KTOO Waterway Conservation Fund

The KTOO Waterway Conservation Fund helps keep the water we play on clean and healthy: the ocean, and the lakes, rivers and streams that flow into it. KTOO stands for Keep The Ocean Ocean, one of Rec+Safe's conservation partners, and the idea is simple: protect the water where people paddle, fish, sail, swim and dive, so it stays safe and worth enjoying for the next generation.

Why We're Asking

• Our waters are under pressure. Plastic, lost fishing line, fuel spills, sewage, fertilizer runoff that feeds toxic algae blooms, and invasive species carried from lake to lake on boats and trailers all take a toll.
• Most of it is preventable. Like most outdoor emergencies, most water pollution comes from habits that a little know-how and the right equipment can change. That's what Rec+Safe does best.
• Clean water is safer water. Hooks and broken glass on the beach, algae toxins, and sewage after a storm put people and pets at risk as well as fish and wildlife.
• Small, local efforts add up, but they cost something. A shoreline cleanup needs bags, gloves and a way to haul the trash away. A fishing line recycling bin has to be built and emptied. A Clean, Drain, Dry sign has to be printed and put up at the launch.

What the Fund Supports

1. Cleanups: supplies such as bags, gloves and grabbers, and safe disposal, for shoreline, riverbank and underwater cleanups run by volunteers and local groups.
2. Fishing line recycling: bins at boat launches, docks and piers, so old line ends up recycled instead of tangled around a loon or a turtle.
3. Stopping invasive species: Clean, Drain, Dry education and signs for boaters, paddlers and anglers who move between waters.
4. Free education: waterway conservation guides on rec-safe.com, like Keep The Ocean Ocean's 10 ways to protect the water, and conservation tips in our boating, paddling, fishing and diving safety guides.
5. Partners: support for conservation and water-safety groups that protect oceans, lakes, rivers and streams, like those on our Partners and Conservation pages.

How Your Donation Is Handled

• It stays with the fund. Every donation is recorded by the fund you choose, so a gift to the KTOO Fund is kept separate from the Rec+Safe General Fund and the Canadian GOOSE Fund.
• It's secure. Payments are processed by Square. Your card details go straight to Square and are never stored by Rec+Safe.
• You get a receipt. Add your email when you donate and we'll email you a receipt. The email is optional.
• Any amount helps, from a few dollars for a box of cleanup gloves to enough for a fishing line bin.

Other Ways to Help

• Practise the 10 ways on the Keep The Ocean Ocean page every time you're on the water.
• Join or host a cleanup on your local beach, lake or river.
• Become a Rec+Safe member through our memberships.
• Share this page with your paddling, fishing, sailing or dive group.

See also: Donations (our general fund), the Canadian GOOSE Fund, Conservation and Our Partners.