Healing a bruised forest

Deep ruts lead through the bog to the hideaway in the woods. Under a sagging tarp, the ground is littered with broken beer bottles, car parts, remnants of automotive fluids and a couple of barbecues.

Off-roaders did their oil changes at the makeshift "Jiffy Lube," explains the custodian of this ecologically sensitive property that has been battered and bruised by years of illegal activities by trespassers.

Kristie Virgoe has a message for those who would mistreat East Cross Forest Conservation Area: Get out and stay out. To everyone else: Give Kawartha Conservation a chance to assess the damage and get the forest on the road to recovery before venturing back – as invited visitors.

"The illegal activity this spring is particularly concerning," says Virgoe, citing surface damage and water contamination from off-roading and burning vehicles. "A zero-tolerance policy is in full force to protect this ecologically sensitive area."

When the conservation authority acquired the biggest chunk of the property from a private donor in the fall of 2006, they immediately put up `no trespassing' signs and hired a security firm to patrol the 337 hectares, located in the southeast corner of Scugog Township. Vandals had destroyed the first sign before they got back to the office, recalls Virgoe, manager of environmental protection and restoration.

A year and a half later, the problems persist. Police have made more than a dozen arrests for offences related to drinking, driving, hunting, firearms and drugs.

In a recent trespassing incident, an off-roader told police he didn't see any signs. But when they opened his trunk, they found four of them, says Mike Brennan, of Canadian Shield Anticrime, which is working in partnership with Durham Region police to crack down on lawbreakers.

Security guards have been almost run down by ATVs and had loaded shotguns pointed at them, says Brennan, operations officer of logistics. A burned-out stolen vehicle had to be hauled away recently.

Trespassers include everyone from kids and families to birdwatchers and grandfathers. "We get every excuse from `I didn't see the signs' to `I've been coming here since I was a kid,'" says Brennan.

And therein lies part of the problem, says Virgoe. People believed the property was Crown land – still believe it, in fact – and they could do whatever they wanted on it.

Part of the Oak Ridges Moraine, East Cross Forest boasts red pine plantations, sand dunes, natural hardwood forest, tall grass prairie remnants and wetlands. It's home to a variety of plant species, birds, small mammals, deer, coyotes, a black bear and possibly a cougar.

"Every time I come out here, it's my joy and my sorrow," says Virgoe, frustrated over trespassers and troublemakers who care little about the breathtaking beauty. She points out one of the worst examples of ecological damage: "Mount Baldy," a 150-metre-long sand dune that people would charge up in old vehicles, until the cars gave out. Now, with vegetation stripped from the dune tops, deep gullies facilitate erosion and hinder the travel of small animals and insects.

"That's a long way down for some of those little critters," Virgoe says.

The property's sand and gravel floor are particularly vulnerable to pollutants from vehicles and ATVs because "anything that hits the ground travels quickly into the ground water."

It will take years to rehabilitate some of the worst-hit areas.

But by this time next year, they'll have made a good start and can open the gates to the public – except abusers.

TheStar.com | GTA | Healing a bruised forest.