I have to admit that setting the flood plains aside from development about 50 years ago after Hurricane Hazel—Hurricane Sandy is on its way—left us with a legacy of a natural river corridor connecting the cities through the watershed, but looking ahead, we are working now on a Grand River watershed water management plan. It's a joint plan among the municipalities in the watershed, the first nations, and the provincial and federal agencies that are connected with water and water quality management. It's a joint plan. We hope to have it finished in 2013.
The Grand has always been managed under a plan that allows the agencies and the municipalities to work together and look ahead at what's going to happen with this explosion of growth, for example, and make sure that our water quality can continue improving and that we can ensure sustainable water supplies in this watershed as well.
I mentioned the sub-watershed planning. All of the municipalities, the cities, since about the mid-eighties have been doing the sub-watershed plans--that's what we call them in Ontario--ahead of development. It's an opportunity to look at an area ahead of the community or secondary plans for development, and look for the opportunities to set these areas aside and connect them while accommodating growth in the area.
I think that has been really positive. Not only do we have the trail networks along the Grand, but we also have the trail networks in natural areas connecting into where people are living as well, connecting people more closely with nature.
All of our cities very aggressively pursue this approach, as the City of Winnipeg has been doing as well, with stormwater management plans to also look to these things in the old developed areas, the city areas that were developed before these things occurred. All of them have goals for 40% canopy cover in the city as well.
Our Grand River Conservation Foundation has also been working very hard with our industry, corporate, and private benefactors and has been pursuing an opportunity to do restoration work all over the watershed, with private assistance.