MOUNTAIN LIFE - Blue Mountains | Spring 2018

58 ML BLUE SPRING 2018 words :: Nelson Phillips The essence of outdoor culture and life in these parts is the big blue pond we all live beside. Georgian Bay is the archetypal godfather of Ontario’s backcountry. It’s long been a beacon of the area’s natural prestige, and a marker of cleanliness. Its clear, cold waters are the envy of the world. And it’s tough for many of us to accept that there could be anything wrong with it. But Georgian Bay is a large and complex ecosystem, and isn’t immune to the world’s growing environmental problems. Contaminants in the Great Lakes are nothing new. As one of the most populated corridors in North America, the Great Lakes region is no stranger to bacteria, parasites and invasive species, along with wastewater, agricultural and industrial runoff. Recently, microplastics have been tracked in the Lakes, and the data is alarming. A 2016 study from the United States Geological Survey found plastic fibres present in 22 percent of all river flow into the Great Lakes. In March 2018, the World Health Organization launched an inquiry into the risks associated with plastic in drinking water, after more than 90 percent of globally popular bottled water brands were found to contain microplastics. In one bottle of Nestlé Pure Life (sourced in Ontario at Aberfoyle and Erin) concentrations of plastic were as high as 10,000 parts per litre. The province of Ontario leads Canada in monitoring for microplastics. In a 2016 study the provincial government cited up to 6.7 million particles of plastic per square kilometre in Great Lakes nearshore waters, with the highest count occurring in Humber Bay, Toronto. Plastic microbeads (spherical pieces about a millimetre in width or smaller) were present in each of those samples, making up approximately 14 percent on average of the microplastics found. Sites tested included Lake Erie downstream of Detroit-Windsor, the mouth of the Grand River, and near Fort Erie. Samples from Lake Ontario were collected in Hamilton Harbour, Humber Bay, and Toronto Harbour. Georgian Bay was not tested, but an independent study conducted by Amy and Dave Freeman for National Geographic 's Beyond NOT-SO SWEETWATER A Source of Water & R ecreation for Million s, the Great Lakes Face a Growing Threat fromMicroplastics Georgian Bay's 30,000 Islands. OTMPC BACKYARD