State of the Bay event focus on rehabilitation efforts

Find out how healthy the Bay of Quinte is at a special gathering hosted by The Bay of Quinte Remedial Action Plan (BQRAP).

“The Bay of Quinte Remedial Action Plan is moving closer to its goal of removing the Area of Concern status from the Bay of Quinte. It is important to start focusing on the positive results BQRAP initiatives have made to the Bay’s ecosystem,” says Sarah Midlane-Jones, communications representative. “There is still work to do, but we need to start thinking about the long-term actions that will instill a culture of eternal vigilance about the Bay.”

The Wednesday, Oct. 10 event is two-fold: From 3 – 8:30 p.m. the Ministry of Natural Resources’ new research vessel – Ontario Explorer – will be docked at Meyers Pier in Belleville and open to the public to tour. From 6:30 – 8:30 p.m. there will be a State of the Bay public information session at Meyers Pier.
The BQRAP staff and partner agencies will be available to answer questions about the rehabilitation of the Bay and discuss the 10 environmental challenges (Beneficial Use Impairments – BUI) the BQRAP has been working to restore.
The public is encouraged to review and comment on the status of the Bay, an important component in removing the Bay’s Area of Concern status. Comments also welcome at www.bqrap.ca.
The Back to the Bay award will be presented to Manfred Koechlin who has dedicated many years, as a volunteer, to rehabilitating the Bay.

The Bay of Quinte Remedial Action Plan’s (BQRAP) ecosystem approach has been rehabilitating the bay. There have been habitat enhancement and restoration programs to alleviate the loss of fish and wildlife habitat and more than 800 hectares of wetland have been either rehabilitated or protected.
Water quality has improved as evidenced by the types of water bugs, now found in the bay.