Rickford Calls for Increased Monitoring of Boundary Waters 

August 22, 2025

And that’s exactly what happened.

MPP Greg Rickford [Ontario’s Minister of Indigenous Affairs and First Nations Economic Reconciliation] has been undertaking meetings with local anglers, hotel and tourist camp operators, as well as Mayor Hallikas. Their message was clear: they were concerned about the enforcement and protection of fish stocks on our boundary waters.

This culminated in a meeting earlier this month with Minister Mike Harris, Ontario’s Minister of Natural Resources, where he visited Kenora-Rainy River to hear directly from Mayor Hallikas, local anglers and tourist camp operators at Smith Camp.

In response, Minister Harris and MPP Rickford worked to quickly mobilize additional Conservation Officer resources and a stronger presence in boundary waters as the International Falls Bass Championship kicks off. The tournament attracts a significant number of visitors to the region and has become a celebrated tradition that showcases the beauty of our waters and the vitality of our region.

Anglers in Northwestern Ontario are some of the most responsible in the world, especially tournament fishermen; and we should all be focused on sustainability and preserving fish stock, allowing us to host these safe and fun world-class tournaments on both sides of the border.

We want to send a friendly but clear message that protecting the integrity of the boundary waters is of the utmost importance for our region. Mayor Hallakis has made his concerns clear to the federal representative.

MPP Rickford will be following up, not just to the local Member of Parliament, but also to the Minister responsible for the Canadian Border Services Agency and the Minister of Fisheries and Oceans, to ensure everyone is a partner and enforcement of matters of a federal jurisdiction, in addition to the efforts put forward both municipally and provincially.

The intention is to coordinate a roundtable with the different levels of government to ensure we address the important matters that local constituents are raising.  

MPP Rickford has a deep admiration for the work Conservation Officers do, and thanks them tremendously for their increased efforts this weekend.