Postpone the Summer Drainage of Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe

To: Ministry of Natural Resources
Canada Parks (Trent-Severn Waterway)
Transport Canada, Navigable Waters Group,
Wasdell Fall Power Corporation


We, the undersigned, hereby petition the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) and associated government departments to postpone the annual summer drainage of Lake Simcoe and Lake Couchiching into the fall.

The areas of Lake Simcoe and Lake Couchiching are of significant economic importance to the region and to the Province of Ontario. Each summer, thousands of people living around, or visiting these lakes come to enjoy the natural resources in the surrounding area. The summer increase in residents and visitors has a large economic impact on local businesses.

North of the lakes, in Washago, Ontario, the Wasdell Falls Dam is a concrete water control structure, and its current primary purpose is for flood control and to provide water level control for navigation and recreational purposes. Each year, the dam is opened in the beginning of the summer to allow water to drain out of the Lakes Simcoe and Couchiching in order to reduce the overall water level. This is done to prevent flooding as a result of spring runoff when the ice melts.

Starting the process early in the summer creates a significant drop in the water level by the middle of August ever year. In many parts of Lake Couchiching and Lake Simcoe the water level drop is so severe that it creates shallow and impassable areas around cottages and through channels. Hundreds of boaters are forced to remove their boats from the water early in the season, causing economic loss to local marinas in the late summer and early fall. In addition, some boats may run aground as a result of the unexpected water level drop. This is unacceptable to the residents who use these lakes for their summer enjoyment.

We petition the MNR to postpone the annual drainage through the Wasdell Falls Dam to the fall season so that the water levels remain consistent in the lakes during the summer boating season. Postponing the drainage would still allow the water level to drop to lower levels before the ice forms in December in order to reduce the potential for flooding in the spring. This would contribute to greater enjoyment of the two lakes by all residents and visitors throughout the summer including increased economic benefit to the region.