Nearly 60 high school students from the public and separate boards in Huron and Perth counties spent one day this week at the Oakwood Inn in Grand Bend.
They were learning about the environmental threats and challenges to Lake Huron.
The conference, called My Great Lake, My Future was designed to show young people how the things they do impact the lake, and what they can do to preserve and improve on its condition.
Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority Supervisor Kate Monk explains students were very surprised by the amount of small plastic particles they found as they walked along the beach.
But she adds the second part of the conference focused on problems further inland and the fact that whatever happens on the land eventually ends up in the lake.
Monk points out the senior students are making decisions now about their careers, so exposure to what happens along the shoreline might influence that thinking. But she adds the hope is the conference will also influence how they live their lives, regardless of their careers, in a way that respects the environment they live in.
