The effort for a binationally-coordinated water quality and research effort on Lake of the Woods got a boost from the province this month, putting Ontario in the drivers seat to drive projects on the lake.  In only four years, the Lake of the Woods Water Sustainability Foundation has made great strides in bringing nearly 50 agencies - from Canada, the U.S., Manitoba and Ontario - surrounding the basin together to coordinate efforts to sustain or improve the lake's water, according to executive director Todd Sellers.

In November, Mayor Len Compton, along with former Prime Minister John Turner, met with Premier Dalton McGuinty to encourage the province to get behind the foundation's push for an International Joint Commission reference for a water pollution board on Lake of the Woods.

FORT FRANCES, Ont. - Area residents voiced concern Tuesday about the level of Rainy Lake this spring at the annual meeting of the International Rainy Lake Board of Control.  Newly appointed International Joint Commissioner Pierre Trepanier was on hand to greet board members and community at La Place Rendez-Vous.  The IJC requires both the IRLBC and the International Rainy River Water Pollution Board to hold the joint public forum. It is an opportunity for the board to present updates water levels, basin, flowage and pollution issues and hear feedback from the community.  The board reported on basin issues regarding hydropower developments, environmental monitoring and lake level data collection for the next rule curve reassessment in 2015. Members are also looking into nutrient levels and invasive species.

Todd Sellers, director, Lake of the Woods Water Sustainability Foundation, www.lowwsf.com, was present to request that the board consider adopting their concerns down river as an international issue that can not be resolved without bi national effort. The IJC, he added, is already in a position to coordinate this lake in its basin-wide issue.
For the past four years the foundation has monitored lake drinking water, lake trout habitat and advocated on behalf of surrounding communities and resort owners.  "For the past 42 years the Rainy River has benefited from pollution monitoring by the IJC, and Lake of the Woods deserves no less," said Sellers.

Canadian and American science and governance came together Wednesday to celebrate a new working relationship that was launched with this year's State of the Basin Report at the Lake of the Woods Water Quality Forum.

"The water doesn't respect national boundaries. We all share the water," said Todd Sellers, the executive director of the Lake of the Woods Sustainability Foundation.  Minnesota Pollution Control Agency Minister Brad Moore's presence at the meeting was reassuring for Sellers, who is encouraged by the cooperation south of the border. 

By fall, cottagers involved in the province's land tax reform should have received their assessment notices, and their first tax bill will be due next spring. This was the message from Terry Fyke, who has been following the issue closely, on behalf of members.  "This is going to be a big issues, regardless of where you reside," he said.  The property owners' association is one of the biggest in the country and Fyke is the chairman of the Government Affairs and Planning Committee. The association's annual cottage show in Winnipeg in May attracted 3,000 visitors.