Statement by Mayor Brian Smith regarding the Town’s commitment to transparency and responsible stewardship

The following is an update to our community from Mayor Brian Smith:

“The Town of Wasaga Beach and this Council are committed to transparency and responsible stewardship, and we are sharing information about a recent incident.

The Town is aware that a small area of beach near Spruce Street at Beach Area 1 was mechanically raked in error on April 13. An individual operator made a mistake, and almost immediately, the activity was flagged and stopped. Careful steps have been taken to ensure that this does not happen again.

The equipment the Town uses—a Barber Surf Rake—is designed to remove garbage and potentially hazardous materials like broken glass. It is a standard best practice used on public beaches around the world, including places like Miami Beach, Santa Monica, and many Great Lakes beaches, to keep shorelines safe for the public. However, even with appropriate equipment, operations must be carefully managed around sensitive areas, and in this case, that standard was not met. 

The Town has proactively shared this information with Environment and Climate Change Canada as part of its commitment to transparency and responsible stewardship.

To ensure this doesn’t happen again, the Town has taken the following actions:

• Reinforced clear direction with all staff and equipment operators working on the beachfront 
• Implemented additional controls and oversight for beach operations 
• Created new symbolic fencing and interpretive signage to clearly identify and protect this area, and other sensitive areas

Protecting critical habitat on a public beach is complex work. It requires balancing access to one of Canada’s most iconic shorelines with the responsibility to safeguard sensitive ecosystems. Best practices used around the world rely on clear boundaries, education, active stewardship, and responsible management.

Wasaga Beach is no exception. These environments are dynamic, and while no system is ever perfect, our responsibility is to continually strengthen how we manage and protect them.

The Town’s position has been clear and consistent:  we are committed to protecting critical habitat and building strong local stewardship capacity. This incident does not change that commitment. It reinforces the importance of strong controls, clear direction, and transparency in how this work is carried out.

Given the high level of public interest, we recognize the importance of communicating clearly about both our actions and our responsibilities. We welcome accountability and will continue to provide updates as this work evolves.

We have a vision: that Wasaga Beach will become an iconic, year-round recreation and nature-based destination—one that celebrates the longest freshwater beach in the world while safeguarding the full richness of its unique ecosystem.

The Town will continue taking action to protect piping plover habitat, build local stewardship capacity, and coordinate with experienced partners including the Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority, Ontario Parks, Birds Canada, and the Canadian Wildlife Service.

We remain focused on doing this work responsibly and protecting sensitive habitat with the care it requires.”

Karla Findlay
Special Projects Leader
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Sandra Watts
General Manager of External Relations | Director of Communications, Destination Marketing & Intergovernmental Affairs
Email Sandra