After introductions I started each session by explaining the ecosystem services that trees provide. Trees help to keep our cities cool during increasingly hot summer months. They absorb carbon dioxide and release oxygen that all animals, including humans, need to breathe. They help to slow down winter winds keeping our cities warmer during the colder months. They provide habitat for urban wildlife, And, finally trees are beautiful to look at. They provide city – dwellers an opportunity to engage with nature which has been shown to improve both physical and mental health.

Alice Casselman, ACER’s President instructed students on the use of tools used to measure tree height, trunk diameter and the volume of the tree crown, (the area covered by branches and leaves). The students also learned to identify tree species, and common diseases affecting tree health. They received instruction on proper mulching techniques to ensure that the ground around the tree trunk stays moist while preventing trunk mold growth and protecting delicate roots.

The students then went out to the planting areas to perform the measurement tasks, record the results on their data sheets, and spread city provided mulch around each tree as required.

Over 100 trees were measured over the two days and over 200 trees received mulch.

Brampton’s Forestry Department will receive the collected data and use it to help inform the city’s urban forest management plan.

It seems a good time was had by all.

The answer of course is d. According to the Ontario Government website, “Invasive Phragmites (European Common Reed) is an invasive plant causing damage to Ontario’s biodiversity, wetlands and beaches. Invasive Phragmites is an aggressive plant that spreads quickly and out-competes native species for water and nutrients. It releases toxins from its roots into the soil to hinder the growth of and kill surrounding plants. While it prefers areas of standing water, its roots can grow to extreme lengths, allowing it to survive in relatively dry areas.”

The Emerald Ash Borer provides another example of the destructive power of invasive species. This striking emerald coloured beetle creates a small hole and lays its eggs under the bark of the Ash tree. The hatched larvae then feed on the pholem, the soft tissue layer that carries water and nutrients, effectively strangling the tree. Once infected, the result is almost 100% fatal. Hundreds of millions of ash trees across North America have been lost to the borer over the past two decades. It is estimated that ash tree population has dropped by more than 70% due to this invasive insect, including in the the City of Brampton.

Unfortunately, Phragmites and Ash Borer are but two examples of many invasive species of plants, insects, fish and other animals, that are rapidly invading our local habitat. How many species on the following list do you recognize?

Plants

• Garlic Mustard
• Purple Loosestrife
• Common Buckthorn
• Japanese Knotweed
• Goutweed
• Periwinkle
• English Ivy

Insects

• Spongy Moth
• Asian Longhorn Beetle
• Emerald Ash Borer
• Spotted lanternfly

Fish

• Asian carp
• Goldfish

So, what can be done? The City of Brampton has suggestions for things that you can do to slow down or prevent the spread of invasive species. You can also help by responding to a City survey that will take less than 5 minutes to complete. The survey is open until August 29th.

Help create the City’s first Invasive Species Management Strategy.

Frank Chapman, an early Audubon Society member, proposed the idea of counting birds instead of killing them. He organized 27 observers in 25 places, both the U.S. and Canada, to count all the birds they could on Christmas Day 1900. According to Wikipedia, 90 bird species were observed and 18, 500 individuals were counted that day.

Since then, the counts have been held every December/January with more than 50,000 observers in about 2,000 locations across 17 countries. The data from each count is submitted to the National Audubon Society which helps inform population counts and conservation practices.

Counts can be held on any day from December 14 to January 5. Individual counts are done in a “count circle” with a diameter of 24 kilometers. Each circle has a “compiler” and at least 10 volunteers. Some volunteers follow assigned routes within the circle that remain essentially the same each year. Others count all the birds they see on their backyard feeders from the comfort of their homes.

For many years BEA member Bob Noble has been organizing a Christmas Bird Count in a count circle that covers the eastern half of Brampton and parts of Vaughan, King and Caledon including, Tullamore, part of Caledon East, and all of Bolton. Bob is an amazing naturalist and nature photographer. You’ve likely seen some of his incredible insect pictures posted on Facebook, Instagram, and on his own website . Each year a selection of Bob’s best shots are compiled into a calendar which is published and given to City of Brampton and Toronto and Region Conservation Authority volunteers.

Bob describes the December 15, 2024 count. “The temperature stayed around freezing for the day with a bit of light snow. The smaller ponds were completely frozen but there was some open water in the larger lakes.  Thirty field observers and seven feeder watchers managed to count 10,859 individual birds. This is below the average of about 12,000.

We set a new species record of 62 with the previous record being 61 even though the general consensuswas that it was a tough day to find birds. We didn’t find any new species this year leaving  the total number of species observed in all counts at 120. Good birds included Green-winged Teal (3^rd record), Bald Eagle (3rd record), Yellow-bellied Sapsucker (3rd record) and White-crowned Sparrow (4th record). Record high numbers were recorded for Common Goldeneye (6), Cooper’s Hawk (10), Red-bellied Woodpecker (18), Merlin (3), Eastern Bluebird (6) and Northern Cardinal (180).  

A number of regular species were missed including Ruffed Grouse (34 previous counts), Pine Siskin (33 previous counts), Snow Bunting (33 previous counts) and Swamp Sparrow (27 previous counts). Low numbers were recorded for Wild Turkey (2), Rough-legged Hawk (1), Cedar Waxwing (22) and Common Redpoll (1).”

Thanks to Bob for organizing and being a compiler for this important annual event!

That said, we must realize that, even if we could reduce carbon emissions from fossil fuels to zero today, the earth’s temperature would continue rising for many decades accompanied by increasing weather-related risks. While carbon emissions reduction efforts are still critical to maintaining a livable future, steps must be taken now to prepare for the increasing hazards due to anticipated weather extremes both now and in the future.

Working with community stakeholders, City of Brampton staff have prepared the “Climate Ready Brampton” plan to address anticipated climate impacts on the City’s infrastructure, economy and natural systems. This plan defines the blueprint for action that will better equip the City to manage the changes and increase resiliency to recover quickly from adverse climate impacts.

The development of the plan has gone through three phases over the past 2 years, Research, Investigation, and Development. During the Research phase, staff along with expert consultants reviewed how Brampton’s climate has changed over the past 75 years. During the investigation phase the team solicited external expertise along with stakeholder engagement to define future climate scenarios, assess climate risks, and identify prioritized climate adaptation actions. The plan also includes financial cost analysis of those actions compared to doing nothing. Finally, the plan outlines performance targets, collaborative implementation approaches, and a framework for monitoring and reporting.

The plan identifies 6 Goals, 5 Themes, 15 Objectives with 55 supporting actions.

Climate Ready Brampton Vision

“Brampton will be a climate leader fostering resilient, low-carbon, and adaptable communities, with thriving natural systems, climate-ready infrastructure, and a robust economy that advances equity, innovation, and quality of life both now and for future generations”.

Climate Ready Brampton Goals

1. Brampton is adaptable to predicted climate change impacts using best available science and climate data,
2. Climate action will prioritize the most vulnerable people, communities, and places in the City,
3. Climate resilience is the new normal where city staff, partners, neighbourhoods and generations work to protect each other,
4. Climate change preparation adaptation occurs within the context of a robust economy,
5. Climate resilience actions become more efficient and effective through collaboration and strong partnerships,
6. Progress is transparently reported against clear, measurable targets.

Climate Ready Brampton Themes and Objectives

1. Collaborative Leadership,
   • Brampton will be a leader in climate resilience
   • Municipal staff are prepared, informed and have all required tools
2. Protected and Connected People,
   • Equity-deserving groups are prioritized,
   • Moving around the city is safe and simple in all conditions,
   • People are prepared for climate disasters through emergency planning
3. Resilient Infrastructure and Buildings
   • Essential infrastructure is resilient
   • Community is safe in their daily life,
   • Buildings and homes are climate proof
4. Resilient and Healthy Natural Systems,
   • Naturalized spaces help protect Brampton from climate impacts
   • Natural systems are healthy and intact
5. Community Involvement and Communication
   • Brampton is prepared for climate emergencies
   • Emergency communications keep the community safe
   • The community is involved in climate action

The 55 actions are assigned to each of the objectives noted above. They cover different aspects from addressing climate risk, to protection and enhancement of forests and wetlands. Here a just a few examples:

• Hiring a Climate Risk Officer,
• Staff training on climate adaptation strategies and risk assessment,
• Climate emergency preparedness training,
• Creating a climate toolkit for businesses,
• Vector-borne disease management,
• Extreme weather traffic impact notification system,
• Shading standards for public spaces including bike parking and bus stops,
• Tree planting and natural cover target including survivability rates
• Heat management plan for public events
• Development of an urban agriculture strategy
• Look for opportunities to acquire additional land for greenspace
• Enhanced building codes for energy efficiency and resilience to severe weather,
• Minimize hard surface ground cover that impedes water absorption,
• Provide flood plain models to assess flood risk,
• Implement emergency water supply program

Please visit the City’s website for more information and to download the draft plan. Provide your comments to growgreen@brampton.ca by January 15th.

The Etobicoke Creek watershed is highly urbanized with large amounts of hard surfaces and low amounts of natural cover compared with other watersheds in the greater Toronto area. This contributes to issues with flooding, erosion, and negative impacts to both animal and plant habitat. The added stress of further urbanization and climate change impacts will further degrade watershed health unless immediate remediation and mitigation actions are taken.

In that context, the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority developed a new watershed plan for the Etobicoke Creek, (ECWP), that was recently approved by the TRCA Board and endorsed by the City of Brampton, Town of Caledon, City of Mississauga, Region of Peel and City of Toronto. The plan’s development was a collaborative activity of the above municipalities with input from First Nations/Indigenous communities and other stakeholder organizations including the Brampton Environmental Alliance.

The watershed plan was created to inform decision-making over the next 10 years related to land use and climate resiliency policies. The ECWP Vision is that, “the watershed be protected and restored to a cleaner, healthier, and more natural state, to sustain its waterways, ecosystems, and human communities“. The plan includes a management framework consisting of 3 goals, 8 objectives, 10 indicators and 36 actions.

Goal 1 – Achieve sustainable land use and infrastructure development patterns to improve watershed conditions and enhance climate resiliency.

Examples of Goal 1 actions include:

• Adopt green development policies and standards requiring new developments to utilize low impact development and green infrastructure that will reduce impacts of impervious cover,
• Include mitigation measures in the design of highway 413 to eliminate additional flood and erosion risk as well as protection of the Natural Heritage and Water Resource Systems including wildlife connectivity,
• Reduce chlorides entering the watershed through de-icing best practice on public property and through salt management education for private property,
• Update stormwater management criteria to focus on retention and filtration through the use of low impact development (LID) and green infrastructure,

Goal 2 – Protect, enhance, and restore the areas and features that comprise the Water Resource System (including aquatic habitat) for ecosystem resilience and sustainability.

Examples of Goal 2 actions include:

• Use “Evaluation, Classification and Management of Headwater Drainage Features Guidelines” for planning approvals in the Headwaters subwatershed,
• Removal of identified priority barriers to fish movement,
• Identify high risk spill areas and implement effective spill prevention and contingency plans,
• Educate commercial and industrial property owners on maintenance of oil and grit separators and other pollution control infrastructure,
• Participate in research initiatives to identify sources of microplastics and chemicals of concern for management and removal,

Goal 3 – Protect, enhance, and restore the Natural Heritage System and urban forest within the watershed to improve ecosystem resilience and sustainability.

Examples of Goal 3 actions include:

• Increase forest cover to at least 14% of total watershed area, through strategic tree planting,
• Increase wetland cover to at least 3% of total watershed area,
• Increase meadow cover to at least 5% of total watershed area,
• Create a connected and safe active recreation trail network from Lake Ontario to the Headwaters and to neighbouring watersheds while minimizing impacts to the Natural Heritage System (NHS) through
  • proper trail maintenance and signage
  • Education on the importance of NHS protection adjacent to trails,
  • Promoting community stewardship
• Improve wildlife passage at priority road crossings
• Municipal partners to include green development standards including green roofs, bird safe windows, habitat restoration etc.

Realizing the vision will require collaborative implementation of all aspects of the management framework. An Implementation Steering Committee will be responsible for development of a detailed implementation, tracking and reporting plan to hold the TRCA and the municipalities accountable for plan implementation.

1. Eco-Parks – Re-shaping older parks including Eastbourne, Earnscliffe, Fallingdale, Edgebrooke, Folkstone, and Knightsbridge, into a network of Eco-Spaces that maximize ecological value, making nature more visible while providing opportunities for social services delivery,
2. Active Transportation – Encourage residents to choose active forms of transportation by improving the pedestrian and cycling experience through improved infrastructure that includes road diets and safe crossings,
3. Healthy Local Food System – Encourage opportunities for urban agriculture in backyards and towers and support access to affordable healthy food for vulnerable residents,
4. Residential building efficiency and resilience. Bramalea has one of the highest residential energy and water use intensity in the city. Lower tree canopy cover combined with urban heat make pockets of this neighbourhood more vulnerable to the effects of climate change,
5. Institutional energy & water use efficiency – Improve institutional energy and water use efficiency by working with businesses and property management companies to encourage building retrofits and landscape greening,
6. Community resilience & connectedness – Improve community resilience and connectedness through offering skills enhancement and knowledge activities and workshops.

The BEA has been involved in delivering projects in the Bramalea SNAP area for the past three years. This past summer, the BEA received SNAP funding to run 9 events between June and October. The purpose was to engage residents in activities to foster concern for natural spaces and encourage cycling as a logical way to navigate the community.

Two bike repair workshops were hosted at Bramalea S.S. servicing 29 bikes.

The project also offered 3 family cycling clinics on Wednesday evenings in July. Few participants took advantage of these sessions indicating that we still have work to do to normalize family cycling for transportation.

A bike clinic in October at Earnscliffe Sr.P.S. yielded better results. Nine students attended the workshop where they learned about cycling safety and how to perform basic repairs on their bikes.

The project also offered 3 nature journaling sessions in Earnscliffe Park. Nature journaling is where participants are guided in observing the details of their natural surroundings, understanding the connectedness of all living beings and appreciating the wonder and beauty of the natural world that lives in our neighbourhood. A total of 26 adults and children attended these sessions .

Overall, 69 people attended BEA Bramalea SNAP activities, 70% of whom were residents of Bramalea in the sections south of Queen St. All participants appeared to enjoy themselves.

We hope to provide more activities in 2025 with even a better turnout!

The ceremony was hosted by Brampton North MPP Graham McGregor supported by Environment, Conservation and Parks Minister Andrea Khanjin.

“Wetlands are incredibly important to our communities. They make up the natural infrastructure that protect us from drought and flooding, while keeping water clean and providing homes for many at-risk species of plants and animals.”

Andrea Khanjin, Minister of the Environment, Conservation and Parks

Attending dignitaries included Brampton’s Mayor Patrick Brown, Regional Councillors Navjit Kaur Brar, Michael Palleschi and Rowena Santos as well as representatives from TRCA and Ducks Unlimited.

“This is an incredible investment by the Province of Ontario to support the enhancement of Loafer’s Lake. Investing in the restoration and preservation of wetlands is an investment in the future of our city, ensuring the protection of countless species, like the fish and turtles that call Loafer’s Lake home. Many thanks to Brampton North MPP Graham MacGregor for his outstanding work on this project and I look forward to enjoying the new trails and viewing platforms with the community.”

Patrick Brown – Mayor of the City of Brampton

Loafer’s Lake is one of four priority lakes identified in the City’s “Lake Enhancement Strategy” , the other three being Norton Place Lake, Donnelly Ponds, and Professors Lake. These lakes are representative of the majority of Brampton’s 14 lakes, historical aggregate extraction pits that are now filled with ground water. There is an opportunity to improve public awareness, appreciation and utilization of these lakes. The Lake Enhancement Strategy looks to transform these lakes into “signature features” in the City for recreation and appreciation of nature.

“One of my favourite things about Loafer’s Lake is that we built our neighbourhood around the nature. I have fond childhood memories of sitting on the hill and walking around the pond and those are memories I cherish. Thanks to our government and the leadership of Minister Khanjin, we are giving Loafer’s Lake the love and appreciation it deserves so my generation and future generations can continue to enjoy it.”

Graham McGregor – MPP Brampton North

The City of Brampton is partnering with the Toronto and Region Conservation Authority to plant 6,500 native trees and other vegetation, manage invasive species, improve shoreline habitat and install rocky shoals and log piles in the water to support turtles and fish habitat. This project will also build recreational viewing platforms at Loafer’s Lake that will let visitors enjoy the natural beauty of these wetland habitats, while minimizing the disturbance of sensitive ecological features.

Several community groups with a rich history of volunteering in the neighbourhood, also attended the event.

“Projects like Loafers Lake don’t just happen out of thin air”, says Lori Leckie, a founding member of Heart Lake Turtle Troopers, one of several community organizations that has been working for years to protect turtle habitat in the Loafer’s Lake area. “It’s about the volunteers from Heart Lake Turtle Troopers, Heart Lake Happenings, People Against Littering, Brampton Environmental Alliance, all working together with our regional councillors, [Navjit Kaur Brar, Michael Palleschi], our MP Ruby [Sahota], and MPP Graham [McGregor], as well as staff from TRCA. It’s about volunteering our time at Loafers Lake and many other regional parks, and wetlands.”

Area volunteers perform many activities in ensuring wildlife have a safe and clean environment including picking up broken glass and litter. Nesting season starts the 3rd week of May and goes into the 1st week of July. During this period a network of volunteers from the Turtle Troopers group looks for turtles on land. They help guard and protect the females her while they lay their eggs. They install a protector over each nest to prevent predation. They collect data on nesting activities. They also work with Brampton Animal Services and the City Parks Department to report when turtles are injured. Heart Lake Turtle Troopers volunteers can arrange necessary medical attention or transport of the eggs to safer locations.

“No volunteer group can do this alone”, says Leckie. “It means involving the whole community, sharing information with other BEA members so we can spread the word about the need to assist these species at risk. It means inviting all levels of government, inviting them to hatchling release events, getting them to understand why turtles are vital to maintaining a healthy ecosystem. Once they see our work they support us by providing us with tools and getting grants to the City of Brampton so important work can take place.”

Wetland Habitat Open Houses – Have your say!

The project involves seniors and high school students working together for 3 tree planting sessions in September 2023. Once the trees are planted, the groups will monitor their health, and the health of urban forests near their schools, in alignment with the objectives identified in Brampton’s Urban Forest Management Plan. Participants will learn data analysis and the practical application of biology, chemistry, and statistics. Both students and seniors will emphasize the use of sustainable transportation to get to the tree-planting and monitoring sites.

Tree monitoring training will be provided by the Association of Canadian Educational
Resources, (ACER). Bicycle skills and safety training will be provided by the Brampton Bike
Hub. The project runs from the fall of 2023 to the spring of 2024 and is designed to be self-sustaining beyond that point with student and senior trainers providing training to the next cohort of volunteers in the spring of 2024 with ACER’s help.

“We are really excited to be launching this initiative. This project is designed to create intergenerational cooperation between seniors and youth, to reduce seniors’ isolation through community connection, to encourage seniors’ entrepreneurialism and volunteerism, and to teach both seniors and youth about the importance of trees, tree planting and tree health.”

David Laing – President, Brampton Environmental Alliance

“The Rooted in Hope project is great news for the seniors of Brampton North. This program will deliver on our government’s focus of keeping seniors safe, healthy, active, and connected to families and friends in their communities while they support our beautiful local ecosystem.”

Graham McGregor, MPP for Brampton North

“This project is great news for seniors in Brampton. By connecting local organizations to seniors, you are helping seniors stay fit, active, healthy, and socially connected close to home”.

Raymond Cho, Ontario’s Minister for Seniors, and Accessibility

For more information or join the project, send email to: info@bramptonea.org.