Page 12 - The Brandon Sun - Lake Life 2019

12 THE BRANDON SUN • LAKE LIFE • THURSDAY, JUNE 20, 2019
» Continued from Page 11

At the same time, using
pesticides and herbicides can
more directly kill nearby flora
and fauna. For the same reason,
toxic substances should never
be disposed of at park dumps
or down the drain. Toxic sub-
stances should always be dis-
posed of at a toxic waste depot.
Any use of chemicals to control
the growth of water plants in
a provincial park must be ap-
proved in advance by the pro-
vincial government.
The provincial government
submitted a list of sustainability
tips for cottagers in Manitoba’s
provincial parks to The Sun.
One piece of advice is to reduce
the transparency and reflectiv-
ity of your cottage’s windows to
prevent birds from flying into
them. Another piece of advice
is for cottagers to consider us-
ing rainwater for non-potable
uses like showering, washing
dishes, cleaning and flushing
toilets.
Also recommended is to
minimize the use of commer-
cial cleaning products at your
cottage to avoid the risk of toxic
chemicals impacting local flora
and fauna. The province advis-
es cottagers to upgrade their
appliances to energy efficient
models and to upgrade old-
er two-stroke marine motors
to newer four-stroke or two-
stroke direct injected models
where feasible.
Another piece of advice from
both Riding Mountain and the
province is to not move fire-
wood from one location to an-
other. Insects like the emerald
ash borer can hide in firewood,
so moving the wood from place
to place risks spreading those
insects.
Reder said that Wilderness
Committee hopes to have a
guide on how cottagers can
lighten their footprint ready
for the beginning of next year’s
cottage season. Both Sustain-
able Development Manitoba
and the federal Department
of Fisheries and Oceans have
online guides with further tips
on how cottagers can minimize
their footprint and avoid dis-
turbing nature as they spend
quality time out in the wild.

» cslark@brandonsun.com Leafy spurge, pictured in Brandon, is one invasive plant Riding Mountain National Park resource conservation manager
» Twitter: @ColinSlark Stephen Cornelson encourages cottagers to avoid planting. (File)