Public Safety Canada wants Canadians to be fully-masked while enjoying the summer weather at the beach.
In a tweet posted to the department’s official Twitter account on Monday, Public Safety Canada reminded Canadians to wear masks outdoors and practice physical distancing.
According to federal public health guidelines, the Canadian government recommends wearing masks in any shared space, whether indoor or outdoor, when there are people from outside of your household.
Included in a list of shared spaces are parks, backyards, outdoor markets, skating rinks and other recreational settings.
True North reached out to the Public Health Agency of Canada to seek clarification on mask wearing at beaches.
“As increased rates of community transmission of COVID-19 continue in many areas across Canada, and as new variants of the COVID-19 virus are identified, it remains important that you wear a non-medical mask,” a PHAC media relations official told True North.
Recent studies have shown that outdoor transmission rates for COVID-19 are very low and that outdoor recreation is generally safe in most circumstances and does not require mask-use.
As vaccination rates ramp up across Canada, several provinces are currently preparing to reopen and lift COVID-19 restrictions and public health orders.
Saskatchewan recently entered the second step of its reopening plan this week and announced that as of July 11, the province will end all COVID-19 public health restrictions.
Meanwhile, Alberta Premier Jason Kenney recently revealed that he intends on lifting nearly all restrictions in the province by this Canada Day.
