There seems to be a disconnect between U.S. and Canadian efforts to support “greening” the Detroit River.  In Michigan, there has been an almost constant stream of habitat redevelopment projects, river cleanups and park/preserve acquisitions.  And although there have been some efforts to clean the river from the Canadian side – the Windsor sewer separation project is a good example – Canadian efforts do not seem up to par.

There is no land on the Canadian side that is recognized as being part of the “international” wildlife refuge.  Several habitat projects on the Canadian side have happened with the assistance of American park and wildlife officials.  And the amount of monies dedicated to cleanup in the U.S, most notably the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative – dwarf any similar Canadian efforts.  One can see the outlines of a major new greenway along the U.S. side of the river, but no similar mass scale project seems evident in Canada.

In fact, new large scale wind farms on the Canadian side are more likely to industrialize the Lake Erie shore and open waters than soften them.  And the Amhertsburg Echo reports that a publicly-owned marina on the Canadian side of the river is in the process of being sold to private condominium developers:

http://amherstburgecho.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=2120853

Canada has a reputation of being the “greener” side of the U.S./Canada border.  But I am not sure that recent events along the Detroit River support that reputation.

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