Decades of mismanagement and heavy industrial overuse have left the Great Lakes suffering from a multitude of threats, including rapidly falling water levels as a result of commercial over-extraction and climate change, devastating levels of pollution, risky shipments of radioactive materials, increasing loss of wetland and more. As the essential source of drinking water for more than 40 million people on both sides of the border, we must fundamentally change the way the Great Lakes are viewed, managed and protected.

Sign on to the “Great Lakes Forever” petition below – add your voice today to the growing number of people across Canada and around the world who are calling for a different, and better, future for the Great Lakes.

Tell Prime Minister Harper that the Great Lakes must be recognized as part of the Commons, a Public Trust and a Protected Bioregion so we can ensure their health and protection today and for the benefit of generations to come.

Take action now!

1. Sign the petition below and please feel free to add your own comments.

2. Share this petition with a friend

Subject
Recipients	pm@pm.gc.ca
TO: Prime Minister Stephen Harper I'm gravely concerned about the myriad of serious threats to our beloved Great Lakes. Rapidly falling water levels due to over-extraction and climate change; devastating levels of pollution; risky shipments of radioactive materials; storage of radioactive waste too close to the watershed; invasive species; wetland loss; commercial bulk water exports… are just a few examples of the many dangers that could destroy this entire invaluable ecosystem. We must change the way we view the Great Lakes now, and manage them even more carefully than we would a national park. Their waterways and the ecosystems they support embody one of the most beautiful and diverse environments in North America. Not only does the area include lush forests, hundreds of tributaries and thousands of smaller lakes, it's home to wildlife species like the grey wolf, Canada lynx, moose and bald eagle, and is the essential source of drinking water for 40 million people. I urge you to show strong leadership, provide adequate funding, and work with provincial governments, the U.S. as well as Indigenous and other communities to declare the Great Lakes as part of the Commons, a Public Trust and a Protected Bioregion so that we can forever protect this precious natural area. Sincerely,
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