Though it’s a new project, there’s already much to see at the Elmira Nature Reserve. Trees for Woolwich showcased the work that’s been done to date at a tour event September 16, when organizers were joined by township officials and other guests.
The 65-acre project area, which runs in an area between Union Street and the railroad tracks, includes a location known as The Habitats, a six-acre field that’s being turned into a showcase of five different habitats that can be found within southern Ontario: tall grass prairie, oak savannah, maple beech forest, early succession forest and wetland. The Elmira Nature Reserve is a more expansive project that goes beyond planting trees to actually creating an ecosystem.
So far, volunteers for Trees of Woolwich have planted more than 400 trees, mowed trail paths, installed new signs and are working hard to eradicate invasive species. Three volunteers came as part of Canada’s Summer Jobs program, the three young men were crucial to getting the reserve restored over the summer. They noted that sometimes the hardest part was just watering all those trees.
“It was really fun. It helped me get a workout this summer when a lot of kids were still staying inside because everything was closed down, ” said Kaden Martin, a volunteer currently in his first year at EDSS. “When I was doing online schooling, I’d finish school and I’d come over and I’d help do the watering; it was tough sometimes, as we used a fire hose to water them – it could get heavy and hard to move around trees.
“It was really fun. I think working outside is better than working inside because it helps with getting active and it’s just nice to be out here all day. I enjoyed being able to help my community.”
The nature reserve area will look to increase biodiversity, recreational opportunities for residents and visitors, and to increase the sustainability of the land while helping the area to recover to the ecosystems that would have flourished there before settlement.
“A lot of the people who have been involved in this in one way or another, whether it’s the township or some of our donors or volunteers,” said Inga Rinne, chair of Trees for Woolwich. “I think the work here is really inspiring if you see it up close, and you also see how much more needs to be done. The plan here is that this is a legacy 100 years from now. It really is an amazing community effort – the number of different people with different talents or skills or resources that have pitched in here is a real testament to the community here in Woolwich.”
A long-time volunteer in the community, Rinne has seen interest in environmental projects such as tree planting grow over the three decades she’s been involved.
“The tree planting has been one of those things building momentum; we started out small, doing 50 trees a year and then it was a couple hundred trees a year. We’ve now planted about 38,000 trees since 2011,” she said.
“It’s not the end of the road. Our goal in Elmira is basically to double the tree cover, that’s going to take a few years. The tree cover in Elmira is only 16 per cent, and 30 per cent is ideal; a lot of cities have 30 as the goal.”
Fall is tree planting season in the township, and Trees for Woolwich has several events coming up where residents can dig up some dirt and plant trees for their local parks. The group will be giving away close to 1,400 trees this fall.
“There’s a lot that goes into building healthy communities, this is a part of it. A lot of work has gone right across the region this summer to develop some really ambitious targets around carbon reductions and meeting targets – it’s great that community volunteers are part of that solution. I belong to the regional tourism organization and this is an area that Woolwich would be known for in terms of its uniqueness, I’m sure this can be promoted as something visitors from other areas should come and see. The only way were truly going to solve community and societal issues that we have and make a difference regarding things like climate change is by doing these types of environmental initiatives is when government, not-for-profit and private sector, volunteers, business, everyone collaborates together,” said David Brenneman, Woolwich’s CAO.
Trees for Woolwich will be partnering with Ariss Maryhill Lions Club this Saturday to plant 50 trees in honour of the club’s 100th anniversary. The Township of Woolwich tree giveaway will be held October 2 from 9 to 11a.m. and October 6 from 4:30 to 6:30p.m. at the Woolwich Memorial Centre in Elmira.
