Environment Minister Elizabeth Witmer plunged $50 million yesterday into cleaning up the Great Lakes.
Witmer said the money will be used to help clean up polluted areas, monitor water quality and wildlife and reduce pollutants.
"At times in the past, we have chased prosperity at the expense of the environment," Witmer said. "For too many years we allowed pollution and neglect to threaten our shorelines, our beaches, our wildlife, our water quality and our livelihood.
"We have pulled back from the brink of irreparable harm," she said.
The Ontario government is putting $10 million a year over five years into the clean up of Lake Ontario, Lake Erie, Lake Huron and Lake Superior.
However, Witmer said it's not clear yet when Lake Ontario will be fit for swimmers again.
Liberal environment critic Jim Bradley said the government would have to invest 10 times as much to make any difference to water quality in the Great Lakes.
"It's a pathetic effort on the part of the government -- if they add another zero on (the $50 million), people might take them seriously," Bradley said.
In addition to the beach closures caused by raw sewage going into the water, numerous chemicals go into the lake that can cause health concerns over the long term, he said.
Witmer said that various levels of government, working with community groups, have made significant improvements to 17 areas on the Great Lakes identified as pollution hot spots.
More than half the cleanup work on these areas has been completed and one area, the Collingwood Harbour, has been taken off the concern list, she said.
Bradley said it would take roughly $10 million to clean up each of the remaining 16 spots on the list.
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