Recreation Bay clean-up options being investigated

03/18/2015

The MCK would like to inform Kahnawa’kehró:non that it fully supports a project submitted by the Kahnawà:ke Environment Protection Office that will investigate alternatives for cleaning up the Recreation Bay area (aka Johnson’s beach).
 
Sediments causing environmental problems in the bay have been building up for years due to the unnatural conditions created when the Seaway was constructed.
 
Though the Capital Unit will be officially submitting the project, they will work hand in hand with the Environment Protection Office, who will oversee it. The work occurring this year will model the flow patterns in the bay and test different solutions to determine what clean-up option will work best. Discussions with various agencies concerning funding of the ultimate clean-up work is on-going.
 
“Emotions run high even after 60 years of the Seaway being imposed on our people, cutting us off from our river, changing a way of life forever with no regard for us.  It’s time to make people accountable and to seek help through funding to make up for some of the damages to our existence and to protect our future,” said Environment Portfolio Chief Clinton Phillips.
 
Part of the project is to develop a long-term solution to prevent such build up from re-occurring and not just a one-time cleaning. The negative impacts on fish populations as a result of the sediment build-up will also be addressed.
 
“This area means so much to so many people in our community and the current state of the Bay area will just keep getting worse if nothing is done. Many of us can recall spending many a summer day swimming at Johnson’s Beach. It was paradise and now it looks like a swamp,” Chief Phillips concluded.
 
The modeling project will begin with installation of monitoring equipment in the spring and will continue until December.