In 2016, the U.S. and Canada adopted a new water management plan for Lake Ontario and the St Lawrence River. Designed in part to overcome decades of environmental impacts from the previous water management plan, Plan 2014 takes steps to promote more natural variability of water levels, thereby improving the health of coastal wetlands, shorelines, and ecosystems. It was hailed as one of the largest ecosystem restoration projects in North America, influencing more than 64,000 acres of wetlands and 700 miles of shoreline. Unfortunately, the adoption of the plan was followed by record water levels in the Great Lakes, which led to calls by some stakeholders to revise the plan. Learn more about what’s happening now with Plan 2014.
