The groups said they recently became concerned about shorelines and watersheds after a private individual dug a boat channel at Beaconia Marsh on Lake Winnipeg, before the province stepped in to stop it. The groups say what happens onshore contributes to ongoing excess nutrients in Lake Winnipeg and the resulting blue-green algae blooms.

"All too often development is done in the name of progress, but the marsh is doing a good job and now you've taken it away. When the marshlands are healthy, they do a good job of holding back stuff from the lake. There's a price to be paid and we're paying it," said Gordon Goldsborough, a professor at the University of Manitoba.

"These are the last defence before the runoff goes into the water. If we can't even put protection right at the very edge of the lake, how can we expect people hundreds of kilometres away in the watershed to help?" said Lake Winnipeg Watershed Initiative Coordinator Vicki Burns.

Burns also said while they are asking for a temporary moratorium, the long-term solution may be not to allow development close to shores. It might be time for the provincial government to manage public lands around the lakes, instead of local municipalities.

A provincial spokeswoman said Manitoba Water Stewardship is currently reviewing proposed policy for the protection of shoreline, erosion-prone areas and other environmentally sensitive areas near water. The Manitoba Water Council conducted a pubic request for comments regarding Manitoba wetlands during 2010. To date no report has been released.