2019-2020 Board of Directors

Our Board of Directors for the next year: Francis LeBlanc, President; Paul R. Ouimet, Vice President; André Beauchemin, Secretary; Ghislaine Turnbull, Treasurer; and, directors Guy Gauvreau, Donald Karn, Brian Lahey and Dave Maclaren. For their contact information, please click here.

Annual General Meeting

The Association held its 11^th Annual General Meeting (AGM) on Saturday, July 20^th from 10 am to 12:30 at the Blue Sea Church.

Highlights:

• John Turnbull makes his last report to the AGM as Treasurer; he does not renew his mandate as Director. His great contribution to the efforts leading to the recognition of the Association’s charity status is underlined. Thank you John.
• Participants are reminded that the charity status allows the Association to issue tax receipts for donations of 20 $ or more.
• The President underlines the importance of the issue of Eurasian milfoil control for the Association and provides an update of the progress of the jute tarp installation project covering a little more than 18 000 m² of mono-specific stands of this invasive plant. The project could be carried out at the end of August or beginning of September but the financing remains to be finalized, subject to the approval of the requested grant.
• Participants highlighted some technical issues regarding the installation of the jute tarp:
  • installation in the spring might be preferable because the biomass is less important and the plants are not as fragile, hence the lesser risk of fragmentation;
  • the difficulty of installing the fabric where the removable docks are standing.
• The yellow buoys program continues; 162 were installed this year, along with 13 large information buoys. Unfortunately, it is observed that too many boaters still do not take them into account.
• The boat washing program is doing well; according to the information obtained from municipalities, the number of washings is still growing.
• The 10 years of activities of the Association are highlighted by a brief overview of the activities; past Presidents Marc Grégoire, Don Karn and Dick Ryan are present.

For the documentation made available at the meeting, please click here.

Danger! Eurasian Milfoil! Stay Clear of the Yellow Buoys!

2019-05-25 - The navigation season on our lakes begins; it is time to remember the danger of water milfoil for the health of our lakes and the importance of respecting the yellow buoys to be installed shortly by the Association to warn boaters of the presence of water-milfoil-infested areas, that they must avoid.

Wash your Boats

2019-05-25 - And to prevent the importation of other specimens of this invasive plant and of all other species of the same nature, we remind you of the importance of washing your boats before launching them if they come from another body of water. Messines and Blue Sea washing stations are easily accessible; take advantage of them! In this regard, it should be noted that both municipalities remain committed to the continuation and improvement of the mandatory boat washing program.

Don't Make Waves

2019-05-25 - In a letter received today, the Canada Revenue Agency informs us that the Association meets the requirements for tax exemption as a charitable organization under the Income Tax Act. Thanks to those responsible for this success, including our Treasurer John Turnbull who led the effort, the members who participated in the August 25^th Special General Meeting to authorize the request to change our letters patent (French only) and our secretary André Beauchemin who was responsible for quickly obtaining our supplementary letters patent (French only - for the English translation of key changes, click here ) from the Registraire des entreprises du Québec.

To Know More on Boat Washing

Photos: M. Grégoire & P.R. OuimetApril 2018 - Representatives of the Association and of the two municipalities of Blue Sea and Messines met recently to plan the boat washing program for 2018. The two municipalities are taking steps to launch the program for the start of the fishing season on April 27.

To Learn More About Washing Boats!

Source: Web video of the MDDELCCApril 2018 - A web video produced a few years ago by the Ministry of Sustainable Development, Environment and fight against climate change (MDDELCC) highlights the importance of boat washing and illustrates how to do it in 5 steps to prevent the spread of invasive species in our aquatic environments. Click here to see it.

Avoid the Spread of Eurasian Milfoil - Pay Heed to the Yellow Buoys! Why?

Photos: P.R. Ouimet

April 2018 - It's time to recall the danger of Eurasian milfoil for the health of our lakes and the importance of avoiding areas delimited by the yellow buoys installed by the Association to indicate the presence of milfoil bed, areas that boaters must avoid.

Eurasian milfoil reproduces mainly by fragmentation of the stems. The stems are broken naturally or cut accidentally (fishermen, boat propellers, etc.) These fragments are then deposited elsewhere at the bottom of the water. Each fragment of one centimetre or more can produce a new plant.

Eurasian milfoil beds become so dense that other species of aquatic plants naturally present are eliminated. Thus, there are fewer aquatic plant species in our waters. This loss of biodiversity results in an impoverishment of the aquatic environment. This plant can also significantly harm fishing, among others lake trout fishing. Finally, Eurasian milfoil is also a constraint to the use of aquatic environments for human recreational purposes.

For more information, two sources of interest: the Eurasian Water-Milfoil website pages of Ontario's Invading Species Awareness Program and of the ministère du Développement Durable, de l'Environnement et de la Lutte contre les changements climatiques (French only).

2019-07-24