Great Lakes Wetlands Conservation Action Plan
Background
In 1994, the Great Lakes Wetlands Conservation Action Plan (GLWCAP) brought together various government and non-government partners in an effort to conserve and rehabilitate remaining wetlands. The Action Plan complements the goals and objectives of the Federal Wetlands Policy (1991) and the Ontario Wetlands Policy Statement (1992).
It did not represent a new program with designated resources;
rather it called for a new way of doing business (through
coordination, partnerships and networking) and aggressive
pursuit of wetland conservation opportunities through existing
programs. It was an umbrella for reporting on collective wetlands
conservation activities throughout the Canadian side of the
Great Lakes basin.
The first plan of action (1994 - 2001) was produced under the umbrella of the 25-year Strategic Plan for Wetlands of the Great Lakes Basin. Launched in 1993, the Strategic Plan involves several public and private agencies working together with individual citizens and landowners. The long-term goal of the plan is to protect the area and function of 30,000 hectares of existing wetlands in the Great Lakes basin by the year 2020.
In July 1994, the federal and provincial environment ministers signed the Canada-Ontario Agreement Respecting the Great Lakes Basin Ecosystem (COA), a six-year agreement that set specific targets and time frames for restoring, protecting and sustaining the basin's ecosystems. GLWCAP was a key delivery mechanism for COA's goal of rehabilitating and protecting 6,000 hectares of wetland habitat by the year 2001. This target was surpassed, with over 5,000 hectares of wetland receiving protection and more than 12,000 hectares being rehabilitated.
GLWCAP's strategies and associated milestones are implemented by a team of representatives from Environment Canada, the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Ducks Unlimited Canada, the Federation of Ontario Naturalists, and The Nature Conservancy of Canada. Other major partners include the Eastern Habitat Joint Venture of the North American Waterfowl Management Plan, and the Great Lakes Sustainability Fund.
The first action plan was highly successful. In addition
to the protection of several thousand hectares of wetlands
in the Great Lakes basin, accomplishments of the first Action
Plan include the production of wetland publications, displays
and facilitation of workshops, and the development of a Temperate
Wetlands Restoration Workshop and Training Course. The successes
of the first GLWCAP are outlined in detail in the Great
Lakes Wetlands Conservation Action Plan Highlights Report
(2001 - 2003), Great
Lakes Wetlands Conservation Action Plan Highlights Report
(1997 - 2001) and the first Great
Lakes Wetlands Conservation Action Plan (1994 - 2001) Progress
Report.
The second
action plan was launched in 2002. It outlines a new series
of milestones under the same broad wetland conservation strategies
developed for the first action plan. Since the launch significant
achievements have been made. GLWCAP partners have evaluated
the progress of each conservation milestone in the latest
progress report, The
Great Lakes Wetlands Conservation Action Plan (2003-2005).
The evaluation will help target priority areas for GLWCAP,
Phase Three, scheduled to commence in 2007.
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