Thunder Bay harbour clean-up efforts highlighted in new online tool

Work that's been done to rehabilitate polluted sections of Thunder Bay's harbour are now the feature of a new online, interactive tool.

The map, which was done by the Thunder Bay Remedial Action Plan, also shows areas that still need to be cleaned up.

Plan co-ordinator Jim Bailey told CBC News it helps show exactly what the groups involved in the cleanup are up against. The top-down view also better illustrates the lakeside sites that are hard to see from land.

"It's extremely difficult to … visualize various sites along the harbour and, within the remedial action plan, we really get down to the detailed level on some of these sites and some of the actions that need to be taken," he said.

The map pinpoints areas where work has been done, or still needs to be, and shows photos and additional information.

Bailey said, in some cases, the online tool also highlights the costs involved with remediation.

"It's also something of a caution because a lot of this work would not have been necessary — had we taken the necessary prevention steps in the first place."

One project that still needs to be completed that is highlighted on the map is the mercury-contaminated patch at the north end of Thunder Bay's harbour — a project that is still in the planning stages.