Clean Water—Our Future: The Toronto Islands Shoreline Cleanup

In 2017, Lake Ontario’s unprecedented high water levels washed ashore metal and plastic debris, old wooden piles and cables, and large amounts of driftwood at various locations on the Toronto Islands.

On October 2, 2018, the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority and the Living City Foundation brought together volunteers from the Greater Toronto Sewer and Watermain Contractors Association, Galcon Marine, City of Toronto Parks, Forestry and Recreation and PortsToronto to collaborate on a shoreline cleanup of four sites at Mugg's Island, Donut Island, the Fairchild Towers and Ward Island Cove.

Pooling resources and volunteers, the collective undertook cleanup operations at these sites and focused on the removal of large, heavy items from the shoreline. Multiple vessels, including PortsToronto’s Iron Guppy, Osprey, William Yule, Brutus and the Sweep Scow were used to collect and remove items, which included an abandoned golf cart found in the waters near Ward’s Cove. Toronto Police Service’s Marine Unit Dive Team braved Lake Ontario’s waters on the blustery October morning to locate and attach cables to the golf cart and the Iron Guppy was on hand to extract and remove the cart by barge.

As guardian and steward of Toronto’s waterfront resources, PortsToronto was proud to collaborate with the broader waterfront community to ensure future generations can continue to enjoy the city’s vibrant shores and waterways.