Gboy,

Take a look at similar situations in areas allowed for ice fishing to see large concentration of people, heated fishing huts. Also, there are trucks, cars, skidoos, some of which may fall through ice if they go out too early or remain on the ice surface too late in the season. The fishing is under the watchful eyes of park rangers and I have not seen trash left behind around the fishing area (some of the huts are rentals and the operators/outfitters are very keen to keep the area clean).

The fish are fine after the spring thaw...people continue fishing from the boats, and the catch is suitable for good eating. Just like fishermen, drillers are environmentally concious and responsible folks. As a poster has indicated in a previous post, drilling on ice has to follow strict rules imposed by the government.

https://www.google.ca/search?q=ice+fishing&client=firefox-a&hs=hxx&rls=org.mozilla:en-US:official&channel=sb&source=lnms&tbm=isch&sa=X&ei=4HIXU47SDujQyAGq64DIAw&ved=0CAkQ_AUoAQ&biw=1511&bih=699

The drill huts on ice (e.g. at Borden) is well protected (usually on thicker ice platforms and heated to prevent freezing of the cooling lines that may damage their expensive equipment. You can relax.

goldhunter