Millbrook water defenders looking for a 007

On a recent cross-country flight, I watched last year's Bond movie Quantum of Solace.And I was struck by its down-to-earth tone. For this time, the villain wasn't the usual creepy miscreant, but a bland-looking businessman. And his dark-hearted scheme was not for world domination, but for water diversion. His nefarious plan: to steal the fresh water -the essential and increasingly precious ingredient of life -from local, defenceless citizens.

Art imitates life. How similar to the situation facing our neighbours in Millbrook. Here, politicians and developers are planning to drain and transport water from three artesian wells - located on the Oak Ridges Moraine -for 12 kilometres overland. All to service the Kawartha Downs casino expansion, a golf course, and a sprawling new subdivision. The proposed increase in water demand? 800%. Experts predict that this will leave both local residents and sensitive brook trout, high and dry.

Who will stand up to the powerful forces promoting this ruinous plan? In 2006, concerned citizens spoke out, and were threatened with a lawsuit. A shocking sign of our times. Now, unfortunately, it takes a mythical James Bond, or Jane Bond, to defend us from these corporate raiders; our elected representatives don't seem to want to. Is our government really acting with our best, long-term interests in mind? Their stony silence speaks volumes. Enough said. SUSANNE LAUTEN

Millbrook water defenders looking for a 007 - Peterborough Examiner - Ontario, CA.

Greenbelt not saving livestock operations: study

For a protected area that was meant to preserve southern Ontario's farmland and agriculture, the Greenbelt doesn't seem to have done the job for livestock producers, a new study suggests.

It shouldn't surprise anyone that "traditional" livestock operations, such as dairy, beef and hog farms, have experienced a decline throughout Ontario since 2001.

But the new profile of the Greenbelt's agricultural economy, sponsored by the provincial ag ministry and authored by Prof. Harry Cummings of the University of Guelph's School of Environmental Design and Rural Development, finds that trend much more dramatic in the Greenbelt than anywhere else in Ontario.

For their study, which the university outlined in a release Friday (Dec. 18), Cummings and graduate students Sandra Moreau and Sarah Megens compared agricultural census data from 2001 and 2006 for the Greenbelt.

The Greenbelt is the province's designated zone of permanent protection for 1.8 million acres of farmland and other "environmentally sensitive" land around southern Ontario's Greater Golden Horseshoe, taking in the Niagara Escarpment, the Oak Ridges Moraine, Rouge Park, several hundred rural towns and villages, and about 7,100 farms.

The study generated the only custom-tabulated agricultural census results for the Greenbelt, as drawn from a Statistics Canada database which allowed them to analyze census data from only farms and farm parcels within the greenbelt.

The data showed the number of dairy farms decreased by 28 per cent in the greenbelt, compared to 23 per cent provincewide. Greenbelt beef farm numbers declined by 24 per cent, compared to 13 per cent across Ontario. Hog farm numbers fell by 11 per cent provincially, compared to a 27 per cent decline in the Greenbelt.

The number of sheep and goat farms, meanwhile, grew 34 per cent in Ontario between 2001 and 2006, but declined by eight per cent in the Greenbelt.

As well, the number of poultry and egg farms grew five per cent across the province in that five-year span but dropped by 19 per cent within the Greenbelt.

Both the Greenbelt and the province in general posted increased in the number of farms in the "other animal production" category: bees, horses, ponies, rabbits, alpacas, bison, wild boars and so on.

However, while the Greenbelt saw a five per cent increase, for example, in the number of horses and ponies between 2001 and 2006, it was "outpaced" by the province overall, in which the numbers rose 17 per cent in the same time frame.

Overall, the number of farms in the Greenbelt dropped by seven per cent between 2001 and 2006. That's three per cent higher than the provincial decline, the university noted.

Questions of viability

"These trends, and the difference in animal population change within the greenbelt compared to the province, raise a number of interesting questions regarding the viability of animal production in close proximity to a major urban area," Cummings said in the university's release.

"There is some indication that the Greenbelt area has unique characteristics that influence the type and scale of production within its boundaries," he added. "We need to look deeper to fully understand the causes and implications of this change."

As they do in other areas of the country, farm consolidation and retirement account for some of the decreasing farm numbers, the study authors said.

However, Greenbelt farmers who took part in the researchers' nine focus groups said they were "generally unhappy with the lack of planning policy around the Greenbelt."

grainews.ca - Grainews is a magazine and web site for farmers and farms in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta Canada. - Grainews is a magazine and web site for farmers and farms in Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta Canada. - 12/27/2009.

TURBINE CONCERNS

Perhaps you have noticed the 'Stop the Wind Turbine' signs that have been put up along the highways and biways in the former Manvers Township in the past few weeks, and wondered why they are there.

Manvers Township, which includes Pontypool and Bethany, is in a proposed industrial wind turbine study area. As local residents who will be affected greatly if the turbines are erected, we have a number of issues relating to having up to 30 turbines, proposed in this first study, with a possible height well over 400 ft, and with rotating blades that span 260 ft.

Turbines farms in other areas have been related to health issues that include headaches, insomnia, anxiety, heart palpitations, difficulty concentrating and are connected to epileptic seizures. The turbines may well be erected in close proximity to Grandview and Rolling Hills Public Schools, which includes a daycare.

The Green Energy Act allows the turbines to be placed as close as 550 meters from the base to the center of receptors, which are homes and schools. I believe it is imperative that the provincial government perform a full health study, including effects on children, before allowing the erection of the turbines, and increase the setback to at least 1.5 kms and preferably two kms, a distance that is generally agreed to prevent negative health issues.

Other issues include the disruption to the environmentally protected land of the Oak Ridges Moraine. This disruption includes not only the area required to put up the turbines, but the roadways and transmission corridors that must be built, on land that the residents themselves cannot develop.

We do not have fire fighting equipment to combat any fires that may occur in the generators at the hub, since the turbines are as tall as a 40 story building.

There will be a negative economic impact to properties in close proximity to turbines. The shadow flicker and the noise of the turbines will deter potential buyers.

While the lure of free and green energy lulls most people into believing that wind turbines are the energy answer, they may not be aware that the turbine companies receive a feed in tariff that is more than 2.5 times the amount we pay per kilowatt hour. If the wind isn't blowing, we still need to rely on nuclear, gas and hydro-electric power generation, since electricity can't be stored.

Industrial wind turbines will affect more and more rural areas, since the province has proposed 7,000 turbines to be erected in southern Ontario. We need to increase the distance of turbines from our homes for our health and wealth.

Nancy Lichacz Pontypool

TURBINE CONCERNS - The Lindsay Post - Ontario, CA.

Wind turbines is not as efficient as lobbyists would like the public to believe

Editor:

The article in the Thursday, Oct. 27 edition of The Daily Observer, 'Energy solution blowing in the wind,' is an example of alternative energy propaganda funded by wind farm companies and promoted by environmental lobby groups.

Mr. Berton has nothing but praise for Spain and its supposedly 13 per cent production figure, but what he doesn't tell you is that although the wind is free, the means to produce power from it is twice as expensive as conventional power plants. Furthermore, Spain is now realizing how inefficient wind power is.

England is on the brink of a blackout in about seven years because of its commitment to wind power. The British have spent billions of pounds installing 2,000 wind turbines that barely produce one per cent of the power needed.

They signed on to Kyoto and are legally obligated to produce 32 per cent of their power from alternative energy sources by 2010. Let's do the math: If 2,000 wind turbines barely produce one per cent of need, then 32 times 2,000 means it would take 64,000 turbines to meet the target. Each turbine needs about four acres, four times 64,000 amounts to 256,000 acres and England would be hard-pressed to find room for 10,000 turbines. Prime Minister Brown and his group of
environmental dreamers are in fantasy land.

They are proposing to close their coal and oil-fired power plants and eight of their nine nuclear plants are so old that they will be forced to shut down, amounting to approximately 65 per cent of their power production.

The government is now reluctantly proposing to build a new generation of nuclear power plants, but it has waited too long and will not have them in place before the county runs out of power. Britain sold its world class nuclear construction company, Westinghouse, to the Japanese for a fire sale price.

Germany has installed more than 3,000 wind turbines and are in the process of building 40 more clean coal-fired plants, because they now realize how inefficient and expensive wind power is.

In Ontario, Mr. McGuinty and his group of socialist comrades are travelling down the same road, and if not stopped, WE will be looking at power shortfalls in 10 years. I suggest rather than wasting our tax dollars on wind power, we should be refurbishing or building new nuclear power plants and also clean coal power plants.

The notion that wind power can replace conventional and nuclear power production is ridiculous and just a means for extracting our tax dollars from naive political leaders by the use of alarmism.

The sad reality is there is a lot of money behind wind power promoted by environmental lobby groups, and I would love to follow that paper trail to see who is getting it.

Mack Thrasher,

Laurentian Valley

The reality of wind turbines is not as efficient as lobbyists would like the public to believe - The Daily Observer - Ontario, CA.

North Durham: Drain or gain to Region?

At least that's what some Region officials are saying about the development woes faced by north Durham municipalities.

And although growth is stunted in the upper reaches of Durham, that doesn't mean those municipalities are a financial drain on the Region as a whole, they said.

Uxbridge and Brock in particular currently face development woes due to sewage capacity on top of Greenbelt, Oak Ridges Moraine and Lake Simcoe Protection Act legislation. In a nutshell, Uxbridge is growing inwards, not outwards, beyond its current urban boundaries.

But Regional Chairman Roger Anderson was careful not to pin blame on the north for any fiscal challenges faced by Durham.

"A lack of residential development across the board in Durham will have an impact on the Region across the board," said the chairman.

And while there are noticeably less commercial and industrial operations in north Durham, the three upper municipalities have made gains in those sectors in recent years, with Region initiatives to further improve that situation, Mr. Anderson pointed out.

"Broadband is a big help to land business in the north," he said.

The biggest challenge, he said, is Greenbelt legislation he called "really restrictive.

"Unless the (Province) makes it more flexible, some across the GTA are going to find themselves in a predicament," said Mr. Anderson.

He added the Region will take an active part in the discussion when the Greenbelt rules are reviewed in 2014.

Uxbridge Mayor Bob Shepherd said while development is stunted, building alone is not the final answer to handle future costs.

"Growth is a short-term solution ... growth does not pay for growth," said Mayor Shepherd.

He said legislation such as the Oak Ridges Moraine Act "has created a whole new class of municipalities that cannot be supported under the old model ... we've got to find a new (solution)."

Mayor Shepherd said Uxbridge is getting a fair shake in Region services from the tax dollars it sends to Durham, and he hears no complaints from south mayors about their northern neighbours not pulling their weight financially. "We get more back from the Region than you think," said the mayor, pointing out policing, transit, water, major roads, garbage collection and social welfare are all upper-tier responsibilities.

But he noted Durham Transit, which Uxbridge, Scugog and Brock pay a share of, could have been put on hold for the north as the service is limited compared to the south.

"I would have voted to exclude the three north municipalities in the first term," said Mayor Shepherd.

Mr. Anderson pointed out a lack of growth could actually have advantages.

"A lot of people like small municipalities with a rural feel," said the chairman. Also, "there's enough land in Uxbridge for some big companies to come in ... I don't think the (company) president would mind living on a 100-acre lot with a nice house."

newsdurhamregion.com | North Durham: Drain or gain to Region?.

Premier's green energy plan is faulty

This is in regard to the 'Green Energy Bandwagon' and the media's comments that go something like, "It's not as if wind power is controversial."

Wrong, wrong, wrong. More than 4,000 (some say as high as 7,000) of these massive, noisy, 250-foot high industrial behemoths are being erected in the backyards of people living in developed communities throughout south central Ontario, for no practical reason whatsoever.

A cost-recovery-benefit calculation of Dalton's Green Energy brain cramp shows his part-time industrial wind power plan is only beneficial to, and lucrative for wind turbine promoters and builders. They receive 14 to 19 cents for every kilowatt per hour they deliver to the grid - five times the current Ontario Power Generation purchase cost. Solar promoters receive 80 cents per kw/h, over 20 times OPG's current purchase cost. They also receive "incentive subsidies" covering new construction.

Industrial wind turbines and their infrastructure costs are extremely high while at the same time, totally inefficient. Each turbine costs over $5 million. Their huge concrete bases, new access roadways, new transmission lines, cabling etc., and equipment costs to clean the dirty electricity they produce are another $2 million each. All this, yet they will only generate power, on average, two part days a week, due to a lack of wind.

Why jack our electricity bills by billions of dollars for a measly 15 to 20 per cent power yield? Why destroy miles of beautiful Ontario countryside, and depreciate thousands of private properties for something that is not reliable, not cost-effective, or needed? It is reported that OPG is purposely bypassing low-cost hydro dam generators in order to create a false "need".

Dalton's government is being taken to court by citizens groups over his inadequate set-back rule of only 550 metres, the shortest set-back distance in the western world. Elsewhere the minimum set-back is 1,500 to 2,000 metres from a dwelling. Dalton's projected wind turbine build costs to periodically produce just 6,000 megawatts of unreliable, intermittent power is almost double the cost of one small nuclear power plant, which is capable of delivering clean electricity all day, every day of the year, something wind turbines can never do.

Citizens groups also oppose Dalton's Dynamos because, for some unknown reason, his plan targets smaller communities, not cities where electricity demand and waste is the highest. To add to this abuse, industrial turbine noise equates to living near Hwy. 401, causing property values to sink. As well, conservation efforts, habitat protection efforts, the Oak Ridges Moraine protection policies and a host of other issues have all been tossed under the bus.

We need to urge Premier McGuinty to re-visit his flawed wind plan, and prioritize building at least 800 of his industrial turbines (20 per cent) along the GTA's lakeshore, in Toronto/Hamilton parks, public spaces and malls, on the islands, along hydro transmission lines, rail corridors, and at the Pickering Nuclear and Lakeview Generation sites.

We need to generate power where the demand originates, and minimize the destruction of south central Ontario's unique, world-class countryside.
Al Matthews is a Grafton resident.

By Al Matthews

Link: northumberlandnews.com / indynews.ca | Premier's green energy plan is faulty.

Greenbelt expansion

A ratepayers’ group is looking for local landowners and politicians to weigh in on expanding the Greenbelt.

The Mono Mulmur Citizens’ Coalition (MC2) is hosting a meeting Saturday, Nov. 14 from 10 a.m. to noon at the Mono Community Centre, to discuss the impacts of expanding the province’s Greenbelt to include most of Mulmur, Mono and Simcoe County.

“When the province put in the original Greenbelt in 2005, they dictated that there will be a Greenbelt and everyone will align their Official Plans to it,” explained MC2 representative Harvey Kolodny. “They’ve put out criteria for expanding the Greenbelt. One of the purposes of this meeting is to explain the criteria.”

The meeting is also aimed at finding “what the position of people in the local municipalities is about it” and to educate MC2 members, he added.

Somewhere between 40 and 60 per cent of Mono is already in the Greenbelt, which includes the Niagara Escarpment and the Oak Ridges Moraine areas, and 25 to 30 per cent of Mulmur. The Greenbelt Alliance has proposed expanding the protected areas in these communities to include all of Mulmur, about 90 per cent of Mono and all of Simcoe County.

Provincial officials, municipal staffers and politicians have all been invited to foster a discussion about “what’s good about this and what’s bad about it,” said Kolodny.

“This (discussion) is going to go on for years and years, so we want to get it on the table.”

The Orangeville Banner: Providing Local Community News for Orangeville, Ontario 24/7

York region - Sheppard's Bush trails to be reworked

Aurora
November 03, 2009 02:56 PM


Sean Pearce
It has taken a few years to get it right, but Sheppard’s Bush Conservation Area now has a management plan.

Over the course of the next five years a number of new initiatives will be undertaken at Sheppard’s Bush as dictated by the freshly adopted plan. Some redundant and non-sanctioned trails on the 65-acre property will be closed and also filled in with trees to enhance the natural beauty and cut down on the amount of maintenance required.

A series of upgrades are planned for the Sheppard House and other on-site structures over the course of the five years that will improve efficiencies and enhance programming options.

Aurora town staff, the Aurora Lions Club, Save the Oak Ridges Moraine Coalition, the Windfall Ecology Centre, the Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority and the Ontario Heritage Trust all had a hand in creating the new management plan. The latter two groups had already vetted the document and Aurora council’s endorsement of it last week paves the way to put it into action.

“As a community, we are extremely fortunate to have access to Sheppard’s Bush, a vital environmental, recreational, social and economic feature,” management plan steering committee chairperson Councillor Evelina MacEachern said.

“The elimination of some of those redundant trails will help to enhance the natural environment and then there will be tree planting there instead. Some of those trails in there just aren’t necessary anymore.”

Some trails were built to help with the collection of maple sap, which hasn’t occurred for years, she added.

The upgrades and retrofits at the Sheppard House, which is occupied by the Windfall and the STORM groups, are meant to improve the building’s energy efficiency while respecting its historical importance, Ms MacEachern said.

The late Reginald Sheppard who donated the entire property to the province of Ontario back in 1971.

The new plan effectively serves as a redevelopment of the first management plan, drafted in 1979. Overall, the cost to the town as a result of the new plan will be minimal. The town annually provides $7,000 worth of services in-kind at the site, as staff picks up garbage, lays down wood chips and performs other work. Work mandated by the new plan will cost an additional $3,500 per year, on average, over the course of the five-year agreement.

When one adds up the benefits, it’s a very small price to pay, Ms MacEachern said.

“The value of what we get in our community from the Sheppard’s Bush is priceless,” she said. “You couldn’t buy it.”

York region - Sheppard.s Bush trails to be reworked.

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Workshop On Local Species At Risk

Did you know that we have 190 species listed as 'at risk' in Ontario? The Oak Ridges Moraine across Northumberland County is home to many of these species including the red-headed woodpecker, eastern hog-nosed snake, whip-poor-will and butternut tree. Even once common species, like the snapping turtle, have recently been added to the list.

Species at risk are a growing concern for us here in Ontario and across Canada. Since the new Endangered Species Act was implemented in 2008, there have been some important changes in what is being done to help protect them. This Act has made Ontario a "North American leader in the protection and recovery of species at risk and their habitats", according to the Ministry of Natural Resources website.

The Caring for the Moraine Project partnership in the Rice Lake Plains is hosting a workshop to provide more information on local species at risk. We will take a closer look at what the label 'at risk' really means for a species. The new Endangered Species Act will be briefly explained and how it is working to protect our species at risk, by local MNR Species at Risk Biologist Melissa Laplante. We will also look at what species are in peril locally and what you can do to help protect them. Kristina Hubert with the Nature Conservancy of Canada is currently working on projects involving species at risk and will discuss the local species she is targeting. Kristina's work is supported by funding from the MNR Species at Risk Stewardship Fund.

This will be a fun and informative workshop with prizes available throughout the evening.

This FREE workshop is happening on Wednesday, November 4th, 6:30 pm at the Alderville Black Oak Savanna Ecology Centre, 8467 County Rd 18 (west off highway 45, 25 min north of Cobourg). Registration is appreciated for planning purposes but is not required. Please contact Ashley Wilson at ricelakeplains@ltc.on.ca or phone (613) 394-3915 x 225.

The Caring for the Moraine Project in the Rice Lake Plains Area is made available through a partnership of organizations including Alderville First Nation, Ducks Unlimited Canada, Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority, Lower Trent Conservation, the Nature Conservancy of Canada, Northumberland County, Northumberland Land Trust, Northumberland Stewardship Council, Ontario Parks and Tallgrass Ontario. Funding for this program is provided by the Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation as well as the partners listed above. The Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation was founded in 2002 to help protect, preserve and restore the Oak Ridges Moraine, a prominent geological formation stretching 160 km across Southern Ontario and key in protecting our water resources. Please visit www.moraineforlife.org for more info.

Updated 10.26.09 Written by Lower Trent Conservation Authority

Related links:
www.ltc.on.ca
www.moraineforlife.org

NorthumberlandView.ca - A View Like No Other - Workshop On Local Species At Risk.

Seaton development will be anything but a sustainable community

To the editor:

Don't be fooled by the provincial central development plan for Seaton in Pickering. The provincial government is giving away huge amounts of provincially owned land to developers in Pickering. They say it's to save the Oak Ridges Moraine. Don't be fooled by the spin doctors. Seaton land is more environmentally sensitive that any land in the greenbelt area.

The Province conducted a non-comprehensive "class" Environmental Assessment that did not fully examine the effects of urban development on the 111 wetlands, 38 species of fish, three cold-water streams, Duffin creek, 38-per cent woodlots, wildlife habitat and three aquifers in Seaton.

The Province's resulting Central Pickering Development Plan will fragment Seaton into 13 neighbourhoods surrounded by natural corridors. But 42 roads, bridges and utilities will cross the natural corridors to connect those neighbourhoods.

Dr. Ken Howard, a hydro-geologist in a review of the provincial plan, says the provincial plan ignores the complex hydro-geological systems, the sensitive aquifers and the potential long-term impacts of urbanization on the quantity and quality of water in local wells and river systems. From a hydro-geological standpoint, the provincial plan as it currently exists, is unacceptable.

A full individual environmental assessment would have included a complete sub-watershed study and the validity of the provincial plan for Seaton. The City of Pickering has not demanded a complete sub-watershed study. The City of Pickering does not have any development sustainability laws to this day.

Dalai Lama once said people know how to solve problems like hunger and environmental degradation but they don't act. Therefore the biggest challenge of our time is making bystanders take action.

Is our natural environment not worth our best effort?

David Steele

Pickering

Link: newsdurhamregion

Opposition to wind turbines starting to grow

Opposition to wind turbines starting to grow
GREEN ENERGY: Health effects, noise, costs are concerns
By CONNIE WOODCOCK


There's a farmer in Northumberland County, east of Oshawa, who wants to build a house for his daughter on his farm, but he can't because he's on the heavily protected Oak Ridges Moraine.

But it's OK to lease his land to a company that will put up multiple wind turbines and turn his property into a wind farm. And they'll pay him five figures a year to do it.

That's just one of many contradictions emerging as wind project proposals multiply like rabbits across Ontario -- hundreds, totalling more than 3,000 turbines and counting, several of them on the moraine. (Only 10 major sites are running so far.)

Here's another: In the same week that Premier Dalton McGuinty rolled out his green energy strategy, one group of Northumberland residents jammed a hall to protest the moraine wind farm while another celebrated the arrival of a new factory -- to build wind turbines.

And all over Ontario, wherever similar events are taking place, lots of people who consider themselves green energy fans are beginning to have doubts.

Every time there's a public meeting to discuss a project, crowds gather with questions: How far should they be from homes? Are there health effects? Do they produce enough energy? How much noise should they be allowed to create? And what happens if they're not sustainable? Do we have rusting hulks dotting the landscape? (The recent unveiling of a solar energy project the size of nine Rogers Centres near Napanee to provide electricity for a mere 1,000 households did nothing to ease fears.)

Central Ontario is one of several prime targets. Others include Lake Erie and the Owen Sound area. At one public meeting in my area, 150 people turned out in a village with a population of half that. In Prince Edward County, another attracted more than 300. And in the City of Kawartha Lakes, a crowd of 500 got so worked up fist fights broke out.

"It looked," says one observer, "like the wild west."

And at every meeting, people already coping with wind turbines point out the problems: Nobody really knows about health problems or what proper setbacks should be. And it seems to take a whole herd of them to produce a significant amount of energy.

But McGuinty has made it clear there'll be few obstacles in the paths of the companies rushing to install them. No NIMBYism allowed, he's said. A London Free Press report recently revealed 31 projects in the last four years have gone ahead with no provincial environmental assessment.

Funny thing, but the more environmental activists I meet, the more doubts I hear. These are people who originally saw wind turbines as the answer to everything -- free, clean and everywhere. As one woman told me, much as she loves green energy, "those structures are completely inappropriate" on the Oak Ridges Moraine. Substitute Lake Erie, Georgian Bay or Lake Ontario for the moraine and you've got the views of many others.

Gwyer Moore, of Grafton, east of Cobourg, knew nothing about turbines until Energy Farming Ontario decided to put some near him. He knows you can't stop these projects, but he hopes to talk neighbours out of hosting them and convince the province it should rethink some of its regulations. So he helped form a protest group, one of the 33 in Ontario so far.

Conservative MPP Bill Murdoch of Owen Sound, where towers are proliferating, will ask the province to declare a moratorium until the potential health problems are investigated. But don't count on it actually happening. A spokesman for Energy Minister George Smitherman has already said green energy is too big a part of the green energy strategy.

I still remember my first glimpse of a wind farm nearly a decade ago. The towers seemed massive, otherworldly, majestic --and a hope for the future.

Now? In Dalton McGuinty's Ontario, all I expect is a bigger hydro bill.

Opposition to wind turbines starting to grow - The Sudbury Star - Ontario, CA.

Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority New Web Page

The Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority has announce that their newly developed website is now live and would like to welcome the public to view it.

You will find it here... http://www.grca.on.ca/

The new website also provides information about the Ganaraska Forest Centre (GFC), the Authority's new outdoor education centre located on Cold Springs Camp Road north of County Road 9.  The Centre is also home to the Oak Ridges Moraine Information Centre, serving as a connection point and local information hub for the residents and municipalities of the Oak Ridges Moraine.

Don’t let Markham become ‘upscale Scarborough’

Markham

October 13, 2009 03:02 PM

Keely Grasser

Markham should not expand its urban boundary for five to 10 years, according to the Friends of the Rouge Watershed.

The group, a non-profit dedicated to protecting the local watershed system, appealed for slower growth in Markham, where council is currently reviewing the Region of York’s official plan, a document that will shape how this area will grow in the next several decades.

The plan works around a forecast that has Markham’s population at more than 423,000 by 2031.

“Can you imagine the traffic, can you imagine the congestion?” Jim Robb, general manager of the watershed group, asked council at a Tuesday general committee meeting, adding that it will create a voter revolt.

He also raised concerns about environmental impacts of further growth.

Mr. Robb suggested, aside from the moratorium on urban sprawl, that three quarters of whitebelt lands — which will eventually be considered for development — be designated as greenbelt, thus making them untouchable. The town should also reduce its 25-year population growth target from 50 per cent to 25 per and increase intensification to 50 per cent.

He also asked council to support Rouge Park becoming a national park.

The group also suggests the town create strategies for foodland protection, subwatersheds, natural heritage, First Nations and pioneer heritage and infrastructure financing and susceptibility before making any decisions on expanding the urban boundary.

Mr. Robb equated the proposed growth as building a house of cards. If everything works out perfectly, he said, it may work. But he added that things often don’t work as planned.

“Markham should not become an upscale Scarborough,” he said, adding that is what the town will become if it expands.

These comments came as general committee discussed how to comment on the region’s draft plan, which it hopes to pass by year’s end.

The committee eventually decided to delay giving the region its comments, until it can hold a workshop and go through the plan piece by piece.

“This is the most important issue facing this town for the next 30 years,” said Councillor Erin Shapero, who added, “I just feel we’re doing ourselves a disservice if we don’t look at this in the detail it deserves.”

“This is not something that is philosophical ... This is our road map for next 20 or 30 years,” Regional Councillor Joe Virgilio said.

Regional Councillor Gordon Landon said the town is under a lot of pressure to get its comments to the region.

Valerie Shuttleworth, the town’s director of planning and urban design, said there is urgency.

The region was looking for comments by the end of September, she explained.

She said she will advise regional staff that Markham is still working on it.

Ms Shapero said that if the largest municipality in York Region is not ready to go ahead with the proposed official plan, maybe the region should take a step back.

She has a feeling the region is trying to pass the plan before next year’s municipal elections, she said, adding she doesn’t want to feel rushed.

Mr. Virgilio said he understood, from a regional workshop, that if the urban boundary isn’t increased, there may be difficulty paying for infrastructure already in place.

“If that’s the driver, we need to know,” he said.

The urban expansion issue isn’t likely to be in the original official plan, said Mr. Landon. Instead, he said, it will likely be addressed in a future plan amendment.

Mr. Virgilio asked about how the public is being consulted.

Mr. Landon said information meetings held on the proposed plan weren’t well-attended.

He suggested going out to the public and showing what their communities will look like after intensification.

“That’s when you’re going to start getting the reaction of the public,” he said, adding that the town has to get the message out or it will face push back on every development application that comes through.

York Region has been working on the official plan since 2005. It takes into account a number of new acts that have changed how planning is done in Southern Ontario, including the Oak Ridges Moraine, Greenbelt, Clean Water and Places to Grow acts and Metrolinx.

Official plans affect many facets of communities, including development, economics, infrastructure and the environment.

Backyard Naturalization Workshop & Project Tour

Backyard Naturalization Workshop & Project Tour

Interested in learning more about Backyard Naturalization and the Rice Lake Plains?

On October 24th, the Caring for the Moraine Project is hosting a FREE educational family fun day to thank local landowners. This event is dedicated to those landowners that are helping to conserve the natural features of the Oak Ridges Moraine in the Rice Lake Plains area. Learn more about the Oak Ridges Moraine, backyard naturalization and how to get involved in stewardship in your community. Everyone is welcome to attend.

The Caring for the Moraine Project is now in its third year in the Rice Lake Plains and has worked with many landowners to help them learn more about stewardship opportunities in the area. This program makes stewardship a one-stop-shop by bringing together various conservation groups, governmental and other agencies offering stewardship services.

"So many people are interested in learning more about their property and what they can do to be a good steward. The Caring Project actively gets people involved by providing them with the resources they need, instead of the landowner having to figure out who to contact," says Ashley Wilson, Landowner Contact Specialist with the Caring for the Moraine Project.

"This family fun day is a way to say thanks to those that have participated in the program so far, while also getting new people out to learn more about their local environment."

Roseneath, Centreton, Grafton & Baltimore area landowners are invited to a Backyard Naturalization Workshop and Project Tour, Saturday, October 24th, at Fenella Hall, 8071 Highway 45, just 20 minutes north of Cobourg.

Guests are invited to attend all day, but can register to attend only morning or afternoon sessions. The morning portion of the event is a backyard naturalization design workshop running along side a kid's project session where they will make backyard projects to take home. A FREE lunch will begin at 12 pm, followed by a presentation by Monitoring the Moraine and a project bus tour of landowners in action. Please reserve your spot by emailing Ashley Wilson at ricelakeplains@ltc.on.ca or phone (613) 394-3915 x 225.

The Caring for the Moraine Project in the Rice Lake Plains Area is made available through a partnership of organizations including Alderville First Nation, Ducks Unlimited Canada, Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority, Lower Trent Conservation, the Nature Conservancy of Canada, Northumberland County, Northumberland Land Trust, Northumberland Stewardship Council, Ontario Parks and Tallgrass Ontario. Funding for this program is provided by the Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation as well as the partners listed above. The Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation was founded in 2002 to help protect, preserve and restore the Oak Ridges Moraine, a prominent geological formation stretching 160 km across Southern Ontario and key in protecting our water resources. Please visit www.moraineforlife.org for more info.

For further information please contact:

Ashley Wilson - Landowner Contact Specialist, Caring for the Moraine Project: Rice Lake Plains Project
Area
c/o Lower Trent Conservation, 714 Murray St., Trenton ON, K8V 5P4
Telephone: 613-394-3915 ext 225
Email: ricelakeplains@ltc.on.ca
Fax: 613-392-5226

Marilyn Bucholtz - Communication Coordinator
Lower Trent Conservation, 714 Murray St., Trenton ON, K8V 5P4
Telephone: 613-394-3915 ext 216
Email: marilyn.bucholtz@ltc.on.ca
Fax: 613-392-5226

This program has been made possible by the Caring for the Moraine Project: Rice Lake Plains Project Area partners and with funding from the Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation.

Updated 10.09.09 Written by Lower Trent Conservation Authority

Related links:
www.ltc.on.ca

NorthumberlandView.ca - A View Like No Other - Backyard Naturalization Workshop & Project Tour.

Happy Valley Forest grows by 72 acres

Happy Valley Forest is 72 acres larger today thanks to a donation from a private landowner.

Dr. Henry Barnett's gift helped grow the King forest to more than 200 acres.

"Species need a large area of undisturbed forest to survive," Dr. Barnett said, while his wooden walking stick sat against the podium.

The preservation of this forest began when 20 acres of the Mary Tasker property was donated to Nature Conservancy Canada and it has snowballed into more than 200 acres of protected land. The Happy Valley Forest is considered a special area that could achieve old-growth status in the next 50 years.

Representatives of Environment Canada, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, York Region, Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation, the federal government and the Nature Conservancy of Canada gathered at the entrance of Happy Valley Forest at the end of the 7th Concession Tuesday to celebrate the partnerships that have been formed, resulting in the preservation of the Oak Ridges Moraine's most mature, diverse and extensive upland hardwood forest complexes.

The forest is home to more than 200 species of plants, 110 birds, 21 mammals and 19 reptile and amphibian species.

Two years ago, Prime Minister Stephen Harper visited the forest to announce a $225-million investment through the Natural Areas Conservation Program to help non-profit organizations secure ecologically sensitive lands to preserve diverse ecosystems, wildlife and habitat.

As of last March, 336 properties have been acquired and the habitats for 74 at-risk species have been protected.

Newmarket-Aurora MP Lois Brown spoke on behalf of Environment Minister Jim Prentice.

"Eight kids in my family tramped these hills in our childhood," she said as a woodpecker tapped loudly in the trees above. "The great outdoors is where we live, where we work and where we play, but most importantly, it is how we forge our identity as Canadians."

As development continues to boom in York Region, only through these programs can forests be protected and preserved, said Dr. Ron Tasker, whose property begins where Dr. Barnett's ends.

"Just look at it - it's a beautiful thing," he said. "We want the younger generation to be able to experience what we have."

For more information, visit www.natureconservancy.ca/ontario

York region - Happy Valley Forest grows by 72 acres.

Gates to swing open

BLACKSTOCK -- After years of striving to keep the public out, Kawartha Conservation officials will swing open the gates to the north Durham's newest conservation area, East Cross Forest.

A special ceremony will be held on Thursday, June 25, to mark the long-awaited opening of the Durham East Cross Forest Conservation Area, located in the southeast corner of Scugog, just north of Clarington.

The opening "marks a significant environmental accomplishment," say Kawartha Conservation officials in a press release touting the agency's efforts to secure and rehabilitate the 1,134-acre parcel of land.

East Cross Forest had been closed to the public for a couple of years as Kawartha Conservation officials worked to turn the swath of land into a conservation area.

The official opening will run from 2 to 4 p.m., with a gate-unlocking ceremony, speeches and remarks, a guided hike, reception and refreshments.

Expected to be on hand are Scugog Mayor Marilyn Pearce, Jim McMillen, Scugog's regional councillor and also chairman of Kawartha Conservation, and Kim Gavine, executive director of the Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation.

Members of the public interested in attending are asked to contact Cindy Haney at chaney@kawarthaconservation.com or call 705-328-2271, ext. 210.

The Durham East Cross Forest Conservation Area entrance is on Devitts Road, east of the Cartwright East Quarter Line and west of the Scugog-Manvers Townline.

newsdurhamregion.com | Gates to swing open to Scugog's East Cross Forest Conservation Area.

Effects of climate change in forest examined

A climate study on changes to the insects, trees and birds in the Ganaraska Forest is underway with a quarter-million dollar project from the Natural Sciences and Engineering Research Council.

Graduate student Ben Walters is moving to Campbellcroft from Port Hope to be closer to the three-year project in the northern reaches of the Municipality of Port Hope. It involves another Trent graduate, nine technicians and research assistants and two Trent professors working with study leader and biology professor, Dr. Erica Nol.

The findings here will be transferable to other areas along the Oak Ridges Moraine in Southern Ontario the county-owned Northumberland Forest, Nol said as rain soaked the Ganaraska Forest behind her. Some of the information will be pertinent to managing forests, she noted.

Northumberland County is in the midst of creating a new master plan for its own which is a plantation forest on either side of County Road 45 north of Baltimore.

The university-based study began with cores of snow being taken this past winter with an auger-like device to determine the amount which fell and remained, as well as when rain came instead of snow, running off the lands without being absorbed. During the past 20 years less snow has fallen and the study is to determine if this has impacted the forest trees, the insects that inhabit them and the birds that feed on the insect, she explained.

"The hypothesis is that the fewer insects, the fewer birds," she said simplifying one of the study's themes.

The study will look at the changes in precipitation on sandy soils, gravelly ones and loam used primarily for agricultural purposes.

The team is searching for these within the Ganaraska Forest north of County Road 9 and in nearby private forest lands.

An expensive probe will be used to check soil moisture at 90 sites this summer and this work will be overseen by hydrologist, Dr. James Buttle of Trent's geography department working with Dr. Shawun Watmough, a soil expert, world-recognized in the effects of acid rain on soil, Nol said.

Another hypothesis being tested is where there has been a depletion of accessible calcium for bird eggs because metals falling as acid bond with the calcium in the ground making it inaccessible to the birds.

Both the Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority and the Ministry of Natural Resources are supporters of the study.

"Our ultimate objective is to construct a predictive model that will allow us to identify the most productive forest types and slope positions for long-term persistence of the avian community and forest sustainability," Nol states in a media release.

A major part of reaching those findings involves researchers looking into the bird population in the forest and what changes are taking place.

Coincidentally, during the visit to the Ganaraska Forest for the interview, a mocking bird was sighted. The black and white bird with its unusually long tail is normally not found this far north, Nol and Walters agreed.

"The forest cleans the water for Port Hope," Nol said of another aspect of the study. It will look how reduced snow cover affects this and involves evaluating stream flows southward from the forest to the municipality.

"It's (a) fairly complicated (study)" and findings will be published during the three years it is underway, culminating in a model that can be used in other Southern Ontario forests, she concluded.

The Ganaraska Forest is the single largest tract of forest cover in the settled area of southern Ontario and contains more avian biodiversity.

Effects of climate change in forest examined - Northumberland Today - Ontario, CA.

No new laws for moraine

After a two-year review, Ontario has rejected a call for new legislation to protect underground water supplies.

"I think it validates what we've been doing," Waterloo Regional Chair Ken Seiling said. "We're on the right path and we're doing the right things."

Local environmentalist David Wellhauser is disappointed with the province's conclusions.

"They incorrectly identified that the existing acts will protect the Waterloo moraine," he said. "They didn't look at any new information. They didn't look at any site-specific information. These are all major shortfalls of the report."

The Ministry of the Environment launched its review in 2007, after Wellhauser complained that local drinking water is not protected from planned urban growth.

The review generated three reports costing taxpayers $84,600 in consulting fees, plus undetermined ministry costs.

"We found that the current provincial policies that we have in place are adequate for the protection of the moraine," said Ann Marie Weselan, a bureaucrat who helps manage water policy for the province.

The province looked at the Waterloo, Paris and Galt moraines, which supply drinking water from beneath the ground. The review, just released, concludes that:

Water supplies are adequately protected by eight provincial laws and local government efforts.

There's no need for special legislation similar to legislation that protects the Oak Ridges moraine, north of Toronto.

Water quality is threatened in places by road salt and agricultural fertilizers, but strategies are in place to reduce impacts.

Reports are online under the water section of the Ministry of the Environment website.

The ministry says it will work with communities and other partners to develop new materials to help guide water policies.

TheRecord.com - Local - No new laws for moraine.

New forest centre

The new Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority (GRCA) Forest Centre is nearing the end of the first phase of construction.

In a few weeks, Peak Construction -- which also constructed the new Northumberland County headquarters -- will turn over the Cold Springs Camp Road building to the GRCA and its staff. While the essentials of the building are completed, there is still a lot to do before the official opening in September.

Completed under the watchful eye of its designer, architect Ted Wilson with Aecom (formerly Totten Sims Hubicki), the building has been built to withstand the rigours of the many thousands of students who will make overnight stays during the centre's many years of service.

Fundraising for the $4-million project is still about $500,000 shy. Additional funding is being sought to help mount public teaching displays.

The forest centre started out as a boys' correctional facility in the 1950s. Then it became a Junior Ranger camp. In 1976 it became an outdoor centre and in '78 an outdoor education centre. Over the years, thousands of schoolchildren have been introduced to the Ganaraska Forest and its magic.

The 19,000-square-foot expansion will allow for a 50% increase in the number of children visiting at any one time.

As well, due to a major financial boost from the Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation, there will be an information centre in the building open five days a week, operating alongside the Forest Centre facilities.

The information centre will explain to the public the characteristics of the eastern end of the moraine.

When the Forest Centre is not filled with schoolchildren, it will be open for corporate training sessions and other groups, including weddings. The great hall has facilities to serve meals to upwards of 200 people. It has basic sleeping facilities for 80 persons, with a division for male and female students.

GRCA chief administrative officer Linda Laliberte says it is hoped the seclusion and beauty of the forest environment and the impressive centre will establish the facility as a desirable destination and, consequently, as a good source of money that will help the conservation authority refocus some of the funds it relies on from the supporting municipalities to increased programming.

New forest centre design brings the outdoors inside - Northumberland Today - Ontario, CA.