Located in the heart of Yellowknife, NWT, Frame Lake is a popular destination for residents and tourists alike. With a beach, park, and five kilometres of trail, it’s a popular gathering spot for community members wishing for a brief reprieve from the city’s downtown core.
Historically, filled with pike, whitefish, and suckers, Frame Lake was a traditional fish camp for the Yellowknife Dene First Nation. But over time, sewage and contaminants from urban and industrial activities have made the lake unsuitable for fish and recreational use.
With the Frame Lake Rehabilitation Project, Tides Canada, in collaboration with the Government of the Northwest Territories’ Department of Environment and Natural Resources and Carleton University, hopes to restore Frame Lake to a healthy aquatic ecosystem that can once again support fish, recreational activity, and tourism.
Last month, the project received a boost with a grant of $40,000 from the RBC Blue Water Fund. The cheque was presented on July 11 at Yellowknife’s Somba k’e’ Park to Tides Canada’s Stephen Ellis, Program Lead, Northern Canada.
“The support provided by RBC will allow us to complete a near shore clean-up of Frame Lake, as well as complete sediment and lake bed studies that are so critical to properly designing an effective reclamation plan,” Ellis explains. “This will be a key step in making Frame Lake a place where Yellowknifers can again fish and swim.” The project will also engage Yellowknife residents on what a successful restored lake would look like and offer to the community.
Thank you to RBC for their support through their Blue Water Fund, and to other project funders: the Government of the Northwest Territories’ Environment and Natural Resources and Industry, Tourism and Investment departments, Trout Unlimited, and the City of Yellowknife.
We also extend our thanks to the Yellowknives Dene First Nation, Trout Unlimited NWT Chapter, the City of Yellowknife, and the Northern Frontier Visitors Centre for their support of this project.
