Niagara Shores

Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario

Managed by Niagara Coastal Community Collaborative

The Niagara Shores Firelane 1 Park is one of the few remaining public shorelines in Niagara-on-the-Lake. Rich in history and biodiversity, Niagara Shores offers picturesque views of Lake Ontario and is a popular destination for cycling, swimming, and being immersed in nature.

Public access is available through Firelane 1, off of Lakeshore Rd. Parking is limited, however additional parking is available across the street at Newark Park. The beach is accessed via foot/bike path, followed by a steep trail located on a bank cliff that is home to a large community of endangered Bank Swallows. Exercise caution when accessing the shoreline!

Niagara Coastal's Community-based Water Monitoring Hub began testing recreational water quality at this location in 2022. If you want to get involved in water quality monitoring, email info@niagaracoastal.ca for more information.

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Water Quality

Passed water quality tests 60-95% of the time
Historical Status
This status is based on the latest sample, taken on August 24th, 2022. Niagara Coastal Community Collaborative updates the status of this beach as soon as test results become available. These results were posted to Swim Guide on August 25th, 2022 at 2:41 PM.

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Monitoring Frequency

Source Information

Niagara Coastal staff and volunteers, with support from Swim Drink Fish, monitor recreational water quality along the shorelines of Lake Erie and Lake Ontario in Niagara during the summer months. The guidelines followed are the Operational Approaches for Recreational Water Guideline, 2018, set by the Ministry of Health and Long Term Care. Prior to 2018 beaches in Ontario were posted when the geometric mean of 5 samples collected within a 30-day period exceeded 100 E. coli / 100 mL of water, a standard derived from the Ministry of the Environment, Conservation, and Parks’ Provincial Water Quality Objectives.

Water is sampled for E.coli and Total Coliform at all sites. The water is sampled once weekly on Wednesdays from the end of May to early September. Results are available 24 hours after samples are collected, typically on Thursday afternoons. Beaches are posted when the geometric mean of 5 samples collected within a given swimming area and within a 30-day period exceeds 200 E. coli / 100 ml of water or when a single-sample maximum concentration exceeds 400 E. coli / 100 ml of water. Test results are expressed as Most Probable Number (MPN) of E.coli per 100 ml by using the IDEXX Quanti-Tray/2000 MPN Table.

In accordance with Ontario’s provincial recreational water quality standard, a beach is marked Green when geometric mean of 5 samples results are equal or below 200 E.coli / 100 mL water and below the single sample criteria of 400 E.coli/100ml. A beach is marked Red when the geometric mean concentration (minimum of five samples) is above 200 E.coli / 100 mL or above the 400 E.coli/100mL for a single sample. A beach is marked Grey when there are no current results or there is no available information. Results are posted as soon as lab results are available. Results will be communicated through the Swim Guide website and apps. Results are also available by email at info@niagaracoastal.ca.

Water Quality Graph