A New Waterkeeper for Lake Ontario
Swim Drink Fish President & CEO, Mark Mattson
Swim Drink Fish Vice President & New Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, Gregary Ford
As President & CEO of Swim Drink Fish Canada, it is with immense pride and optimism that I introduce the new Lake Ontario Waterkeeper.
Since 2001, I have served in the role of Lake Ontario Waterkeeper protecting, restoring and celebrating this Great Lake. While I will continue as President and CEO of Swim Drink Fish, I am excited to announce that Gregary (Greg) Ford, our Vice President, has been appointed as the new Lake Ontario Waterkeeper. Greg is an incredible advocate for fresh water and a strong leader. Everyone who drinks the water, swims on the shorelines and eats from the fisheries is lucky to have such a passionate new Waterkeeper on our Great Lake.
Over the last 25 years of serving as Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, much has changed for the better. But it took a whole team of people to get there. Immediately after trading in my practice of law to become a Waterkeeper, my first meeting with a potential funder for Lake Ontario Waterkeeper did not go well. I was told to re-assess the decision to focus on Lake Ontario as it was a working, polluted lake and there were more important environmental issues and places that deserved attention. I am glad I did not listen. No lake or waterbody in Canada at the time deserved greater focus, attention, and advocacy. Undeterred, we launched the organization Lake Ontario Waterkeeper, now Swim Drink Fish, in 2001.
From our first legal cases seeking restoration funds for Hamilton Harbour coal tar deposits, Port Hope’s nuclear waste seeps, Kingston’s sewage overflows and Toronto’s Humber River landfill discharges, to the creation of innovative public tools, such as Swim Guide, to protect the Lake. The journey has left an indelible mark on how we see the lake. No longer a polluted rust belt, Lake Ontario is rightfully emerging as an environmental treasure that connects millions to nature and supports birds and fish populations that make it truly special.
Over time our success on Lake Ontario allowed us to expand our reach as an organization and support other communities and waterbodies beyond our great Lake Ontario. Our work and collaborations, including with many local organizations across the Country and our affiliate organizations Fraser Riverkeeper and North Saskatchewan Riverkeeper, in time extended to Vancouver, Edmonton, Moncton and throughout the Great Lakes and into the US and beyond. In 2016 Lake Ontario Waterkeeper the organization changed its name to Swim Drink Fish to better reflect our regional work. However, the role of the Lake Ontario Waterkeeper within Swim Drink Fish has continued to be a pillar of our organization.
The future of our work on Lake Ontario is bright. The Great Lakes-St Lawrence River movement called Biinaagami has emerged as a powerful tool for continuing the efforts to protect our fresh water. Collaborating with Canadian Geographic and First Nation leaders and partners, we are in the process of better understanding the Great Lakes community, the history, the languages, the Nations and the stories. Because of political divides and competing priorities, the challenge for the Great Lakes-St Lawrence watershed is to ensure all communities share responsibility in protecting the freshwater ecosystem for themselves and their neighbours. Education and engagement is a powerful strategy for achieving this goal. Lake Ontario Waterkeeper will be at the forefront of this exciting future.
Finally, with the transition, it is a good time to thank the many people who have been part of Lake Ontario Waterkeeper and now Swim Drink Fish and made possible the tools and resources to do our work. Whether you measure success by the number of people involved, the dollars spent on environmental protection, the number of legal cases won or the volume of words and articles written about the work, Swim Drink Fish Canada has exceeded expectations. And if you measure success, as I do, by the quality of people involved and the resiliency and sustainability of the movement, Swim Drink Fish is a shining star. Family, board members, donors, friends, colleagues, mentors and communities all made the little ripple started by Lake Ontario Waterkeeper grow from an idea to a powerful voice for clean water. Being grateful is an understatement. There is still so much work to do and I feel privileged to be able to continue working to build the community alongside Greg and the rest of our team that will take the work of Swim Drink Fish forward for generations to come.
I know everyone will be thrilled to get to know Greg Ford as the new Lake Ontario Waterkeeper. He will keep building the voice, doing the work, engaging the team and making the difference needed to keep Lake Ontario swimmable, drinkable and fishable. As you jump carefree into the Lake at the Gord Edgar Downie Pier in Kingston and experience the joy of living in a world where clean water is possible, please continue your support of the Swim Drink Fish movement that keeps it real.
