THE BOATING ONTARIO ASSOCIATION PARTICIPATES IN THE GREAT LAKES PLASTIC CLEANUP

Oct 27, 2020

Pictured left to right with LittaTrap and Seabin capture technologiest: Christopher Hilkene, CEO of Pollution Probe; Rick Layzell, CEO of Boating Ontario; Jeff Yurek, Minister of Environment, Conservation and Parks; Dolf DeJong, CEO of the Toronto Zoo; and Mark Fisher, CEO of Council of the Great Lakes Region

The Boating Ontario Association is pleased to have been able to represent the recreational boating industry at the Toronto Zoo during an announcement from Jeff Yurek, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks on October 22nd. Minister Yurek announced that the Ontario government is providing funding to the Great Lakes Plastic Cleanup (GLPC) project to install Seabins and LittaTraps throughout the province, including multiple member marinas. Additionally, the plastic capture technologies were also installed at the Toronto Zoo to help raise awareness of the plastics pollution problem.

Plastic pollution is a long-standing problem in the Great Lakes:

·      10 million kilograms of plastic pollution annually

·      Microplastic concentrations of up to 1.25 million particles/km2

·      3500 species of plants and animals under threat

·      Average of 4 kilograms of trash collected daily by Seabin

Rick Layzell, CEO of Boating Ontario, believes that the GLPC is a natural fit for Boating Ontario and its members, saying “We are honoured to support both Pollution Probe and Council of the Great Lakes whose tireless efforts have brought this program to market. On behalf of the marinas and our boaters, we are sincerely grateful to the Ontario government, Minister Yurek, and the team within the Ministry of the Environment Conservation and Parks for the commitment they are making to the GLPC project, which will support the long-term viability of this important program. We genuinely look forward to working with all our partners as we continue to not only remove the debris from our water but to learn from it over the coming years.”

Pictured left to right with LittaTrap and Seabin capture technologies: Joe Burn, Area Representative for Enviropod; Mark Fisher, CEO of Council of the Great Lakes Region, Christopher Hilkene, CEO of Pollution Probe; and Rick Layzell, CEO of Boating Ontario.