Canada pledges $300 million investment to help clean up the Great Lakes

Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau vows to spend hundreds of millions of dollars over the next decade to help clean up the Great Lakes.

Trudeau met with President Joe Biden last week in Ottawa, noting the Great Lakes are a significant source of drinking water. They also provide vital income for many shoreline communities in both the U.S. and Canada. But over the past five years, Canada offered only about $33 million for cleanup efforts in the Great Lakes.

Trudeau announced that Canada will increase that amount to more than $300 million in U.S. dollars over the next 10 years.

“The Great Lakes are a source of drinking water for 40 million people, and this shared resource needs to be protected,” Trudeau said. “This is why Canada will make a major new investment … to continue safeguarding the Great Lakes for generations to come.”

Congress approved more than $400 million for the Great Lakes in 2024, and roughly $1 billion of the Biden administration’s $1 trillion infrastructure law is designated to begin new cleanup projects at 22 Superfund sites and speed up over 100 current cleanups across the U.S.

President Obama created the Great Lakes Restoration Project in 2010, targeting between $300-$400 million a year towards cleaning the world’s largest supply of surface fresh water.

The lake system is beset by industrial pollution, invasive species and the effects of climate change.