Since 1962, the Nature Conservancy of Canada, its partners and its supporters have helped to conserve nearly 2 million acres of ecologically significant land, nationwide, creating a natural legacy for future generations of Canadians.
WHERE WE STAND: What does land conservation in Canada mean to you?
Through the contribution of money, time and land, many Canadians are working closely with the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) to preserve our country’s natural ecosystems. A private, non-profit group, NCC has been focused on one thing for over 45 years: “Using the best science available, we identify critical landscapes, secure them, and take care of them,” says John Lounds, president and CEO of NCC.
“The environment is now high on Canadians’ list of priorities. People are more aware of their impact on nature and are thinking more about sustainability,” he says. “Recently, I heard someone describe it well by saying that sustainability is about learning to live as though we intend to stay here.”
NCC focuses its work in the southern portion of Canada, where 90 per cent of Canadians live and 71 per cent of species-at-risk are trying to survive. Mr. Lounds says the work that NCC does, and the land conservation it affects, is a tangible way for people to have a positive, lasting impact.
NCC uses scientific expertise to find conservation solutions and identify ecologically critical regions. Then, it approaches landowners in those unique areas and has them donate land, put an easement on the land (which protects it) or sell it to NCC. Stewardship expertise is then brought in from NCC, local communities and organizations to ensure the land is taken care of for the long term.
This science-based planning has allowed NCC to create a series of “conservation blueprints” that show where the organization needs to concentrate its work. This way, NCC can focus its efforts and get straight to identifying significant project areas to ensure they are secured.
One of those scientifically identified areas, and a beautiful example of what NCC calls a “win-win solution,” exists at Pine Butte Ranch, just outside of Cranbrook, B.C. The area gets protected, the owners continue to be a part of it, and they receive help to take care of it. Pine Butte is owned and operated by the Van Steinburg family, and is now run by three generations who have joined forces with NCC.
“They’ve established a part purchase, part easement, part donation to protect the species that exist on the property,” says Mr. Lounds. The eldest Van Steinburg, 84-year-old Ray, says Mother Nature is their ranch manager. “This is one of the last remaining grasslands in the area, and we want to see it continue in its natural state instead of falling victim to the increasing pressures of urban development.”
Less than two per cent of B.C.’s grasslands are protected, yet they are home to over 50 species-atrisk, so this project is critical.
NCC also works closely with communities and relies on local people and groups to help identify and take care of important areas. The organization knows, first-hand, that many hands really can accomplish great things.
In 1998, naturalist Mathis Natvik phoned NCC and invited the organization for a walk in Clear Creek Forest, in southwestern Ontario. Mr. Natvik introduced staff to a tree that is believed to be the oldest Beech tree in Ontario, then revealed that the trees in the forest were marked for logging by the owner.
With less than four per cent of southwestern Ontario’s forests remaining, NCC knew that Clear Creek Forest was of enormous significance, both ecologically and culturally. “It is important to
have contiguous forest area because it creates interior forest – habitat critical to speciesat- risk like the Hooded Warbler and the Acadian Flycatcher,” says Mr. Lounds.
It took $1 million to purchase the property, which has now been added to with two additional purchases of adjacent land. “We’ve saved 1,000 acres in the Clear Creek Forest Nature Reserve, thanks to the community and funders, and are now recreating the natural pit and mound landscape needed to reforest the area and encourage a more diverse range of plant species to grow,” Mr. Lounds says, adding that it is a great way for local volunteers to get involved.
“Young people love it because they are out and learning,” he says. “Older people love it because they are rediscovering what’s great about nature and Canada and how it all works together.” Mr. Lounds says, “Once we identify an area, we need to bring many partners and supporters together to make a project happen.”
The Sutton Mountain Range is another case in point. It lies an hour outside of Montreal and offers the biggest secluded haven for many rare and endangered species east of Alberta, as well as a string of hiking paths well used and loved by urban nature lovers.
Thanks, in part, to a donation by Domtar Forest Products, 16,000 acres of forest have now been protected. “It is our goal to have 25,000 acres in total,” says Mr. Lounds. “This area lines up with protected lands in the U.S. – the Green Mountains of Vermont – so we are creating a natural corridor.”
The Regional Campaign for the Protection of the Sutton Mountain Range was championed by campaign spokesperson Olympic medalist Clara Hughes last August. “The local community has gotten involved in an effort to raise $2.5 million to fund the payback of the lands already purchased,” says Mr. Lounds. “People see this as their legacy to leave hundreds of years down the road.”
NCC, its partners and supporters have made great strides in preserving Canada’s ecologically significant areas, and Mr. Lounds hopes this is just the beginning. “We are making gains. Have we got a long way to go? Absolutely.”
He says the challenge now is to stay focused and continue to do what NCC has been doing since 1962. “We got it right back then and we just continue to improve our methods. We hope that Canadians will continue to see that NCC provides a great solution to Canada’s environmental and conservation challenges and that they will join with us, because we need their support.”
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