Mayor Gary Nelson of Red Rock (standing, right) addresses participants at the May 7th Nipigon Bay RAP Open House event. About 50 people from Nipigon, Red Rock, Lake Helen, Rocky Bay and Beardmore attended the event. Click here for more photos. Scroll down in this post for audio clips reflecting public input.
Associated Documents and Information:
The Nipigon Bay Remedial Action Plan (RAP) hosted an open house on May 7th at the Nipigon Recreation Centre in Nipigon, Ontario. A presentation, along with question, answer and public comment period took place at 7 p.m. Approximately 50 people attended the event. View the full agenda. The event was an opportunity for residents of Nipigon, Red Rock, Lake Helen, Dorion and area to find out about completed RAP actions to restore environmental quality in Nipigon Bay. Ongoing monitoring and environmental programs for Nipigon Bay were also outlined. Completed actions incude:
- a Nipigon River Water Management Plan limiting water level fluctuations impacting fish populations
- a new secondary municipal wastewater treatment plant for the Town of Nipigon
- substantial work to remove garbage/debris and rehabilitate Clearwater Creek
- a marina in Red Rock incorporating fish habitat features
Ongoing work includes:
- environmental monitoring
- a stormwater management plan for Clearwater Creek and the Town of Nipigon
- construction of a secondary wastewater treatment plant for the Town of Red Rock.
Displays and information about completed RAP actions, ongoing environmental programs and monitoring were included at the event. Representatives from the RAP Public Advisory Committee, Environment Canada, the Ontario Ministry of the Environment and Climate Change and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry were on hand to answer questions/comments and discuss concerns.
Nipigon Bay was originally listed as a Great Lakes “Area of Concern” because water quality and environmental health were severely degraded. This situation was due to industrial and municipal effluent discharges, accumulation of wood fibre and bark from log driving and fluctuating river flows due to hydro-electric generation. These factors caused several environmental problems, including heavily impacted fish populations. Work to implement remedial actions in Nipigon Bay has been ongoing since this location was identified as an Area of Concern in 1986 by the International Joint Commission in conjunction with the governments of Canada and USA.
