(Silver Creek Stewardship Initiative Committee-Blue Mountain Watershed Trust)

SPEAKER: Peter Kelly-Coordinator of the Cootes to Escarpment Eco-Park System

SPEAKER: Carl Michener, Silver Creek Stewardship Initiative Committee, Blue Mountain Watershed Trust

ORGANIZER: Donald Avery, SCSI, and BMWT (avery@uwo.ca)

TOPIC: Preserving the Ecology of the Niagara Escarpment Within a Near-Urban Setting: Lessons From Hamilton/Burlington and Collingwood/Blue Mountain

LOCATION: Collingwood Public Library: Third Floor Community Meeting Room

DATE/TIME: Saturday 11 February: 10:30-12:30

FORMAT: The seminar will begin with an overview presentation by Peter Kelly on the major trends associated with the unique and successful Cootes to Escarpment Eco-Park System. Carl Michener will then discuss the highlights of the Watershed Trust Silver Creek Silver Creek Stewardship Initiative, and how its ecology can be protected by an effective landowner stewardship system.

The second part of the seminar will be a round-table discussion that will involve all participants. A number of important comparative themes will be explored within the context of the Near-Urban experiences of Hamilton/Burlington and Collingwood/ Blue Mountain. Both these projects have profited from grants provided by the Ontario Trillium Foundation.

MAJOR THEMES FOR ROUND-TABLE DISCUSSION

1/ Developing partnerships for large scale environmental protection projects.

2/ Preserving environmentally sensitive lands through acquisition/control.

3/ Creating an effective land stewardship system: the perspective of NGO planners and landowners.

4/ Water quality concerns and remedial actions.

5/ Reconciling progressive recreation with ecological preservation.

6/ Endangered Species and Invasive Species.