Today, only Ahlstrom Munksjo, which acquired Dexter in 2000, retains manufacturing capability on the banks of the canal, along with Algonquin Power Windsor Locks LLC, which operates a cycle cogeneration plant producing electricity and steam. Dexter invented the technology to make porous teabag paper, introduced in the 1930s and still produced at the plant today, and water from the canal continues to be used for papermaking and cooling. The adaptive reuse of the historic long-abandoned J.R. Montgomery Co. factory has brought 160 new apartment homes and added vibrancy to downtown Windsor Locks, while preserving much of the original building's design, including brick, oversized windows, high ceilings, and other interior elements from its factory past. Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, the canal now carries greater historical, ecological, and recreational significance, and people enjoy its natural beauty by strolling or biking along its banks, fishing for shad, picnicking, and watching for nesting eaglets.