Lake Simcoe and Ayuquila-Armeria River Basin

Lake Simcoe, Canada and Ayuquila-Armeria River Basin, Mexico

River System	Lake Simcoe, Ontario, Canada	Ayuquila-Armeria River Basin, Mexico
Length	–	294km
Area	744 km²	10,000 km²
Population	500,000	550,000
Origin, Tributaries, etc	Talbot River (east), Trent Severn	Ayuquila River, Tuxcacuesco River
Role of river system	– Supports recreational activity (ice fishing, boating events, fishing) – Supports tourism	– Agriculture
Riverprize	International Riverprize Winner, 2009

As the winner of the 2009 International Riverprize the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (Ontario, Canada) was provided with an opportunity to “twin” with environmental leaders in Mexico to share knowledge and experience to restore, protect and sustainably manage the Ayuquila-Armeria River Basin.

This journey began in 2010 and over the course of four missions that included knowledge building, capacity building and integrated project planning the international partners celebrated a significant milestone on August 31^st, 2018. This is the date that Federal, State and municipal officials in México officially endorsed “Plan de Acción para la Gestión Integral en la Cuenca del Río Ayuquila-Armería 2019-2021” as the principle guiding document for future watershed management, restoration and protection initiatives.

From the outset of this collaborative relationship the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority, the Junta Intermunicipal de Medio Ambiente para la Gestión Integral de la Cuenca Baja del Rio Ayuquila, the Centro Universitario de la Costa Sur Universidad de Guadalajara and the Watershed Commission of the Ayuquila-Armeria River have been committed to partner to promote integrated watershed management in the Ayuquila-Armeria River Basin by developing twinning programs that will meet desired objectives and inspire positive social and environmental change in both countries.

After 8+ years of developing friendships, learning from each other and staying committed to a collective vision, all involved parties are encouraged by the very positive results that have been achieved to date. Looking ahead the partners believe that this twinning initiative, supported from the beginning by the International RiverFoundation, can be used to showcase the Ayuquila-Armeria River Basin model as a National, North American and International model for cooperation and environmental restoration.

View Lake Simcoe’s 19th International Riversymposium presentation on their Twinning project here