Torontonians need more access to shorelines states 2019 Toronto Water Monitoring Report
“Water quality sampling in Toronto’s waters by Swim Drink Fish is important for many reasons. It engages the local officials and water users in collecting meaningful water quality data to share with the public on Swim Guide and it grows the movement of people working for swimmable drinkable fishable water.”
Our fourth annual report, Toronto Water Monitoring Report: A SwimmableTO has been released and details our findings and recommendations from the 2019 sampling season. Read the full report here.
This report demonstrates the need for more public access to Toronto shorelines which has only become more apparent during the summer of 2020 when record numbers of people flocked to Toronto’s beaches and shorelines.
The report also shows that there is a greater need for public awareness of combined sewage overflows (CSOs) as more and more people are getting into the water.
“When looking at the advances in transparency and public information regarding sewage spills across Canada, Kingston and Vancouver are leading the way. On the other hand, Toronto seems to be sitting on its hands when it comes to notifying the public about sewage pollution. With the upsurge of recreational water users in Toronto, it is the public’s right to know if the water they’re swimming in is impacted by sewage pollution.”
In the 2019 annual report we recommend first, improving the public awareness concerning sewage pollution. Once this has been achieved the second recommendation is to identify areas that people are using the water, reduce the impacts and eliminate CSO’s, and create new spaces for people to access the water.
As 2020 comes to a close after an unprecedented summer, it puts the findings from 2019 into a new light and makes our recommendations ever more important. Together we can achieve a 100% SwimmableTO.
Read the complete report below and join the 2021 Toronto Community Monitoring Program here.