The Harbour Clean-Up Program
Since 1911, the Toronto Port Authority has been working to keep the Port and Harbour of Toronto clean and free of debris, harmful matter and spills. Keeping the harbour clean and safe remains a key component of the Toronto Port Authority’s responsibilities. Each year approximately 450 metric tonnes of wood debris alone are collected from the mouth of the Don River. That’s the equivalent weight of two cars every day of the year.
We’ve kept the waterfront safe and navigable through initiatives such as our Harbour Clean-up Program.
The Toronto Port Authority runs a dredging programme that sees silt and debris collected from the Harbour and Port of Toronto.
The Toronto Port Authority’s (TPA) predecessor, the Toronto Harbour Commissioners, built the Keating Channel, with its distinctive 90 degree turn, in 1911. The channel area along with its adjacent dockwall working areas have booms deployed which allow for floating debris to be kept out of the harbour and removed with machinery set up to the adjacent dockwall.
Silt collected in the Port and Harbour of Toronto is deposited at the approved containment cell in the Leslie Street Spit. In an average year, 35,000 cubic metres of material is dredged from the Keating Channel; this is equivalent to the size of 85 refrigerators being collected on every day of the year. Dredging not only keeps the silt out of the harbour but it also a critical part of the Don River Flood Management Plan as prior to constant dredging the Don River would regularly flood about 200 acres of adjoining property (which is now the Distillery District and Film Studio area).
TPA staff are fully equipped to deal with emergency oil spill response and work in conjunction with the Harbour Master’s Office, City of Toronto, Ontario Ministry of Environment, Spills Action Centre and port users on all environmental issues.
Notice floating debris, garbage or an oil spill? Call the Harbour Hotline at 416-462-3937; messages are relayed to staff 24/7.