 c o n s e r v a t i o n u p d a t e s f o r m e m b e r g r o u p s |
| Ontario Nature Network News - October 17, 2005 |
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To view a copy of this newsletter online visit www.ontarionature.org/resources/nnnews.html. Ontario Nature grants permission for use of the information below in member group newsletters. Please credit either Ontario Nature or the member group. Feature! Wood for Parks: Broken Promises NEWS FROM THE NATURE NETWORK
NEWS FROM ONTARIO NATURE
NEWS FROM MEMBER GROUPS Central Ontario News
Southern Ontario News
NEWS FROM OTHER ORGANIZATIONS UPCOMING NATURE NETWORK NEWS DEADLINES |
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Feature! Conservation groups are becoming increasingly concerned with the lack of commitment from Minister David Ramsay's (Minister of Natural Resources) staff to move forward on new protected areas in Ontario. When the Ontario Forest Accord was signed in 1999, it was agreed that the protected areas network was not complete in Ontario. A new policy called "Room to Grow" was initiated to ensure that increases in wood supply to the forest industry would serve two important purposes: 1) creating new opportunities for industry, and 2) helping Ontario expand the park system so that it includes the full representation of this province's ecosystem types. Throughout the Lands for Life planning process, Bowater Inc. bought and paid for a series of half page ads in local newspapers advising that they could not complete protected areas representation on their forest management units because it would mean shutting down their mills. Despite this, and within a few months following the release of Ontario's Living Legacy Land Use Strategy, the company announced their intention to build a new sawmill at Fort William First Nation in Thunder Bay. Bowater was able to rapidly obtain all their Ministry of Environment permits for the new plant and had their new business plan approved by OMNR. These complex approvals were completed very quickly and efficiently by Ministry staff. In April 2001, Bowater, MNR and Partnership for Public Lands (PPL) staff began an intensive analysis to identify the "best bets", or areas where conservation goals could be met most easily by the company. In May 2001, MNR presented the results of the combined analysis and negotiation - 11 candidate sites for new protected areas. The protected areas candidates were comprised of approximately 1% of the total area licensed by Bowater in Ontario. Consequently, Bowater's 2005 "official" opening of a new sawmill in Thunder Bay (in fact already operational since 2003) was not well-received by the conservation community. A part of the license requirements for this new mill were the regulation of new protected areas on Bowater's licences, which have resulted in an astonishing four-year process that is still incomplete. Ontario Nature staff has invested a significant amount of resources to work co-operatively to move these new protected areas forward, including working closely and in good faith with Bowater staff. We would like to respectfully remind the Minister of this commitment to protected areas and to revisit the long process that Bowater, the Ministry of Natural Resources, the Ministry of Northern Development and Mines, the Ontario Prospectors Association and the conservation community have engaged in. Ontario Nature staff will be meeting with the MNRs Northwest Regional Director this month, to ask that MNR revisit this issue immediately and ensure that both sides of the growth equation have been fulfilled, consistent with the commitments made when the mill license to Bowater was issued in 2001. |
NEWS FROM THE NATURE NETWORK |
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Greenways & Waterways - Ontario Nature's 75th AGM & Conference The Kitchener-Waterloo Field Naturalists (KWFN) will be hosting Ontario Nature's 75th AGM and Conference on June 2 - 4, 2006 at Wilfrid Laurier University in Waterloo. A team of dedicated KWFN members have been meeting monthly for one year putting together an exciting conference, Greenways & Waterways. Ontario Nature will open the conference with Provincial Issues Day followed with an evening BBQ to meet and greet. Saturday's program opens with a keynote speaker followed by numerous session presentations and panel discussions to choose from throughout the day, closing with a very special presentation speaker and a 75th banquet celebration. A variety of field trips will also be available and are designed to illustrate first hand the topics discussed in the program sessions while showcasing the natural and cultural assets of the Region of Waterloo. These trips include among others, our heritage Grand River, rafting, unique geological and forested areas and visits to wet lands, areas of birding and botanical interest alight in spring with delicate flowers and regionally rare plants. There is a choice of outing for every interest. Over the next few months, we will be providing more information on an outstanding 75th anniversary conference. Please join us for this exciting event! |
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Doors Open to Ontario Nature Update Ontario Nature is planning a series of exciting events to celebrate its 75th anniversary in 2006, including the Greenways & Waterways conference hosted by the Kitchener-Waterloo Field Naturalists, a special 75th anniversary edition of ON Nature and Doors Open to Ontario Nature. Doors Open to Ontario Nature will feature 75 community events that highlight the diversity, strength and commitment of Ontario Nature's member groups. Ontario Nature would like to thank the groups who have offered to host events. It is a great opportunity help celebrate our anniversary as a federation. Let us celebrate together! Plans are underway for launching this special initiative, beginning with a large article in the fall issue of ON Nature which will include a brief description of each event. The Regional Coordinators will be collecting the remaining descriptions and details about your events at the upcoming regional meetings as well as in the upcoming quarterly mailing. The event descriptions will be posted on Ontario Nature's website where a special 75th anniversary section will highlight all celebrations. Ontario Nature will be launching this section of the website at the end of November. Regional Coordinators are also working on additional publicity and would appreciate hearing your ideas. Please contact your Regional Coordinator with any publicity ideas you may have for this exciting initiative. |
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The Ontario Nature fall regional meetings are underway. Please mark the meeting dates in your calendar and encourage representatives from your group to attend! If you have any questions please contact your Regional Coordinator listed below. Jennifer Baker, Southern Regional Coordinator, jenniferb@ontarionature.org or (905) 527-9477 Andrea Smith, Central and Northern Regional Coordinator, andreas@ontarionature.org or (705) 789-6858 Tracy Moore, Eastern Regional Coordinator, tracym@ontarionature.org or (613) 331-3905 Southern Region Central Region Eastern Region |
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NEWS FROM ONTARIO NATURE |
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Provincial Parks and Garbage Dumps We tend to think of Ontario's provincial parks as pristine areas, protected from outside influences by the park boundaries that define them. The reality is very different. Parks are affected by previous and current land management practices, including forest harvesting, hydro dams, mining and other activities like fire control. In a recent example from northern Ontario, the list can now be extended to include municipal garbage dumps. Located along the famous Lake Superior Circle Tour Route, the town of Marathon is considering the expansion of an existing landfill beside a provincial park. According to an August 30th report by Thunder Bay Chronicle Journal reporter Carl Clutchey, the town council voted unanimously to begin the environmental approval process for the provincially owned site located less than a km from the entrance to Neys Provincial Park. The proposed landfill, about 25 km west of Marathon, would replace the town's existing garbage dump, which is anticipated to reach capacity by 2009. According to the report, local campground operator Tammy Gillespie is concerned that a municipal landfill so close to her business will contaminate her water supply. Mayor Dave Bell says the town is considering the Neys site because it is bound by a legal agreement with Pic River First Nation that prevents the municipality from building a garbage dump east of the town near the band's watershed. |
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Southern Ontario Greenway: The Greater Golden Horseshoe Growth Plan Ontario Nature will be using the government's growth management planning process called Places to Grow to full effect to promote protection of the natural cores and corridors that form our Southern Ontario Greenway. Within days of your reading this news update, we are expecting the Province to release the second draft of the Growth Plan for the Greater Golden Horseshoe or the GGH (south-central Ontario from Niagara to Waterloo Region to the Greater Toronto Area and Simcoe County east to Peterborough County). To read this final draft of the growth plan before it is fine-tuned and approved likely early in 2006, please visit www.pir.gov.on.ca and click on Places to Grow. You can download the draft growth plan or contact the government for a hard copy by mail. That website will also give you information about the public consultation period (likely 60 days, ending just before the holiday season) and possibly some public meetings. The Greater Golden Horseshoe Growth Plan may very well set the tone for growth plans for other regions of Ontario, so as naturalists, we must do our best to ensure this first one is as green as possible. Keep up to date on Ontario Nature's activities on the GGH Growth Plan by visiting www.ontarionature.org and clicking on Conservation. |
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Ontario Nature is collaborating with Environmental Defence and the Rescue Lake Simcoe Coalition in a campaign to save the deteriorating water quality of Lake Simcoe and to protect green space and farmland from urban sprawl in Simcoe County. On October 19, we are hosting a reception for MPPs at Queen's Park to sensitize them to the issues. A public open house is planned for Thursday, November 17 in Simcoe County. To keep up to date on these and other events, please visit www.ontarionature.org, www.environmentaldefence.ca and/or www.rescuelakesimcoe.org. You may also wish to see (and purchase) the Ladies of the Lake 2006 calendar (www.lakeladies.ca) that promotes Lake Simcoe protection in a unique way. Ontario Nature's Simcoe County work is part of our Greenway initiative. South Simcoe is the site of several proposed urban developments in the countryside that plan to "leapfrog" over the protected Greenbelt. There are better ways to grow and we'll use the Places to Grow process (above) and our Greenway project to promote smarter growth for Simcoe County and the rest of the province. |
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Ontario Nature member groups are encouraged to consider becoming member organizations in the Ontario Smart Growth Network (OSGN). At present, membership is free (although this may change in future) and simply involves approving the founding agreement of the OSGN. To find out more, please visit the OSGN at www.greenontario.org/smartgrowth. You may want to sign up for the Get Smart! e-newsletter. As well, there is the Get Smart! list-serv, where you can electronically post smart growth items and read what others have posted. Ontario Nature is an active member of the OSGN and staff member Linda Pim is one of its co-chairs. The OSGN holds a series of public seminars on hot smart growth topics and is working on a number of other exciting projects. Getting yourself on the list-serv and newsletter lists is the best way to keep up to date on Ontario smart growth happenings. |
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You Can Help Protect the Niagara Escarpment from Yet Another Quarry! The Coalition on the Niagara Escarpment (CONE), which was founded in 1978 by Ontario Nature, and the Halton-based Protect Our Water and Environmental Resources (POWER) are in the home stretch of their long struggle to prevent Dufferin Aggregates from expanding its Milton Quarry. CONE and POWER appealed to the Ontario Cabinet a hearing board decision to approve an 83-hectare (205-acre) expansion of the quarry, visible from Highway 401 north of Milton. It is already the largest active quarry in Canada and if allowed to expand, would irretrievably fragment the continuous natural Escarpment corridor in this area. While we do need new aggregate supplies, sacrificing part of a UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve is not the way to go about finding them. Also, Ontario has a pitiful record when it comes to aggregate conservation and recycling. CONE/POWER have full-colour postcards to Premier McGuinty that need to be signed by as many people as possible. To obtain the postcard in whatever quantity you can spread around, please contact CONE at (519) 853-4955 or cone@niagaraescarpment.org. Please also read the Action Alert on CONE's website at www.niagaraescarpment.org for other ways you can help. Cabinet could make a decision on the quarry expansion at any time (days, weeks or months from now). |
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Have you ever walked into a forest and noticed that the forest floor is covered in small craters and hills? Forest ecologists call this topography pits and mounds.They are created when large trees are torn from the ground during intense storms. The fallen trees leave a large "crater" or pit where the roots once stood. The root mass breaks down over time, forming a mound. These pits and mounds are very important in maintaining the biodiversity of a forest, by providing many ecological niches for both plants and wildlife. Kinghurst Forest Nature Reserve, near Hanover, Ontario, is home to expansive areas of stunning older growth forest. It also contains a number of old agricultural fields. These fields are relatively flat and have dry, compacted soil. They are dominated by non-native grasses that are preventing the growth of native plants and trees. This fall, Ontario Nature used the pit and mound restoration technique in one of these fields to re-create a more natural topography. Construction took place on approximately 8 acres of land, creating over 400 pits and mounds. These pits and mounds will help to improve the growing conditions in the field by trapping moisture and organic material. These pits and mounds will now be planted with a variety of wildflowers, shrubs and trees. This will improve the biodiversity of the habitat and help to start the natural succession off on the right foot. If you would like to help sow the seeds of a future forest, contact April Mathes at (416) 444-8419 ext. 264. Planting will take place at the Kinghurst Forest Nature Reserve on Saturday, October 22nd. |
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Ontario Nature's Youth Challenge Hey Kids! Do you love nature? We bet you’ve had a great experience with some part of nature in last little while. Perhaps it was collecting and studying frogs at the lake this summer. Perhaps it was climbing your favourite tree in the park close to your home. Or perhaps you’ve had a memorable wilderness encounter this year. See any wildlife? Nature is everywhere, miles away from nowhere, and right in your own backyard! We’d like to hear about what you think about nature – submit an essay to Ontario Nature’s Youth Challenge Writing Contest. You can win cool prizes, and even get your essay published in ON Nature magazine! Write in and tell us why you think we need nature and a healthy environment in Ontario. The topic is: “Why Do We Need Nature?” What you need to know:
Send your original entries by April 15, 2006 to: Chair, Youth Challenge Essay Contest Committee Make sure you have a title page telling us the title of your essay, your name, address, phone number, email address, your parent’s name, what grade you’re in, and the name of your school. Good Luck! And remember, have fun! |
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Support Species at Risk with a Barn Owl Plush Toy Barn owl plush toys are available for sale from Ontario Nature at a cost of $11.95 each (+ taxes and shipping). Visit the online Ontario Nature Shop at www.ontarionature.org or contact us at (416)444-8419 or 1-800-440-2366 to order. These plush toys were developed to help youth learn about species at risk. Each toy comes with valuable information about the species, including why they are at risk. Proceeds from the sale of barn owl plush toys will support Ontario Nature’s Species at Risk program. The barn owls are available to Ontario Nature Network members for a special fundraising price of $8 each (+ taxes and shipping) if you buy 10 or more! Contact your Regional Coordinator to order some for your next fundraising event. |
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NEWS FROM MEMBER GROUPS |
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Central Ontario News |
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The Trumpeter Swan Re-introduction Fundraising Campaign The Wye Marsh Wildlife Centre has been a co-operator of the Trumpeter Swan Re-introduction Program since 1988 and we continue to rely on your support. The numbers of swans in Ontario are still not at a self-sustaining level, as there are approximately 550 trumpeters, with less than 100 wild breeding pairs. Trumpeter swans still face many challenges including lead poisoning, injury and loss of habitat. Currently, minimal funding is available for the many operating expenses related to this program. The Fundraising Raffle is just one of many ways to raise awareness for the trumpeter swan program. The Campaign Goal is to raise $100,000 by March 1, 2006. With the generous support of several sponsors we proudly present the incredible prizes of The Yukon Experience Raffle: 1st Prize: 3 trips for 2 people to the Yukon on April 16th to 21st, 2006, Please note: The draw will take place at midnight during a special New Year's Eve event at Wye Marsh. For more information, please contact the Wye Marsh Wildlife Centre: |
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Wye Marsh Management Plan Development Representatives of the Friends of Wye Marsh Inc., the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, Ducks Unlimited, and Canadian Wildlife Services have been meeting together to create a Management Plan for the Wye Valley. The Management Plan will incorporate data from extensive historical research of the political, economic, and biophysical components of the marsh. This will help to outline and identify future goals and objectives for the Valley's stewardship. The Management Plan will also provide a framework within which to address several key issues affecting the Valley. These issues include topics such as wildlife habitat and range research, invasive species control, water level regulation, berm maintenance, property boundaries and land ownership, and valley access points Another topic being addressed is a plan to increase access to the scenic gifts and educational opportunities the Valley has to offer. This includes opening a biking trail within the Valley and building a boardwalk to view a rare Fen community. However, an assessment of the Valley's sensitive species and ecological communities is needed in order to minimize any impact increased public use could have on the Valley's natural resources. An inventory of Wye Marsh species commenced this summer. For more information, please contact the Wye Marsh Wildlife Centre at (705) 526-7809. |
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Exchange Your Coffee & Donut for One Month The landscape unfolds on either side of the road. It's there, the greenery. And then you realize what was there last week is gone. You mutter to yourself, "they cut them all down for that new subdivision, what a waste - they'll plant the token tree here and there - I'll have to live another lifetime to see their magnificence" and you keep on driving... That little bit of wetland where our migrating birds used to stop to rest and feed - this too, gone. What's the big deal - just another marsh, bog, swamp, it’s all the same, isn’t it? Wrong. We are all part of this fragile earth and we must protect and respect all creatures’ habitats on this planet. We do not have the right to desecrate another home, whether it is made of steel and mortar, or twigs, webs, in the sky, in the water, or deep in the ground. We should not leave this world impoverished by the loss of wild nature. To help support the conservation of natural lands, you can contribute to the ongoing stewardship of reserves owned by the Couchiching Conservancy. $25.00 will protect an acre, forever! To Protect an Acre, please contact The Couchiching Conservancy at (705)326-1620. |
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The Twin Lakes Conservation Club, with the support of involved landowners, has taken on the multi-year responsibility for the restoration of Mill Creek in and near Orillia. In August Sandy Agnew, Eco-Medic, Ecosystem Restoration was contracted to complete an assessment of the Mill Creek watershed and provide recommendations to restore the habitat. Funding for this project was partially provided by a grant received in partnership with Ontario Nature. This work is ongoing. The restoration process will begin once the report is complete. On September 15, 2005, Ministry of Natural Resources staff and members of the Twin Lake Conservation Club conducted an electro-shocking process at three representative areas in Mill Creek to obtain data on the numbers and species of fish present. Eleven fish species were identified and counted so far. Creek chub, central mudminnow, fathead minnow, Northern redbelly dace, blacknose dace, pearl dace, common shiner, brook stickleback, white sucker, mottled sculpin and common carp. Although no brook trout were found, the habitat to support brook trout was excellent. |
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Junior Naturalists Camps 2005 The HHFN ran two very successful Junior Naturalist camps this past summer. The one week programs were held in Minden and Haliburton, with a total of 34 children enrolled. The fun and educational programs were co-ordinated by Jean Godawa, and ran every weekday morning from 10 a.m. till noon. These programs were supported by the Haliburton Highlands Stewardship Council, Haliburton Legion, and the Minden Rotary Club. The HHFN will be continuing these programs in 2006, with dates and program details to follow. |
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Snowdon Park The Township of Minden Hills has recently purchased 350 acres (142 hectares) of land adjacent to the existing 100 ac. (40.5 ha.) Snowdon Park. This 450 ac. (182.5 ha.) natural area, with hiking trails and a wetland viewing platform now abuts 2200 ac. (890 ha.) of Crown land, including some significant wetlands. The HHFN looks forward to continuing its involvement with environmental and educational issues within Snowdon Park as plans for the park are developed. |
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Observation of Giant Swallowtail at Minesing Swamp The giant swallowtail butterfly, Papilio cresphontes, the largest butterfly found in Canada, is a common and widespread tropical species ranging from Central America northward through the eastern United States to the Canadian border. It is common in southwestern Ontario but in Canada it strays to Winnipeg, Montreal, and one specimen to southern Nova Scotia. In Ontario strays have been recorded as far north as Bruce County, London, Kitchener, Simcoe County and Ottawa. It is considered sporadic and rare in Canada except in southwestern Ontario around Point Pelee and Pelee Island. This summer during the Pelee Island butterfly count which I organize every year we counted 306 giant swallowtails on Pelee Island on July 30, 2005. Of these my team found 167 giant swallowtails along Curry Dyke Road nectaring on alfalfa. It flies in open woodlands with fields nearby and feeds as a caterpillar on hop trees and Northern prickly-ash. Prickly-ash also grows in Simcoe County in some locations like Minesing Swamp. Giant swallowtail is a rare butterfly for Simcoe County but during a field trip by canoe into Minesing Swamp on August 17, 2005 along with employees of the Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority and volunteers we observed a giant swallowtail. It was feeding on spotted joe-pye-weed along the bank of the Nottawasaga River between Edenvale and the mouth of Willow Creek. An attempt to put the canoes to shore in order to obtain a photo failed. By the time we were able to safely disembark from the canoes the butterfly had departed. This was in a silver/Freeman maple swamp with open agriculture land to the north beyond the river levee. The giant swallowtail was not seen again during the trip but several other butterflies and dragonflies were recorded. |
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Greetings from the Peterborough Field Naturalists Our Club is involved with the Large Woodland Conservation Co-operative (LWCC). This group has been formed to bring to the public and large woodlot owners the importance of these large woodlots that are disappearing. We have had a walk, discussing species of trees and signs of disease and the sound and nests of forest birds. The LWCC is planning a workshop on seed collection and more details will follow. |
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West Humber Naturalists and the Friends of Boyd Park The Goal of the Friends of Boyd Park (www.saveboydpark.ca) is to preserve the natural beauty, ecological function and cultural heritage of Boyd Park for future generations. We share the concerns of the Ontario Ministry of the Environment, Ministry of Natural Resources and Toronto Region Conservation Authority that the proposed Pine Valley Drive Link through Boyd Park will impair the quality of this precious, public resource. We support sensible, less costly traffic alternatives and solutions. WHAT CAN YOU DO TO SUPPORT THE CAUSE? Write to your local and regional councillors and the Minister of the Environment (address below) requesting their support to Save Boyd Park by having the Pine Valley “link” removed as an option in the current Environmental Assessment. Minister Laurel Broten, Minister of the Environment, 12th Floor, 135 St. Clair Avenue West Toronto, Ontario M4V 1P5, Telephone: (416) 314-6790 Fax: (416) 314-7337 State your objection to the destruction of the Pine Valley Forest as an Area of Natural and Scientific Interest (ANSI) and its associated significant wetlands. Express your concern over the intrusion into this significant regional and local recreation destination. You can refer to the area’s importance as a wildlife and natural systems corridor between the Oak Ridges Moraine and Lake Ontario (Humber River watershed) and its importance to our community as parklands. The legal efforts of The Friends of Boyd Park (FOBP) are being supported by Environmental Defence, a national charitable organization. Charitable Registration # 118830835RR0001 Annual fall walk on October 15th Starting at Bindertwine Park in Kleinburg at 9:30 a.m. for a walk down to Boyd Park Sponsored by: Friends of Boyd Park (FOBP), Humber Valley Heritage Trail Association (HVHTA) and the Toronto & Region Conservation Authority (TRCA) Experience for yourself the wonders of the Humber River Valley in its full glory of fall colours. And/or join us in Boyd Park (Elmgrove 1 site) at noon to support the establishment of a commemorative trail in memory of Pierre Berton. Bring the family to walk the proposed trail and to participate in the fall fun of painting pumpkins. Refreshments will be available. Return transportation to Bindertwine Park will be provided to drivers. |
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Cleveland Hikers Visit the Oak Ridges Trail On August 26th, forty-two members of the Cleveland (Ohio) Hiking Club traveled to Ontario to hike a portion of the Oak Ridges Trail. Two hikes were organized by the Oak Ridges Trail Association (ORTA). The hikes were designed to introduce our friends from Ohio to the natural and geographic features of the Oak Ridges Moraine. Both walks began and ended at the ORTA office at Seneca College’s King Campus. Twenty Cleveland hikers and 15 ORTA hikers undertook an 8.25 km walk, while 22 Cleveland and 9 ORTA hikers did a 6.25 km route. Following these morning walks, everyone feasted on a pizza lunch at the ORTA Gate House office. Big thanks to Charlie Atkinson and Stan Butcher who led the hikes. |
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Upcoming events with the York Simcoe Naturalists The York Simcoe Naturalists has some exciting talks coming up. The meetings take place in the River Drive Park Community Centre, 20 Oak Ave. in River Drive Park (off the Queensville Sideroad, north of Holland Landing). Refreshments will be served. For information call (905) 898-2329 or 1-800-216-3830. All are welcome.
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SOUTHERN ONTARIO NEWS |
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Remembering a Great Man: Nelson Maher Back in June at our last indoor meeting, we presented honorary lifetime memberships to Nels and Jean Maher. Little did we know that in this fall newsletter, just three months later, Nels would be gone, and we would be once more talking of his achievements in fond memory. Nels was probably best known as a fern expert. Even though he did not study botany formally, he was recognized as one of Ontario’s prominent experts on ferns. Although he did field trips with University of Guelph botanist Donald Britton, proving the high level of his knowledge, he also had a hands-on understanding of ferns. Even though they are notoriously difficult to grow from spores, Nels did it, and grew them on in his back yard. Probably his crowning achievement with ferns, the one that will live on as his legacy, is his book, A Guide to the Ferns of Grey and Bruce Counties. Nels played a central role in the production of all the rest of our series of nature books on Grey and Bruce Counties too. With his knowledge of printing, he made sure all of the books were printed and bound well. This list of achievements, however, doesn’t capture Nels’ personality. He was a remarkably friendly man, and he and Jean’s home was always open to their friends, family, and the students from other countries who came and lived with them. Nels was always approachable, always positive. We will miss his presence as a human being even more than we’ll miss his contributions to our club. |
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Hamilton Naturalists’ Club Nature Sanctuary Protects Endangered American Columbo On October 1st, 2005, 110 people attended the opening celebration for the Cartwright Nature Sanctuary in Dundas. The 46 acre Nature Sanctuary has been protected through an innovative conservation partnership between the Hamilton Naturalists’ Club (HNC) and Conservation Halton, who share acquisition costs and future management responsibilities. They are also working together to pay off a $147,000 mortgage. This project builds on the HNC’s proud history of protecting natural areas since 1961. It is the fifth nature sanctuary acquisition by the club, which has also contributed $600,000 to conservation land purchases by other conservation organizations across Ontario. Nestled between the Niagara Escarpment and the north shore of Cootes Paradise marsh, the Cartwright Nature Sanctuary is in a designated environmentally significant area and forms part of an important ecological linkage. Located only 5 km from downtown Hamilton, the sanctuary includes a variety of habitats and a wide range of species. It is an important groundwater discharge area, with eight seasonal streams. Recent botanical surveys revealed the presence of a large colony of American columbo (Frasera caroliniesis), a wildflower in the gentian family. This endangered plant is listed as a Species of Special Concern by COSEWIC. For more information or to find out how you can contribute to this important conservation initiative, contact Alan Ernest, HNC Land Trust Program Coordinator at (905) 689-9466 or ernest@interlynx.net or visit www.hamiltonnature.org. |
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Sauble Beach took on a new look this summer as the Town of South Bruce Peninsula and Friends of Sauble Beach began to implement their Beach Management Plan. Signs explaining the plan and thanking the various sponsors were posted at the gateway to the beach. The many little signs posted along Lakeshore Boulevard were replaced by a few larger signs noting directions and prohibitions for the dunes and beach. New also were signs directing people to use designated accesses rather than the numerous paths worn through the dunes which allow the sand to migrate off the beach and be lost. On the beach side of the dunes, signs were erected marking the sensitive nature of the dunes and the diversity of their sometimes rare vegetation Tenders have been called to rebuild the walkways in ways which will give easy access but also protect the dunes from further erosion. Construction is to be completed before the end of 2005. The beach has also been designated by Environmental Defence as a candidate for the International Blue Flag program. The Mayor received the certificate in the early summer and the Town of South Bruce Peninsula and Friends of Sauble Beach are working together to meet the 27 criteria necessary to be designated as a Blue Flag beach. |
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NEWS FROM OTHER ORGANIZATIONS |
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Conservation Officers Get a New Tool in Fight Against Poaching Just in time for hunting seasons across Ontario, Conservation Officers (CO) now have been given a long awaited tool that will make the job of protecting Ontario’s natural resources much more effective. On September 27, 2005 the Minister of Natural Resources, David Ramsay, opened the toll free Ontario Natural Resources TIPS Reporting Line. Now the public can pass on information about poaching or other illegal activity to on duty MNR Conservation Officers 24 hours a day. Ontario Conservation Officers have been asking for just such a TIPS line for many years. With only about 200 Conservation Officers to patrol the wilds of a huge province, it has been very clear to them that they need information from the people of Ontario who know about natural resources abuse. “In our 113 years of protection history, Conservation Officers have always counted on the lawful citizens’ information to help us deal effectively with poachers.” Said Jim McMullen, OCOA President. “It has become more difficult for the public to know how to contact their local CO, as the population of many small towns throughout the province has grown. In the past everyone knew who the local CO was and how to contact him, day or night. Unfortunately, for the resources and the caring public that has not been the case for many years. Prior to this TIPS line being set up, the public could not contact anyone at the MNR with poaching information outside of normal business hours. Lets face it 8 to 5, Monday to Friday is not prime poaching hours.” The Ontario Conservation Officers Association (OCOA) wants to congratulate and thank our Minister David Ramsay and senior managers in the MNR for making this TIPS line a reality. It is going to assist Conservation Officers to catch and deal more effectively with more resource abusers. It is very important to note that the TIPS line is of no help at all if the public does not call. So the OCOA is asking the public to continue to be involved in protecting our natural resources by keeping a lookout for illegal activity, collecting the information about it and then calling our TIPS line at 1-877-TIPS-MNR. Please keep the number handy whenever you venture out into our beautiful forests, lakes and streams. It is a Conservation Officers’ job to protect your natural resources, but it is everyone’s responsibility. |
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UPCOMING NATURE NETWORK NEWS DEADLINES |
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Next Issue of Nature Network News The next issue of the Nature Network News will be sent on December 15, 2005. Submissions will be accepted until December 1, 2005. Please send articles to jenniferb@ontarionature.org. Ontario Nature publishes the Ontario Nature Network News every other month with contributions from its staff and member groups. |