Giving Lake Trout A Helping Hand

One of North Frontenac’s rarest natural treasures got a vital lifeline this season thanks to a hands-on community conservation effort on 27 August. Local volunteers from the Palmerston Lake Association recently partnered with national charity Watersheds Canada to rehabilitate a critical lake trout spawning bed on Palmerston Lake. Only 1% of Ontario's lakes contain Lake Trout. Maintaining clean rocky shoals is essential for the species' survival. Armed with brushes, a water pump and plenty of community spirit, the joint team worked to clear away suffocating silt and algae buildup - ensuring that the lake’s native trout population has a healthy, oxygen rich environment in which to lay their eggs during the critical late-autumn spawning.

This project was made possible thanks to the generous support of Yamaha Financial Services’ Stay Outdoors Program; Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters’ Community Conservation Fund; I.A. Financial; J.P. Bickell Foundation.

Community support for this project was overwhelming with 27 people involved, including Mel Dakers and her Watersheds staff, Palmerston Lake Association property owners, Shabot Obaadjiwan First Nations members (along with Aspen, a lovely black lab), Councillor Roy Huetl, future Councillor Katie Surra with her entire family, and many environmentally concerned neighbours.

Thanks to this hands-on effort, one more generation of Palmerston Lake trout will have a clean, healthy place to call home.