Ontario's natural resources minister wants Ottawa to toughen up regulations to protect the Great Lakes.

In an announcement Thursday, David Ramsay called on the federal government for tighter controls for freighters entering the Great Lakes to help prevent invasive species from entering the water system.

Ontario officials say invasive species such as the zebra mussels in this photo, taken in Lake Michigan in June 1999, pose a risk to the Great Lakes.
(Courtesy: NOAA)

"The Great Lakes are a vital resource that we must protect," Ramsay said. "We are disappointed that the new regulations put in place by the federal government exempt the majority of ships from important measures to reduce the risk of bringing invasive species into Ontario waters."

Ontario officials say that draft regulations posted by the federal Department of Transportation last year would have forced freighters to flush out their ballast tanks with salt water. That action would kill foreign species before they entered the St. Lawrence and Great Lakes water system.

But when the regulations were enacted this summer, that provision was missing. Ontario officials say that leaves the Great Lakes at threat from an increased population of foreign organisms such as zebra mussels and gobies, which have been pushing out native species.

"The introduction and spread of aquatic invasive species is one of the greatest threats to the integrity of the Great Lakes," said Ramsay.

Ramsay hopes to meet with federal officials to discuss the issue.