PaBIA's eBlast February 3, 2021

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Volume 13 No. 1

Thanks, Bruce Tiffin for this photo! Looks like some American was able to join you up on the Bay recently! His hands look warm!

Greetings!

Happy New Year everyone! We are only 4 months away from the opening of cottage country for 2021...and though we aren't sure how it will look just yet or what the federal guidelines will be, we are hopeful that EVERYONE that can be will get vaccinated and that getting the shots should be a step in the right direction! Keep your fingers crossed and stay healthy!

Please take the time to read the letter AND survey from the TOA that you'll find further below. It's about boat speeds and wakes and whether or not they are of concern to you or whether there are locations that give you concern. Please take a moment and take the survey to have your voice heard about this safety concern on PaB's waters. It's important!

Finally, one of the fun things I learned from all of you last summer was the term Dock-tails...or was it Dock-tales? Hmmm. It is our bet that there were some of each last summer...and Mike Berton is looking for folks willing the share their Dock-tales or share photos of their summer with us to incorporate into a story for the Yearbook. So check it out below!

In this eBlast:

Lloyd Posno - Order of Canada Recipient & PaBIA member!
PaBIA Membership Off to GREAT Start!
WANTED: 2020 Dock-tale Stories
PaBIA Winter Cottage Patrol To Begin Soon
Libby Hunter - PaBIA Photo Contest Category WINNER!
Marine Patrol 2021 Applicants May Apply!
PaBIA's new Social Media Coordinator
TOA Survey - Boat Speeding & Wake Issues
Check out New 2021 Calendars
Bay Notes - December Meeting
GBF - MAJOR Progress on Invasive Species
GBF - Diversion 2.0
GBLT King Bursary Applications for 2021 Wanted!
Lake Michigan-Huron Water Levels - February 1, 2021
In Memoriam - Margaret "Peggy" Joyce

Of Interest

Our Own Lloyd Posno - One of 61 Recipients of one of the highest honours in Canada -

Order of Canada

Congratulations to Lloyd Posno, PaBIA member and Order of Canada Recipient 2020

Lloyd received this honour with this description: "For his enduring commitment to notable non-profit organizations and for his dedication to the advancement of Indigenous youth!

December 30, 2020

The Order of Canada is one of our country’s highest civilian honours. Its Companions, Officers and Members take to heart the motto of the Order: DESIDERANTES MELIOREM PATRIAM ("They desire a better country").

Created in 1967, the Order of Canada recognizes outstanding achievement, dedication to the community, and service to the nation. More than 7,000 people from all sectors of society have been invested into the Order. Those who bear the Order’s iconic snowflake insignia have changed our nation’s measure of success and, through the sum of their accomplishments, have helped us build a better Canada.

Appointments are made by the Governor-General on the recommendation of the Advisory Council for the Order of Canada. For more information about the Order of Canada or to nominate someone...", (click the link above".

Congratulations to the...61 new appointees, which include 1 Companion (C.C.), 13 Officers (O.C.), and 47 Members (C.M.). Each recipient will be invited to accept their insignia at a ceremony to be held at a later date.

Thank You...

...to the over 200 members who have already sent their 2021 dues before the end of January! As of today, we already have 13 new members (4 Primary, 2 Secondary, and 7 Junior)! So we are well on our way!

If for some reason you have not received your re-up notice, please contact Nancy Rogers immediately!

Winter Cottage Patrol To Begin

Winter Cottage Patrol will begin when ice and weather conditions are safe for Bruce Tiffin to travel around the area. He uses his Scoot so all properties can be reached even if the ice is too thin. However, there may be properties where he can't access the tag to punch it if snow or ice block the way. As always, Bruce will report any problems found to Nancy Rogers along with photos which are then forwarded immediately to the owners.

Dock-tales and More

Did you get creative last summer and invent new COVID-safe activities?

If so, why not share the fun with so many of us who could not be there (and still may not this summer).

The editors of the PaBIA/Ojibway Yearbook would love to receive a story and/or photo about a fun thing you did to safely socialize last summer.

Please send a short story of your intrepid reporter Mike Berton!

Photo Context Winner - Best in Action Category

Diametrically Opposed

Photo by Libby Hunter

A bunch of us were on our way down Shawanaga to Trim Tree Is., after enjoying the Feast on the Trails at the Ojibway. I was lucky enough to catch this shot of the Lawler’s jumping our wake, in their newly refurbished Hunt. I think the title speaks for itself!

For winning the best in the Action category, Libby will receive a PaBIA Map (either a wall or folding) with which she can adorn her new cottage walls and will also receive a PaBIA Burgee to fly on her boat next summer as a thank you for participating!

!! Congratulations !!

So here is a call to all camera enthusiasts for 2021! Hone your skills - Summer 2021 will be here before you know it!

WANTED:

Marine Patrol

Applicants for 2021

Do you, or someone in your family, have an interest and ability to serve your community? Protect the environment? Participate in scientific testing? Promote boating safety and the interests of a dynamic community association?

The Pointe au Baril Islanders’ Association (PaBIA) is seeking students currently enrolled in grade 12 or university/college with a strong interest in the local environment, protecting community quality of life, and promoting better boating safety.

The employment period is Saturday, June 21 to Monday, September 2, 2021. Training will be provided from June 21st—June 30th.

The Marine Patrol position demands maturity, dedication, and teamwork. Individuals will be required to work autonomously, follow well-defined protocols, and demonstrate sound decision-making in advancing PaBIA’s agenda and those of its partners: Georgian Bay Land Trust and Canadian Coast Guard. It is a ‘resume-worthy’ position with attractive compensation for students that are looking for a demanding position with serious responsibilities.

A detailed job description can be found here or at PaBIA's website . For those students interested in a Marine Patrol position, please apply for the 2021 Summer Program by email with:

a cover letter,
resume
references

to both: Bill Culp, Marine Patrol Supervisor, and Nancy Rogers, PaBIA Secretary-Treasurer.

US citizens are welcome to apply!

The DEADLINE for receipt of all resumes is February 21, 2021.

Telephone interviews will be conducted March 8th – March 12, 2021.

Successful candidates will be notified by March 22, 2021.

PaBIA's New Social Media Coordinator

PaBIA is delighted to welcome Savannah Richardson on to the Communications team as our new Coordinator for Social Media! She comes having had meaningful experience and wants to help bring PaBIA into the Twenty-first century!

So please welcome her in her new role, which broadens her participation in PaBIA as she is also the Junior Regatta Chair for 2021! Please look for her contributions with Facebook and Instagram to provide our members with the latest information on PaBIA's events and news!!!

BAY NOTES -

Ward 3 Councillors

Here are the topics in the BAY NEWS that you may wish to read in depth...which can be done by emailing Scott or Earl to request to be put on their direct mailing list.

These are the topics covered in December Bay Notes. Please sign up for Earl and Scott's eBlasts so you can be fully informed and read about these issues in depth.

CZBL Timeline Update
Human Resources Management
Staff Service Anniversaries
Bill 229 | Schedule 6 Reduces Environmental Oversight
TOA & GBB | Skerryvore Road Rehabilitation & Monitoring Best Practices
TOA ICECAP Action Plan
Shawanaga Island IPCA
Building Permits

Survey re Boat Speeding and

Wake Issues

Tom Lundy, Director for Member Safety, asked that we publish this letter and link to a survey from the Township of the Archipelago. It will also be found with your tax bill.

9 JAMES STREET• PARRY SOUND, ONTARIO• P2A 1T4

705-746-4243 • FAX: 705-746-7301

January 15, 2021

Dear Resident,

Re. Survey - Boat Speeding and Wake Issues on Our Waterways

Council has requested that staff look into options for managing the matter of boats speeding excessively and creating wakes close to the shoreline and in narrow channels. This adversely affects fellow boaters, causes shoreline erosion and possible damage to property.

The Township has created an online survey for residents of Wards 1, 2 and 3 in order to assess the extent and severity of the issue. We are also reaching out to the First Nation community to ask for their input on the matter.

Your feedback is important. One means of controlling excessive speed and wakes is through the issuance of a Vessel Operation Restriction Regulation (VORR). The regulation may impose certain speed limits at key waterways deemed a safety or environmental hazard where there is no other alternative than to restrict the waterway. This is federally regulated by Transport Canada and the Township has several locations under existing VORR's.

Your input, and more specifically the location(s) of concern, is an important first step in assessing what the best options are for everyone to continue enjoying safe boating and to protect our shorelines. A VORR may only be issued after a very lengthy and detailed process and only after all other avenues have been exhausted (e.g. community education and engagement and usage of signs or other private buoys with messages such as "Reduce Your Wake" or "Caution: Swimming Area").

You can fill out the survey electronically by clicking on the "Boat Wake Survey" icon here or at the bottom of the home page of the Township's website. Please enter code #4905 to start the survey. The closing date for submissions is February 26th, 2021.

If you do not have access to the Township's website through a computer or your smartphone, please contact Joyce Crookshank for assistance at (705) 746-4243 Ext. 334 or

Sincerely,

Greg Mariotti

Manager of Operational Services

GBF receives more investment to reduce waste getting into Georgian Bay -

GBF is pleased to announce 'Diversion 2.0' to add to our projects mitigating plastic and waste getting into the aquatic environment, thanks to contributions from Environment and Climate Change Canada*, the Weston Family Foundation, and GBF donors.

The program involves these elements (click on the links if you want to learn more, or get involved):

Expanding distribution of trapping trash devices. Catching pollution before it gets to water. For municipalities and marinas

High school citizen science opportunity – volunteer your class to sort and classify types of plastic waste

Learn about diverting microplastic waste from washing your clothes

Schedule presenters to learn ways to move towards zero plastic waste

We are also aiming to recruit volunteers (and leaders!) to join Plastic-Free Georgian Bay and to help us characterize and sort the litter from the litter-trapping devices, and provide information to the public to help them reduce waste in their lives and communities. A lot of different opportunities!

Join Plastic-Free Georgian Bay

Protecting Coastal Wetlands Major Progress on

Invasive Phragmites on the East Coast

Last year, GBF told you we had a 5-year plan for the 570+ sites mapped (found) on the eastern coasts of Georgian Bay where we have been fighting 'Phrag' with you for years. Invasive Phragmites is a plant from Europe that if left unmanaged, outcompetes native plants in wetlands and can grow into 15 ft. dense ‘walls’, making largely unusable habitat for many species at risk. Essentially, invasive Phragmites degrades the proper functioning of wetlands.

GBF works with volunteers on a manual and annual special cut process that removes Phragmites from shorelines with the least amount of harm. Each stand can take 2 to 6 years of annual cutting depending on its size before it is finally gone.

How do we know there has been progress?

By comparing the same 579 sites mapped (or found) in 2019 to their condition in 2020.

Because of annual cuts over the years stands are diminishing and becoming smaller.

Stands eradicated or in monitoring jumped from 43 to 266 in 2020!
Sites over 10 m2 went from 197 to 92, meaning there are now more smaller, easier to control stands

Other highlights included truxor machines removing 50,000 pounds of Phrag from some sites in Tay too big for volunteers. Volunteers were very busy on other sites! 87 remarkable volunteers contributed 460 hours to the effort and GBF summer staff contributed more than 1600 hours.

GBF feels that if we continue to get the funding and support that has been planned until 2025, 505 of the 579 sites can be eradicated and in 'monitoring', and what is left would be so diminished that they could be cut by community members.

Additionally, the staff was so efficient in summer 2020, that they were able to map 132 new sites largely in new areas. It is possible with the proper funding, that these can be dispatched as well by 2025.

Thank you to all the Georgian Bay communities and their volunteers and the 2020 funders of this program. Funders include: Government of Canada Summer Jobs, The Township of Georgian Bay, Tay Township, the Township of The Archipelago, the Honey Harbour Association, the Cognashene Cottagers' Assocation, Bin City Rentals, and GBF donors.

Please consider a donation to help protect water, wetlands and so much more.

The King Family Bursary was created to support special projects which promote knowledge and appreciation of the eastern shore of Georgian Bay and the North Channel, and its unique environment, history, communities, and/or culture. Scientists, academics, artists, authors, musicians, writers, and others are encouraged to apply.

We are now accepting applications for the 2021 King Family Bursary. This $3,500 bursary, funded by Wally and Marilyn King, supports projects that promote knowledge and appreciation of Georgian Bay and the North Channel’s environment, history, communities, or culture. It is open to all disciplines, including but not limited to science, art, literature, humanities, and more. If you have an idea for a project, we would love to hear from you!

Visit gblt.org/bursaries for more information and to apply.

Applications are due by March 1st.

Lakes Michigan/Huron Water Levels

Dec 29, 2020, and February 1, 2021

To better read the charts, please click on the chart for the

Daily or Six Month Forecast Water level chart and the corresponding websites

Yearbook Update

With each eBlast, we will provide you a list of names for those who provided updated information. The details of all the changes since the Yearbook's came out in April is provided in a printable format for you to print out and insert into your own Yearbook copy! As of October 18

In Memoriam

Margaret "Peggy" Joyce, past PaBIA member, A500 - 10 ‘Shebaonaning’, wife of the late William ‘Bill’ Joyce, mother of Andrew (Anne), Michael (Margaret) Joyce and Terence (Angela) Joyce, January 2021.