Ontario’s natural resources.
The O.F.A.H. document focuses on water quantity, although it is recognized that water quality issues are closely related.
O.F.A.H. Fisheries Biologist Dave Brown notes, “Most people in water rich Ontario do not realize that 99 percent of water in the Great Lakes basin is a non renewable reserve that originated with the melting of the last great glacier that covered all of Canada and many parts of the U.S. Rainfall and snowmelt contribute to less than one percent of our water.”
With increasing demand for water within the Great Lakes basin as well as changing climatic trends toward warmer, dryer weather, we cannot afford to squander this resource, adds Brown.
Walkerton was most certainly a wake up call for Ontario residents to better manage water resources. The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters has worked extensively with the agricultural community on Projects like W-3. Dubbed Wetlands, Woodlands and Wildlife, W-3 worked with farmers and the farming community to develop sustainable crop and livestock rearing practices. As a result, farmers found increased productivity and, at the same time, natural resources were protected and enhanced.
Work is also currently underway in Norfolk County where the agricultural community and the O.F.A.H. have embarked on a program of establishing water retention ponds that fill in wet years to create wildlife habitat and can be used during drought to irrigate without tapping into natural water sources that are also being affected by dry conditions.
The O.F.A.H. believes strongly in stewardship programs through which land owners are not over-regulated and bound by unwanted laws but rather enlisted as voluntary participants in programs that benefit them as well as natural resources.
“We can and have found solutions to most problems, and, with continued partnerships, intergovernmental cooperation and good management practices, we can overcome most, if not all future problems,” says O.F.A.H. Wildlife Biologist and W-3 program coordinator Ed Reid.
In a five step approach The Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters is, one, calling for more investment in water resources research, followed by, two, creation of a better provincial water conservation policy and laws.
Thirdly, the province must provide financial incentives for voluntary water conservation practices and the federal government must work with farmers to improve farm economies, reduce overproduction and irrigation demands.
The fourth step is education. By providing honest, fact-based information, public awareness and volunteerism can result. And, finally, the provincial government must make a strong case that N.A.F.T.A. enforced export of bulk water from the Great Lakes and other Ontario water bodies infringes upon our rights to adequately preserve and protect our natural resources.
For more information about this O.F.A.H. initiative or other programs, please contact Communications Specialist Mark Holmes at 705-748-6324, fax to 705-748-9577, e-mail ofah@ofah.org
To view the entire position paper, click here. You will require the free Adobe Acrobat plugin to view it.