This July I was pleased to highlight two investments by the Government of Canada that will be very significant to environmental protection in Winnipeg and in Manitoba. The first will help restore the health of Lake Winnipeg. The second will reduce Manitoba’s emissions of methane, a potent greenhouse gas, by supporting the expansion of methane capture technology at the Brady Road Landfill in south Winnipeg.

On July 5th, I announced $2.2 million over three years in federal funding toward 19 water protection projects under the Lake Winnipeg Basin Program. Lake Winnipeg is Canada’s sixth Great Lake and generates millions of dollars in revenue through tourism, recreation, commercial fishing and hydroelectric power generation. Toxic algal blooms mark the erosion of the lake’s health, and our federal government has been working hard with municipal governments, environmental organizations and Indigenous communities to improve Lake Winnipeg’s water quality.

On July 12, I welcomed my colleague, the Hon. Catherine McKenna, Minister of Environment and Climate Change, to Winnipeg. Minister McKenna announced the Government of Canada’s investment of $1.3 million to the City of Winnipeg’s Brady Road Resource Management Facility in the riding of Winnipeg South. This investment is part of a new Low Carbon Economy Fund which supports projects that will generate clean growth and reduce greenhouse gas emissions across Canada.

The Brady Road Landfill is the destination for most of Winnipeg’s waste. It’s also the second largest single-point emitter of greenhouse gases in Manitoba. Waste releases large amounts of methane into our air. At the Brady Road site, 400,000 tonnes of garbage is processed every year, producing 14,000 tonnes of methane gas. That’s equivalent to the pollution created by 70,000 cars. The Government of Canada’s funding will support the expansion and upgrading of the landfill gas capture system, boosting its efficiency from 48% to 75%.

I am proud that our federal government is collaborating with communities, scientists, experts and economists on practical and affordable measures to fight climate change, reduce pollution and protect our water resources.