South Nation

Agriculture and rural affairs activist Jackie Pemberton has been named Chair of South Nation Conservation’s influential Clean Water Committee, replacing Navan farmer Denis Perrault.

A Winchester area farmer, Pemberton has promoted rural environmental causes for 20 years, on boards and committees and in municipal and industrial contexts. She has been a member of the CWC for the past several years and is also a member of the regional Source Protection Committee.

ANNUAL MCINTOSH GOLF TOURNAMENT TEES OFF JUNE 24

Finch, Ontario – Today, Shell Canada will award $1 million to Canadian environmental projects, chosen by its customers. Through the Shell FuellingChange™ Program customers are invited to make any purchases at Shell service stations throughout Canada, collect Shell purchase receipts with voting codes, and vote for their favourite environmental projects on FuellingChange.com. To date, 8.4 million votes have been cast by customers!

The United Counties of Prescott and Russell (UCPR) and the City of Clarence-Rockland have partnered with South Nation Conservation, the Ontario Geological Survey, and the University of Ottawa to study groundwater in the City of Clarence-Rockland.

The purpose of the study is to develop maps of expected groundwater quantity and quality. The maps will help to assess the development potential of proposed developments where wells are required as a water supply. This study will serve as a model for similar mapping studies across the rest of UCPR.

It’s the best deal around for a sightseeing tour of part of Eastern Ontario that’s also an environmental learning experience.

It’s South Nation Conservation’s 6th annual Forestry Bus Tour and it’s absolutely free including lunch. The tour departs SNC offices in Finch June 12 at 8 a.m., returning at 4:30 p.m.

Participants travel in style on a comfortable coach rather than a school bus. Between full stops, points of interest are described.

With construction coordinated by South Nation Conservation, a structured trail through a portion of one of Ottawa’s natural gems will be officially opened May 25.

A ribbon-cutting celebrating Findlay Creek Boardwalk will get underway at 1 p.m. with several dignitaries participating. Light refreshments will be served followed by an interpretive tour along the new gift to local residents.

South Nation Conservation’s groundbreaking Clean Water Program is entering its 20th year of partnering with landowners in the watershed to reduce contaminants entering its rivers and streams.

“It’s one of the longest running programs of its type in Ontario,” said Ronda Boutz, SNC Team Lead, Communications and Outreach, who managed the CWP for many years.

“Other jurisdictions have used it as a model when introducing similar programs intended to work in a cooperative way with landowners and other stakeholders.”

South Nation Conservation recently allocated a total of $1,500 in River Grants to five Eastern Ontario community projects deemed to meet the criteria of promoting responsible recreational use of the South Nation, St. Lawrence and Ottawa rivers and their tributaries within the watershed.

The projects share several attributes in common, notably that they draw visitors to the riverside, teach them about the 4000 square-km South Nation watershed, and raise funds for worthy local causes.

Geocachers of Eastern Ontario and South Nation Conservation are inviting members of the general public to join forces with local and area geocachers on Saturday April 27 for a major clean-up in and around Greely.

It’ll be a prime opportunity to see the geocachers in action when they team up with SNC to present SNCITO4 (South Nation Cache In/Trash Out) at Shield’s Creek Park in Greely. Three previous SNCITOs were held at Cass Bridge Conservation Area (Winchester Springs), Jessup’s Falls Conservation Area (Plantagenet), and High Falls Conservation Area (Casselman).

South Nation Conservation, South Dundas Township and the DIAMONDS Conservation Land Trust are hosting a public meeting April 9 to discuss upgrades at Two Creeks Forest Conservation Area located in South Dundas.

The meeting starts at 7 p.m. at the South Dundas municipal hall in Williamsburg.

SNC has received $25,000 through the Great Lakes Guardian Community Fund to cover the cost of the project that’ll enhance 4.5 km of existing trail and promote natural heritage features contributing to a healthy Great Lakes Basin.