Mike: The Experimental Lakes Area was established as federal government facility in 1968, and was then operated by Fisheries & Oceans Canada. In 2012-2013, the Government of Canada announced its intention to close ELA but after a considerable public outcry, ELA was instead transferred to the International Institute for Sustainable Development (IISD) with financial support from the Government of Ontario. Shortly afterwards, the federal government re-instated funding for ELA and this support has grown even more in recent years. IISD-ELA is now an independent not-for-profit charitable organization.

With the transfer to IISD, the site has grown and we are able to do even more than we did in the past. We are no longer limited by the departmental mandate of Fisheries and Oceans Canada, and we are able to work on a broader range of issues with a wider range of partners and collaborators. In recent years, we have conducted experiments and research on many environmental problems including microplastics, oil spills, several different pharmaceuticals, climate change, harmful algal blooms, and the effects of fish harvesting, to name a few.

Throughout the years, we have managed to maintain our long-term dataset, which is an incredibly valuable resource. For some lakes, we have up to 54 years of data on water quality, hydrology, climate, and all the major components of the food web including algae, invertebrates, and fish. Researchers from all around the world contact us on a regular basis to benefit from this unparalleled dataset.