The Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation brought together a unique group of people.
The event was at the Beach Street Station in Goderich, on Thursday.
"It's about bringing the mayors and elected councilors together for a morning of learning, and an afternoon where we can put together an action plan on how we can work together as municipalities, and give us input on our coastal action plan that we're producing for all the municipalities," says Matt Hoy, the centre's executive director.
Hoy says in the development of the coastal action plan, there are already some issues being brought up and targeted by the municipalities and residents.
"A lot of it has to do with education. People are concerned about water levels. Our water levels are very high right now, so people don't have the beach that they did. This is all a knowledge piece, where we learn about what needs done," he says. "Things like phragmites, and the elimination of them. Coastal management, bluff management, all those things are being addressed. It's all about knowing that what we do here in our municipality affects the one next door."
As far as the educational aspect, Hoy also says it's a two-way street with the municipalities. He states that while educating everyone is important, it's also about getting feedback from everyone and learning what their needs are.
"A lot of this is providing us with information, so that we can put together a plan for them," he says. "There's no use having a plan that they don't want. If they can't tell us what they want, there's no use in us spinning our wheels developing a plan. It has to be a plan that people want and that we all work together on to achieve."
Matt Hoy, Executive Director for the Lake Huron Centre for Coastal Conservation.