Despite being found guilty in 2019 on two charges of destroying the habitat of an endangered species, The Town of South Bruce Peninsula has applied the the Ministry of Environment, Parks and Conservation for a permit to rake the beach at Sauble. I truly hope the Ontario MECP and Minister Jeff Yurek make the decision on this permit proposal based on science and fact (including this year’s observation of little to no piping plover activity at Sauble), and not on the number of likes to this proposal on social media. Perhaps if the beach had been left alone and never raked, as it was for thousands of years before we humans descended on it, it would still be pristine. The unrelenting “grooming” by heavy equipment since the 1960-70’s, as well the encouragement to host a million+ annual tourists has degraded the beach and its fragile ecosystem. Maybe there is hope again for Sauble Beach with solid environmental management and an eye to sustainable tourism based on quality, not quantity. And stop spraying toxic chemicals on permeable sand, please and thank you!

Ann Rolfe Shedden
Sauble Beach