Conservation authorities under attack from Ford government (as well as ATVers)

 
Dear Chris,

You might never have heard of a conservation authority.

That’s OK.

They quietly keep us safe by regulating development in wetlands - where 95% of Ontarians live.

Most importantly, they hold the line against reckless projects in flood-prone areas.

But Ontario’s 36 conservation authorities are scrambling because Doug Ford is taking their authority away.
 

https://secure.gpo.ca/civicrm/mailing/url?u=143161&qid=38944770

Defend Conservation Authorities: petition at above link
 

Doug Ford is giving himself the power to overturn scientific decisions and grant dangerous permits in wetlands and floodplains.

It will mean more highways, warehouses, and subdivisions where they don’t belong.

It will mean rising profits for developers and rising floodwaters for the rest of us.

Mike Schreiner is leading the charge against this dangerous action in Queen’s Park and yesterday he pressed the Premier again.

To my shock, the government had the audacity to claim they are “helping conservation authorities achieve their goal.”

Chris, Conservatives are shameless in their assault on the environment.

Doug Ford is ripping up the rules that were put in place to prevent catastrophic incidents like the 1948 flood that put downtown Brampton under six feet of water.

He’s putting lives and homes at risk.

This is our biggest campaign since we got Ford to back down on his Greenbelt plan.

Will you add your voice?

 

Abhijeet Manay
Deputy Leader
Green Party of Ontario

 
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email re Meeting @ Callaghan's Parking Lot this Sunday (Nov.29)

Hello Everybody,

Yep, I'll be there this Sunday. Very much looking forward to visiting Callaghan's Rapids again after the interruption of deer season.

Congrats to Matt on getting the contract position - he's an extremely effective and intuitive community leader! Under his leadership our community group has accomplished a lot in a very short time - we got the OPP to patrol the area and issue a substantial number of tickets to trespassing ATV riders, we were able to nudge Crowe Valley Conservation Area General Manager Tim Pidduck into visiting Callaghan's Rapids several times to observe the ongoing destruction by ATVers and illegal campers, Eastern Ontario Trail Riders Assoc. (EOTA) is now aware that their members have been trespassing and causing major ecological damage to our conservation area, etc. etc.  The battle isn't over, but the organizations responsible for maintaining and preserving Callaghan's Rapids Conservation Area can no longer claim not to know what has been happening there!

Another issue which Tim and Crowe Valley Conservation Area (CVCA) must deal with is the Doug Ford governments ongoing deregulation of the many conservation authorities across our province. I've blog posted the email I received yesterday from the Green Party regarding this:

http://riffsandripplesfromzenrivergardens.blogspot.com/

Hope to see as many members as possible on Sunday - it's only as a community group that we seem able to get the organizations responsible for protecting Callaghan's Rapids Conservation Area
active!

Chris

shaman in spirit boat carving at Callaghan's Rapids Conservation Area

 

 

photo Bobbi Fulthorpe  Oct. 31/20

This is the rock carving I showed our tour a couple of weeks ago. I found it about a decade ago, and have only shown it to a handful of people. I don't know if it's a genuine Indigenous carving of a shaman in a spirit boat, like the extremely similar carvings at nearby Petroglyphs Prov. Park.  As you say, it sure doesn't look like a natural formation.

Re the 'young' look of the carving, that could be explained that it was likely covered by moss/lichen/mud/grass for centuries (like the Petroglyph carvings). Its discovery may ironically be 'credited' to the horribly destructive ATVs who've ripped off the surface coverings of the old footpath in the past few years to expose this possible piece of local Indigenous culture. Be interesting to poke around the general area to see if there are more carvings.

My friend Katherine and I found a stone axe head on a trail on the east bank of CRCA about a decade ago. Kathy took it home and put it on a window ledge. She and her sister sold the house soon after, and she forgot about our finding and left it. I haven't had the nerve to approach the new owners to ask if they have kept an unusually shaped rock left by previous owners.