Canada Water Agency invites applications for projects to protect and restore fresh water across Canada

From: Canada Water Agency

November 14, 2025 – Winnipeg, Manitoba

Freshwater stewardship is critical for Canada’s environment, economy and people, and it begins at the local level.  Investing in partner-led projects for environmental protection, restoration, and conservation bolsters Canada’s economy and helps ensure the sustainability of fresh water for current and future generations.

Today, the Honourable Julie Dabrusin, Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for the Canada Water Agency, announced the launch of several calls for applications for upcoming funding opportunities.

Five of these calls for applications are through Freshwater Ecosystem Initiatives being implemented through Canada’s Freshwater Action Plan. They support regionally specific actions to restore and protect water quality and ecosystem health in the following waterbodies of national significance:

1. the St. Lawrence River
2. the Great Lakes
3. the Fraser River
4. the Wolastoq/Saint John River
5. Lake Winnipeg

Another two calls for applications are through the EcoAction program, which supports freshwater sustainability efforts across Canada.

Funded projects will support partner-led and community-based projects to improve water quality, restore aquatic habitats, engage Indigenous people, and strengthen capacity for sustainable freshwater management across Canada.

The calls for applications will open in November and December 2025, with deadlines in December 2025 and January 2026.

 

Date	Funding stream	Closing deadline
November 5, 2025	EcoAction Stream 1: Community-led freshwater action across Canada	December 4, 2025
	Funding for the Fraser River Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative	December 18, 2025
	Funding for the St. Lawrence River – Priority Intervention Program	December 18, 2025
	Funding freshwater action in the Wolastoq/Saint John River watershed	December 19, 2025
November 10, 2025	Funding for Great Lakes protection	December 19, 2025
November 20, 2025	Lake Winnipeg: Nutrient Reduction	December 22, 2025
November 25, 2025	EcoAction Stream 2: Freshwater Sustainability and Innovation across Canada	December 22, 2025
December 3, 2025	Lake Winnipeg: Cultivating Collaboration and Indigenous-driven Action (Letters of Intent)	January 9, 2026

Quotes

“Fresh water is essential to our environment, our communities, and our economy. These funding opportunities empower partners and communities across the country to take meaningful action to restore and protect our freshwater systems for generations to come.”
– The Honourable Julie Dabrusin, Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for the Canada Water Agency

Quick facts

• Established in 2024, the Canada Water Agency aims to improve freshwater management in Canada by providing leadership, effective collaboration federally, and improved coordination and collaboration with provinces, territories, and Indigenous peoples.
• The Canada Water Agency leads the delivery of Freshwater Ecosystem Initiatives in eight waterbodies of national significance across Canada:
  • the Great Lakes
  • Lake Winnipeg
  • Lake of the Woods
  • the St. Lawrence River
  • the Wolastoq/Saint John River
  • the Fraser River
  • the Mackenzie River, and
  • Lake Simcoe
• The Government of Canada is investing $650 million over 10 years in the Freshwater Action Plan to strengthen the protection and restoration of nationally significant waterbodies.
• The Fraser River is the fourth largest river in Canada by volume and has a drainage basin of 220,000 km².
• The St. Lawrence River system, which links the Great Lakes to the Atlantic Ocean, is more than 1,000 km long, making it one of the largest in North America. The St. Lawrence’s rich diversity of natural habitats makes it one of the most important elements of North America’s natural heritage.
• The St. Lawrence River Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative launched a new funding program— Priority Intervention Program—to support projects aimed at improving freshwater quality in priority sectors or areas of significance for the St. Lawrence River and its tributaries.
• The Wolastoq/Saint John River is a 673 km waterway that flows through New Brunswick with headwaters in Quebec and Maine.
• The Great Lakes contain 20% of the world’s surface freshwater, provide drinking water to one in four Canadians, are vital to our wellbeing and ecosystems, and drive billions of dollars in economic activity.
• The Great Lakes Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative’s call for applications will prioritize projects that restore water quality and ecosystem health in Great Lakes Areas of Concern, and projects that reduce releases of harmful chemicals to the Great Lakes.
• Lake Winnipeg is Canada’s sixth-largest lake and the eleventh-largest freshwater lake in the world. Its watershed is the second largest in Canada and spans parts of four provinces and four American states.
• EcoAction supports freshwater sustainability and actions across Canada in the following ways:
  • EcoAction Stream 1: Community-led Freshwater Action across Canada helps Canadians become involved in creating more sustainable communities by taking actions that improve freshwater quality and ecosystem health.
  • EcoAction Stream 2: Freshwater Sustainability and Innovation supports projects across Canada that:
    • Pilot innovative and clean technologies
    • Enable circular economy opportunities, or
    • Address freshwater-related data challenges.

Associated links

• Freshwater Ecosystem Initiatives
• Fraser River Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative
• Great Lakes Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative
• Lake Winnipeg Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative
• Wolastoq/Saint John River Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative
• St. Lawrence River Freshwater Ecosystem Initiative
• EcoAction Stream 1: Community-led freshwater action across Canada
• EcoAction Stream 2: Freshwater Sustainability and Innovation across Canada
• Funding opportunities

Contacts
Keean Nembhard
Press Secretary
Office of the Minister of Environment and Climate Change
343-552-2387
Keean.Nembhard@ec.gc.ca

Media Relations
Canada Water Agency
media@cwa-aec.gc.ca

NT5