The Forest Gene Conservation Association (FGCA) needs your help to find trees with viable ash seed to bank ahead of the Emerald Ash Borer (EAB) impact, and to find trees that have survived an EAB infestation without being treated by the TreeAzin insecticide. We haven’t much time left before EAB reaches most of Ontario’s natural stands. This effort is led by the National Tree Seed Centre , and FGCA has contributed training, seed and support since 2004. In 2017, the...
Trees lining city streets, in public and private gardens, in parks, and in patches of urban woodland do a lot for cities. They help mitigate air pollution, lessen the urban heat island effect, provide flood control, and contribute a host of other benefits. Some studies have valued these ecosystem services at almost USD $1 million per square kilometer per year. And it turns out that these trees, collectively known as the urban forest, also contribute more than you might imagine...
The United Counties is looking at a broad set of tools, including land control laws, in a bid to stop the dwindling forest cover. SD&G Planner Alison McDonald presented the plan to a committee of the whole session of county council this morning (Thursday). “The balance is shifting…perhaps shifting too far,” McDonald said, noting the cover had dropped below 29 per cent in 2014 and below the widely-held benchmark of 30 per cent. Part of the problem, McDonald explained, is...
Keeping the sun off of our homes and windows during the summer can end up saving us both money and energy, because we can avoid some of the heating effects and keep our homes cooler to begin with, so less energy is required to keep them comfortable. And one of the best ways to do that is by planting shade trees in the right location around our home, where they can block the sun from streaming in our windows and...
Urban forests play a vital role in helping communities adapt to and mitigate climate change, reduce air pollution, sequester carbon and save energy through natural heating and cooling. But urban forests are facing increasingly difficult growing conditions. Exotic pests, more frequent and severe storms, and the loss of soils in urban developments all contribute to stressed urban forests. In order to contribute to healthy, resilient communities, these valuable assets need to be managed proactively and supported consistently across the province. Green Infrastructure Ontario’s urban...
Twenty years ago, the stretch of land between Lamoureux Park and the bridge to Cornwall Island was a brown wasteland where the natural ecosystem had been stripped away by industrial pollution. Then, in 1997, the Raisin Region Conservation Authority with funding from the Cornwall Rotary Club put in the rushing creek that exists there today in an effort to restore the original ecosystem. This area would then became known as the Rotary Eco-Gardens. Two decades later, on Sunday, Transition Cornwall+...