New Charity, Georgian Bay Great Lakes Foundation

Sound Science on Great Lakes Water Levels Continues

News release from Georgian Bay Great Lakes Foundation September 29, 2016

The Georgian Bay Great Lakes Foundation, formerly the Sierra Club Canada Foundation, Great Lakes Section and its entire experienced team of professional advisors announces that it will no longer function as part of Sierra Club Canada Foundation. We have formed a new Ontario charity called Georgian Bay Great Lakes Foundation (“GBGLF”) and are now with the highly respected Huronia Community Foundation.

Our GBGLF team first identified erosion in parts of the upper St. Clair River as a contributing cause of the unprecedented sustained low water levels from 1999 to 2013. We have expanded our scope to include building consensus to address both extreme low and extreme high water levels. We will continue to bring scientifically sound published reports to all stakeholders including governments at all levels.

• We will continue to support McMaster University’s Dr. Pat Chow-Fraser and her research team as they track impacts of water-level changes to water quality, wetlands and the fishery.

• Our engineers Bill Bialkowski and Jeremy Gawen will continue to provide modeling of scientifically sound viable options to address the ongoing erosion in the upper St. Clair River in line with the International Joint Commission’s 2013 advice to governments.

• We will continue to build consensus around the most environmentally responsible, cost-effective solution that will address, for all of the Great Lakes, both extreme high and extreme low lake levels facing climate change.

• We will continue to work to expand our connections with allied Canadian and American Great Lakes organizations.

Mary Muter, Chair stated that “fact-based research and solutions, sound science and a passionate, dedicated and experienced team are our hallmarks.”

The Georgian Bay Great Lakes Foundation Board is comprised of Bill Bialkowski, Paul Cowley, Jeremy Gawen, Mary Muter, Roy Schatz, John Seagram, Jerry Smitka.