Ditch The Dam: Let the Etobicoke Creek Flow!

Ditch The Dam: Let the Etobicoke Creek Flow!

Started
May 20, 2022
Signatures: 226Next Goal: 500
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Why this petition matters

Started by Brian Bailey

The dam on the lower Etobicoke Creek no longer serves any purpose except to block the migration of fish. Its removal was promised 20 years ago.  Now it is falling apart.  Let’s finally get rid of it!

Why? Barriers to fish movement impair the health and resilience of a watershed. Nothing gets past this dam. As climate change brings an increase in extreme weather events, the ecological resilience of our waterways is more important than ever.

The dam was built in 1913 to allow the Toronto Golf Club to irrigate their course. They now draw water directly from Lake Ontario. The dam was supposed to have been removed in 2002, but the project seems to have fallen into a bureaucratic no man's land. There is no approved plan and no budget to carry out the work. The dam straddles the municipal boundary between Toronto and Mississauga, and is still owned by the Toronto Golf Club.

During the decades of inaction, the condition of the dam has deteriorated to the point that it has become a safety hazard for people as well. Massive chunks of concrete appear to be suspended in the air as the underlying substrates have been washed away.

We ask the City of Toronto, the City of Mississauga, the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority, and the Toronto Golf Club to prioritize the removal of this dam for the health of the creek and the safety of the people.

This petition was created by Citizens Concerned about the Future of the Etobicoke Waterfront (CCFEW). For more information on this issue, please visit our website ccfew.org.

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Signatures: 226Next Goal: 500
Support now
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