First weed survey in 60 years - Cooks Bay

First weed survey in 60 years



WEEDS PROBLEM? - Members of the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority conduct a weed study on Cooks Bay.

The Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority spent last week's doing the first weed survey of Cook's Bay in 60 years.

Funding was secured from the Lake Simcoe Environmental Management Strategy (LSEMS) to carry out a survey of the weed problem that has been spreading on the Bay so vital to the health of communities like Innisfil.

Rob Baldwin, manager of watershed science, said that most of the work they have done so far has been in the Innisfil section.

They are using a global positioning system (GPS) to survey every 500 yards.

There is a lot more loon tail (a native weed of the lake) that fish love than they expected. The full report will be out at the end of

Spetember or early October and it will also be posted on the Conservation Authority web site.

The weed problem in the Bay wasn't as bad last year as it has been said Baldwin. "We will be able to give residents a good, informed opinion."

"We ware taking a more scientific look at the lake. The number one thing is, it gives us a good baseline, a good reference point," added Baldwin. "We hope to continue with the weed survey every year."

"We need to understand what's happening so we can better manage the lake," stated Mike Walters, director of watershed management. "This is step one of finding what's out there."