Archive

Christmas trees planted in Credit River boosting brook trout population

August 16, 2018   ·   0 Comments

By Jasen Obermeyer

Despite being in the middle of summer, there was a feeling of Christmas at the Upper Credit Conservation Area near Alton when used Christmas trees were placed in the Credit River to help create a better habitat for the brook trout population.

Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) staff and volunteers, with support from a Loblaw Water Fund grant from World Wildlife Fund Canada (WWF), came to the conservation area last Thursday (Aug. 2) to improve 1,000 metres of the river with natural materials, including used Christmas trees donated by residents.

This is part of the Bringing Back the Brookies project, part of a five-year initiative implemented by the CVC and Trout Unlimited Canada’s Greg Clark Chapter.

“Climate change is the issue of our lifetime,” said Mike Puddister, CVC’s deputy CAO and director of watershed transformation. “This project represents a significant leap forward.”

He explained that the area where the used Christmas trees were installed  used to be private land for grazing livestock, where the cows trampled the river’s banks and caused erosion. The trees will help create a better habitat for the brook trout by narrowing and cooling the stream, as they need cold and clean water to live.

Managed by WWF-Canada and funded by Loblaw, the Loblaw Water Fund awards grants up to $25,000 to community projects that are addressing threats to freshwater health identified in the WWF’s Watershed Reports.

Sarah Davis, president of Loblaw’s Companies Limited, said this is “a project close to my heart,” as she lives in an area on the Credit river, and is very proud of this undertaking.

“We recognize the size that we are and the impact we can have, and that can be a positive impact, and that can be a negative impact.” She added they try to make as many positive impacts for the environment.

“Who would’ve thought Christmas trees would be part of a solution?” noted Megan Leslie, president and CEO WWF-Canada, adding that in some areas of Canada, water is not healthy and clean as some might think.

Readers Comments (0)