For the past three days, I’ve been in Washington D.C. alongside fellow mayors from both Canada and the United States, part of the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence Cities Initiative. During this time, we had the opportunity to meet with numerous lawmakers, including Senator Gary Peters, Representatives Hillary Scholten, Dan Kildee, and Frank Mrvan. Additionally, we held discussions with Mary Frances Repko, Deputy Assistant to the President and Deputy National Climate Advisor, to advocate for vital programs and facilitate easier access to funding.
Not only are the Great Lakes and St. Lawrence River crucial for coastal communities, but places like Aurora rely on the Great Lakes for their water supply. While in Canada, we may not be grappling with lead pipes, we are faced with the necessity of building new infrastructure to increase servicing capacity required for appropriate growth. Ultimately, our goal is to ensure that communities on both sides of the Great Lakes can continue their efforts to restore and protect this vital ecosystem, while also safeguarding our freshwater for future generations. #LeadershipThatGetsThingsDone
One Response
Hi,
I am happy to hear about your experience on this initiative. Although we do not have piping issues, York Region does have many headwaters that feed downstream into the Great Lakes. As development pressures increase it is our responsibility to ensure adequate buffer zones and policies are implemented to ensure the negative impacts to water quality is addressed. Are you doing outreach to the other municipalities in York Region to share actions identified through this initiative? How are upstream water quality issues, as they relate to their impact to the Great Lakes, being addressed especially as they relate to forever chemicals, pharmaceuticals, plastics from litter etc. that may not be currently monitored in our drinking water?