Language selection

Government of Canada / Gouvernement du Canada

Search

Restoring the Great Lakes Areas of Concern

The Great Lakes basin is Canada's most populated region. Its large population and extensive development places a strain on ecosystem health. Locations having experienced a high level of environmental damage from human activity are called Areas of Concern, a designation established under the Canada-United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. This indicator assesses progress on restoring Areas of Concern around the Great Lakes within Canadian waters and those shared with the United States.

Key results

Each Area’s beneficial uses that were initially classified as Impaired is assessed based on criteria specific to that Area. Once all criteria are met, the Area is considered Restored and delisted as an Area of Concern.

Key results

  • Environmental quality in Canada’s 17 Great Lakes Areas of Concern has improved since the restoration program began in 1987
  • As of 2025,
    • 3 of the 17 Areas of Concern have been fully restored and delisted
    • 1 Area (Nipigon Bay) has been fully restored but remains listed pending final approval of its completion report following public consultation

Status of Canada's 17 Great Lakes Areas of Concern, 2025

Map of the 17 areas of concern
Data table for the long description
Status of Canada's 17 Great Lakes Areas of Concern, 2025
Lake Area of Concern Assessment year Status as of March 31, 2025
Superior Thunder Bay 1991, 2012 Area of Concern
Superior Nipigon Bay 1991 Area of Concern
Superior Jackfish Bay 1991 Area of Concern in Recovery
Superior Peninsula Harbour 1991, 2012 Area of Concern
n/a St. Marys River 1992 Area of Concern
Huron Spanish Harbour 1993 Area of Concern in Recovery
Huron Severn Sound 1988 Restored Area of Concern
Huron Collingwood Harbour 1989 Restored Area of Concern
n/a St. Clair River 1991 Area of Concern
n/a Detroit River 1991, 1998 Area of Concern
Erie Wheatley Harbour 1998 Restored Area of Concern
n/a Niagara River 1993 Area of Concern
Ontario Hamilton Harbour 1992 Area of Concern
Ontario Toronto and Region 1989 Area of Concern
Ontario Port Hope Harbour 2003 Area of Concern
Ontario Bay of Quinte 1990 Area of Concern
Ontario St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne 1992 Area of Concern

Note: n/a = not applicable, Great Lake tributary river. Assessment reports were published between 1988 and 1993, in what were titled Stage 1 Remedial Action Plan reports, with the exception of Wheatley Harbour and Port Hope Harbour, which were produced in 1998 and 2003, respectively. Many of these included undefined status for certain beneficial uses, and they “required further assessment”. Upon further assessment over subsequent years, what had been undefined was clarified in Remedial Action Plan status update reports. In these cases, a second year is noted as assessment year. 
Source: Canada Water Agency (2025) Great Lakes: Areas of Concern.

Download data file (Excel/CSV; 1.9 kB)

How this indicator was calculated

Note: Area of Concern status is based on progress reported as of March 31, 2025.
Source: Canada Water Agency (2025) Great Lakes: Areas of Concern.

In 1987, the Canada-United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement identified 43 Areas of Concern around the Great Lakes. Of these Areas of Concern:

  • 26 were entirely in American waters
    • 7 of which have been restored: Oswego River (2006), Presque Isle Bay (2013), Deer Lake (2014), White Lake (2014), Lower Menominee River (2020), Ashtabula River (2021), and Rochester Embayment (2024)
  • 5 were shared between Canada and the United States
  • 12 were entirely in Canadian waters

To date, considerable progress has been made towards the restoration of Canada's 17 Areas of Concern (including the 5 shared with the United States):

  • 3 have been fully restored and delisted, meaning all impaired beneficial uses have a status of not impaired and the location has been removed from the list: Collingwood Harbour (1994), Severn Sound (2002) and Wheatley Harbour (2010)
  • 1 has had all impaired beneficial uses restored and community engagement will continue until it is removed from the list of Areas of Concern: Nipigon Bay (2016)
    •  As of 2016, Nipigon Bay had all of its impaired beneficial uses restored; however, it cannot be delisted as an Area of Concern until the final approval of its completion report following public consultations
  • 2 have been formally designated as Areas of Concern in Recovery, signifying that all remedial actions have been completed and the natural recovery of the ecosystem will continue to be monitored: Spanish Harbour (1999) and Jackfish Bay (2011)
  • Efforts continue to restore the remaining 11 Areas of Concern: Peninsula Harbour, Thunder Bay, Bay of Quinte, Port Hope Harbour, Toronto and Region, Hamilton Harbour, St Lawrence River, St. Clair River, St. Marys River, Niagara River and Detroit River

Progress on restoring the Great Lakes Areas of Concern

Key results

  • As of March 2025, 76 of the 121 impaired beneficial uses identified in Canada's 17 Areas of Concern have been restored. Efforts continue to restore the 45 remaining impaired beneficial uses
  • Between April 2023 and March 2025, 4 beneficial uses were restored (out of the 76 restored in total) in the St. Marys River (2), St. Clair River (1) and St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne (1) Areas of Concern

Progress on Canada's 17 Great Lakes Areas of Concern, 1987 to 2025

Progress on Canada's 17 Great Lakes Areas of Concern, 1987 to 2023 (see data table for long description)
Data table for the long description
Progress on Canada’s 17 Great Lakes Areas of Concern, 1987 to 2025
Lake Area of Concern Category Benefit Impaired Status Year restored
(if applicable)
Superior Thunder Bay Environment Degradation of benthos Impaired n/a
Superior Thunder Bay Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Impaired n/a
Superior Thunder Bay Environment Loss of fish wildlife habitat Impaired n/a
Superior Thunder Bay Economy Added costs to agriculture or industry Restored 2004
Superior Thunder Bay Economy Degradation of aesthetics Restored 2019
Superior Thunder Bay Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2012
Superior Thunder Bay Human health Beach closings Restored 2023
Superior Nipigon Bay[A] Environment Degradation of benthos Restored 2016
Superior Nipigon Bay[A] Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Restored 2016
Superior Nipigon Bay[A] Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Restored 2016
Superior Nipigon Bay[A] Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Restored 2016
Superior Nipigon Bay[A] Economy Degradation of aesthetics Restored 2016
Superior Nipigon Bay[A] Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 1995
Superior Nipigon Bay[A] Economy Tainting of fish and wildlife flavour Restored 1995
Superior Jackfish Bay[B] Environment Degradation of benthos Impaired n/a
Superior Jackfish Bay[B] Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Impaired n/a
Superior Jackfish Bay[B] Environment Fish tumours or other deformities Restored 2010
Superior Jackfish Bay[B] Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Impaired n/a
Superior Jackfish Bay[B] Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 1998
Superior Peninsula Harbour Environment Degradation of benthos Restored 2022
Superior Peninsula Harbour Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2012
Superior Peninsula Harbour Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] St. Marys River Environment Degradation of benthos Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] St. Marys River Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Restored 2024
 n/a[D] St. Marys River Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Restored 2018
 n/a[D] St. Marys River Environment Fish tumours or other deformities Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] St. Marys River Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] St. Marys River Economy Degradation of aesthetics Restored 2018
 n/a[D] St. Marys River Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2024
 n/a[D] St. Marys River Human health Beach closings Restored 2018
 n/a[D] St. Marys River Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Impaired n/a
Huron Spanish Harbour[B] Environment Degradation of benthos Impaired n/a
Huron Spanish Harbour[B] Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Restored 1999
Huron Spanish Harbour[B] Economy Added costs to agriculture or industry Restored 2002
Huron Spanish Harbour[B] Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2020
Huron Spanish Harbour[B] Human health Beach closings Restored 2002
Huron Spanish Harbour[B] Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Impaired n/a
Huron Severn Sound[C] Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Restored 2002
Huron Severn Sound[C] Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Restored 2002
Huron Severn Sound[C] Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Restored 2002
Huron Severn Sound[C] Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2002
Huron Severn Sound[C] Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Restored 2002
Huron Collingwood Harbour[C] Environment Bird/animal deformities or reproduction problems Restored 1994
Huron Collingwood Harbour[C] Environment Degradation of benthos Restored 1994
Huron Collingwood Harbour[C] Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Restored 1994
Huron Collingwood Harbour[C] Environment Degradation of phytoplankton and zooplankton populations Restored 1994
Huron Collingwood Harbour[C] Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Restored 1994
Huron Collingwood Harbour[C] Economy Degradation of aesthetics Restored 1994
Huron Collingwood Harbour[C] Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 1994
Huron Collingwood Harbour[C] Human health Beach closings Restored 1994
Huron Collingwood Harbour[C] Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Restored 1994
 n/a[D] St. Clair River Environment Degradation of benthos Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] St. Clair River Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] St. Clair River Economy Added costs to agriculture or industry Restored 2012
 n/a[D] St. Clair River Economy Degradation of aesthetics Restored 2016
 n/a[D] St. Clair River Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2018
 n/a[D] St. Clair River Human health Beach closings Restored 2018
 n/a[D] St. Clair River Human health Restrictions- drinking water consumption, taste/odour problems Restored 2024
 n/a[D] St. Clair River Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] Detroit River Environment Bird/animal deformities or reproduction problems Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] Detroit River Environment Degradation of benthos Restored 2020
 n/a[D] Detroit River Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] Detroit River Environment Fish tumours or other deformities Restored 2020
 n/a[D] Detroit River Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] Detroit River Economy Added costs to agriculture or industry Restored 2010
 n/a[D] Detroit River Economy Degradation of aesthetics Restored 2016
 n/a[D] Detroit River Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2019
 n/a[D] Detroit River Economy Tainting of fish and wildlife flavour Restored 2014
 n/a[D] Detroit River Human health Beach closings Restored 2016
 n/a[D] Detroit River Human health Restrictions- drinking water consumption, taste/odour problems Restored 2010
 n/a[D] Detroit River Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Impaired n/a
Erie Wheatley Harbour[C] Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Restored 2010
Erie Wheatley Harbour[C] Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Restored 2010
Erie Wheatley Harbour[C] Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Restored 2010
Erie Wheatley Harbour[C] Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2010
Erie Wheatley Harbour[C] Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Restored 2010
 n/a[D] Niagara River Environment Bird/animal deformities or reproduction problems Restored 2009
 n/a[D] Niagara River Environment Degradation of benthos Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] Niagara River Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] Niagara River Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Restored 2019
 n/a[D] Niagara River Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Impaired n/a
 n/a[D] Niagara River Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2009
 n/a[D] Niagara River Human health Beach closings Restored 2023
 n/a[D] Niagara River Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Impaired n/a
Ontario Hamilton Harbour Environment Degradation of benthos Impaired n/a
Ontario Hamilton Harbour Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Impaired n/a
Ontario Hamilton Harbour Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Impaired n/a
Ontario Hamilton Harbour Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Impaired n/a
Ontario Hamilton Harbour Economy Degradation of aesthetics Impaired n/a
Ontario Hamilton Harbour Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Impaired n/a
Ontario Hamilton Harbour Human health Beach closings Impaired n/a
Ontario Hamilton Harbour Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Impaired n/a
Ontario Toronto and Region Environment Degradation of benthos Restored 2016
Ontario Toronto and Region Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Impaired n/a
Ontario Toronto and Region Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Impaired n/a
Ontario Toronto and Region Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Impaired  n/a
Ontario Toronto and Region Economy Degradation of aesthetics Restored 2020
Ontario Toronto and Region Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2016
Ontario Toronto and Region Human health Beach closings Impaired n/a
Ontario Toronto and Region Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Impaired n/a
Ontario Port Hope Harbour Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Impaired n/a
Ontario Bay of Quinte Environment Degradation of benthos Restored 2018
Ontario Bay of Quinte Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Restored 2018
Ontario Bay of Quinte Environment Degradation of phytoplankton and zooplankton populations Impaired n/a
Ontario Bay of Quinte Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Impaired n/a
Ontario Bay of Quinte Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Restored 2018
Ontario Bay of Quinte Economy Degradation of aesthetics Restored 2022
Ontario Bay of Quinte Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2017
Ontario Bay of Quinte Human health Beach closings Restored 2019
Ontario Bay of Quinte Human health Restrictions- drinking water consumption, taste/odour problems Restored 2020
Ontario Bay of Quinte Human health Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption Impaired n/a
Ontario St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne Environment Degradation of benthos Restored 2007
Ontario St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne Environment Degradation of fish and wildlife populations Impaired n/a
Ontario St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne Environment Eutrophication or undesirable algae Impaired n/a
Ontario St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne Environment Loss of fish and wildlife habitat Impaired n/a
Ontario St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne Economy Added costs to agriculture or industry Restored 1997
Ontario St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne Economy Degradation of aesthetics Restored 1997
Ontario St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne Economy Restrictions on dredging activities Restored 2007
Ontario St. Lawrence River at Cornwall/Akwesasne Human health Beach closings Restored 2023

Note: n/a = not applicable. [A] All impaired beneficial uses have been restored in the Area of Concern; however, it cannot be formally designated as a Restored Area of Concern until the final approval of the completion report. [B] Area of Concern in Recovery. [C] Restored Area of Concern. [D] Great Lake tributary river. Year refers to fiscal year, which runs from April 1 to March 31. The year 2025 therefore refers to April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025.
Source: Canada Water Agency (2025) Great Lakes: Areas of Concern.

Download data file (Excel/CSV; 11.2 kB)

How this indicator was calculated

Note: [A] As of 2016, the Nipigon Bay Area of Concern had all of its impaired beneficial uses restored; however, it cannot be formally designated as a Restored Area of Concern until the final approval of its completion report following public consultations on its delisting. Year refers to fiscal year, which runs from April 1 to March 31. The year 2025 therefore refers to April 1, 2024 to March 31, 2025.
Source: Canadian Water Agency (2025) Great Lakes: Areas of Concern.

At the 17 Areas of Concern, 121 beneficial uses have been considered impaired since the restoration program began in 1987. Beneficial uses describe how an aquatic ecosystem benefits the environment, economy or human health: they are the ecological services that are available to the population and the environment when the ecosystem is healthy (in other words, not impaired).

An impaired beneficial use has experienced enough changes to the chemical, physical or biological integrity of the area to restrict human use or to restrict the area's ability to support plants and animals. Before classifying an area as an Area of Concern, 14 beneficial uses are considered. Each of the 14 beneficial uses can be classified based on their impairment under 1 of the following Categories of impact:Footnote 1

Environment (7)

  1. Degradation of fish and wildlife populations
  2. Fish tumours or other deformities
  3. Bird or animal deformities or reproduction problems
  4. Degradation of benthos
  5. Degradation of phytoplankton and zooplankton populations
  6. Eutrophication or undesirable algae
  7. Loss of fish and wildlife habitat

Economy (4)

  1. Tainting of fish and wildlife flavour
  2. Restrictions on dredging activities
  3. Degradation of aesthetics
  4. Added costs to agriculture or industry

Human health (3)

  1. Restrictions on fish and wildlife consumption
  2. Restrictions on drinking water consumption, or taste and odour problems
  3. Beach closing
About the indicator

About the indicator

What the indicator measures

This indicator assesses progress towards the restoration of Canada's 12 Areas of Concern and the 5 Areas of Concern shared with the United States.

An Area of Concern is a region in the Great Lakes that has experienced a high level of environmental damage from human activity. There are 14 beneficial uses that are considered in order to decide whether an area should be classified as an Area of Concern. Beneficial uses describe how an aquatic ecosystem benefits the economy, human health and the environment: they are the ecological services that are available to the population and the environment when the ecosystem is healthy (not impaired). An Impaired beneficial use has experienced enough changes to the chemical, physical or biological integrity of the area to restrict human use or to restrict the area's ability to support plants and animals.

The status of a beneficial use is determined by monitoring and conducting scientific studies in the Area of Concern. The study results are compared to the findings for reference sites and targets listed in the site's remedial action plan and other update reports.

Why this indicator is important

This indicator is used to provide information about the state of the Great Lakes and the Canadian environment. It tracks the work done to repair the environment at 17 Areas of Concern in Canada. In these areas, the degraded environment has disrupted fisheries, wildlife, tourism, recreation and/or agriculture.

Related initiatives

The indicator contributes to the Sustainable Development Goals of the 2030 Agenda for Sustainable Development. It is linked to the 2030 Agenda's Goal 6: Clean water and sanitation.

The indicator also contributes towards reporting on Target 7 of the Canada's 2030 Nature Strategy: "Reduce pollution risks and the negative impact of pollution from all sources, by 2030, to levels that are not harmful to biodiversity and ecosystem functions and services."

The indicator also assesses progress towards the goals of the Canada-Ontario Agreement on Great Lakes Water Quality and Ecosystem Health, 2021. Specifically, it measures progress towards restoring the remaining impaired beneficial uses in the Canadian Great Lakes Areas of Concern (Thunder Bay,  Jackfish Bay, Peninsula Harbour, St. Marys River, Spanish River, St. Clair River, Detroit River, Niagara River, Bay of Quinte, St. Lawrence River, Hamilton Harbour, Toronto and Region, and Port Hope Harbour).

Related indicators

The Phosphorus levels in the offshore waters of the Great Lakes indicator reports total phosphorus levels in the offshore waters of the 4 Canadian Great Lakes.

The Phosphorus loading to Lake Erie indicators report on the total phosphorus loadings flowing directly into Lake Erie or from its tributary rivers.

The Water quality in Canadian rivers indicators provide a measure of the ability of river water across Canada to support plants and animals.

The Nutrients in the St. Lawrence River indicator report the status of total phosphorus and total nitrogen levels in the St. Lawrence River.

Data sources and methods

Data sources and methods

Data sources

The Canada Water Agency's Great Lakes Areas of Concern program tracks the status of all beneficial uses in Canada's 17 Areas of Concern (including the 5 shared with the United States). This information is developed as Canada exercises its responsibility under the Canada-United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement to remove a beneficial use impairment designation when the established criteria have been met. The most recent data available for each Area of Concern are used to calculate this indicator.

More information

The 2025 data were obtained from the Canada Water Agency's Areas of Concern Office. Progress reports summarizing the status of all beneficial uses for all Canadian Areas of Concern have been compiled every 1 to 3 years since 2012. Prior to 2012, beneficial use classifications were taken from remedial action plans and update reports.

Data coverage for this indicator begins with Severn Sound's Stage 1 report published in 1988 and includes data up to March 31, 2025. The other Areas of Concern released their Stage 1 reports between 1989 and 1993, with the majority being released in 1991. Wheatley Harbour released a combined Stage 1 and 2 report in 1998.

The Port Hope Harbour Area of Concern is being restored through the Port Hope Area Initiative, launched in 2001. Canadian Nuclear Laboratories is implementing the Port Hope Project on behalf of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited, a federal Crown corporation because of the nature and scope of the contamination at this site. Only the progress reports compiled since 2003 were considered for Port Hope Harbour.

Description of the Areas of Concern process

The 1987 revision of the Canada-United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement identified 43 Areas of Concern in Canadian and American waters of the Great Lakes. All Canadian Areas of Concern, have a remedial action plan to guide restoration and protection efforts targeting specific beneficial uses.Footnote 2

In the former process, under the 1987 Protocol to the Canada-United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, remedial action plans were developed and implemented in 3 stages.

  • Stage 1 identified which of 14 beneficial uses were classified as Impaired or Not impaired, as well as the sources and causes of the problem
  • Stage 2 established the goals, objectives and actions required to restore the ecosystem to a healthy state
  • Stage 3 documented the successful restoration of the Area of Concern as measured against the objectives (delisting criteria) outlined in the Stage 2 Remedial Action Plan report

When the beneficial uses were considered Not Impaired, and Stage 3 was complete, the Area of Concern was declared Restored and officially “delisted”. Typically, Canada waited to change the status of beneficial uses to Not Impaired in bunches (for example, with the release of a stage update report) or en masse (for example, with the completion of Stage 3).

Under the 2012 Canada-United States Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement, the process was modified and remedial action plans are now periodically updated to reflect restoration progress. That is, the Parties will not wait to change the status of beneficial uses en masse. Canada

  • will remove an Impaired beneficial use designation when established criteria have been met
  • may elect to identify an Area of Concern as an Area of Concern in Recovery when all actions identified in a remedial action plan have been implemented and monitoring shows recovery is progressing as anticipated
  • will remove the Area of Concern or Area of Concern in Recovery designation when environmental monitoring confirms beneficial use restoration criteria have been met

An Area of Concern in Recovery is an area originally identified as an Area of Concern where, on the basis of community and government consensus, all scientifically-feasible and economically-reasonable actions have been implemented and additional time is required for the environment to recover.

The reports prepared for each Area of Concern and additional information can be found at Great Lakes: Areas of Concern.

Methods

The number of beneficial uses listed as Impaired was counted for all Stage 1 reports and all update reports conducted up to the end of March 2025. The results include the beneficial uses for Canada's 12 Areas of Concern, covering the 4 Canadian Great Lakes, as well as the 5 Areas of Concern shared with the United States in their connecting channels.

An Impaired beneficial use can be classified as Restored if all delisting requirements for that beneficial use impairment have been met. Criteria for a beneficial use impairment are established in consideration of conditions that can be eventually achieved on a lake-wide basis.

Recent changes

On October 15, 2024, the Canada Water Agency Act came into force to establish the Canada Water Agency as a new, standalone entity under the federal Environment Minister’s portfolio to provide deferral leadership and improve coordination on freshwater management in Canada. The Great Lakes Areas of Concern program was transferred from Environment and Climate Change Canada to the Canada Water Agency.

Caveats and limitations

This indicator does not show the continuous nature of the rehabilitation process for each Area of Concern because the status for each beneficial use impairment can only change when new reports are published and the party (Canada) has confirmed the status as per the provisions in Annex 1 of the Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement. With progress reports being updated annually, the staggered change is less evident.

Port Hope Harbour follows a separate program, the Port Hope Area Initiative that is being implemented by Canadian Nuclear Laboratories on behalf of Atomic Energy of Canada Limited.

Resources

Resources

References

Environment and Climate Change Canada (2013) 2012 Great Lakes Water Quality Agreement: annex 1.

Related information

Great Lakes: Areas of Concern

Canada-United States Great Lakes water quality agreement, 2012

Canada-Ontario Agreement on Great Lakes Water Quality and Ecosystem Health, 2021

2022 Progress Report of the Parties

Alternative format

Download the alternative format of the Restoring the Great Lakes Areas of Concern indicator (PDF; 941 MB).

Infographic
 
Long description

The infographic presents information on the indicator Restoring the Great Lakes Areas of Concern. The first image shows the location and status of Canada's 17 Great Lakes Areas of Concern on a map. Four (4) Areas of Concern are located on Lake Superior, 3 on Lake Huron, 1 on Lake Erie and 4 on Lake Ontario. The remaining 5 are located on the channels connecting the lakes and are shared by Canada and the United States. An Area of Concern is a region in the Great Lakes that shows a high level of environmental damage from human activity. As of 2025, 3 Areas of Concern have had all impaired beneficial uses restored: Severn Sound and Collingwood Harbour on Lake Huron and Wheatley Harbour on Lake Erie. There are 2 Areas of Concern in Recovery: Spanish Harbour on Lake Huron and Jackfish Bay on Lake Superior. The second image presents the 76 restored beneficial uses in 3 categories of impact: 29 Environment, 31 Economy and 16 Human health. Since 1987, 76 out of 121 impaired  beneficial uses have been restored. 

Page details

2025-09-25