Re: Residents question health of Poole Creek Wetland
Thanks to Stittsville Central for the in-depth article on what happens when municipalities place more value on bad development than environmental sustainability. And, for showing that local residents can make a difference in standing up for the community’s best interests.
It was the Environmental Commissioner of Ontario, in his Annual Report in 2010/11, that exposed how the Drainage Act was inappropriately being used in Ottawa’s Goulbourn Wetland Complex to undermine policies protecting provincially significant wetlands “….natural heritage features are being destroyed as farmlands are prepped for subdivisions and aggregate operations under the guise of ‘normal farm practice’”.
Beavers are one of the most significant factors in maintaining healthy wetlands. As long as the City continues to trap beavers, in spite of assurances from staff, the Poole Creek Wetland is unlikely to return to a viable wetland which is a loss for residents, wildlife and the broader ecosystem.
Donna DuBreuil
Ottawa-Carleton Wildlife Centre
What this group did was right and they have a legit case but in Ottawa over the past 5-10 years there have been many cases of false claims and it was nothing more then anti-development groups pushing their agenda.