‘Heart of Continent’ conservation efforts lauded

Collaborative conservation projects were on the agenda for the Rainy Lake Conservancy’s annual general meeting Sunday afternoon at La Place Rendez-Vous, which featured guest speakers from the Ministry of Natural Resources.
Quetico Provincial Park superintendent Robin Reilly spoke about how the RLC’s local projects to preserve and protect Rainy Lake’s natural areas fit into the larger picture of conservation efforts throughout Northern Ontario and Minnesota.
Since the formation of Quetico Provincial Park and Superior National Forest almost 100 years ago, surrounding areas have slowly but surely been added to the list of protected areas, Reilly said.
Yet all these areas are fractured and not seen as one unit, he conceded.
“Essentially what we’ve got now is about two-and-a-half million hectares of land in some kind or another, managed by some organization or another, all with a cultural, historical, geographical purpose mostly dedicated to some kind of conservation . . . and that’s the kind of context and mosaic we sit in right now,” he remarked.
That’s why the Heart of the Continent Partnership, an organization made up of more than 20 government and NGO groups, including the Rainy Lake Conservancy, has been forming over the past two years to increase collaboration and co-ordination in conservancy efforts.
“Part of what we’re trying to do with this ‘Heart of the Continent’ thing is give [the area] a name and give it a unity so that people can begin to appreciate that where we live is actually the largest constellation of publicly-managed protected greens paces in the North American continent,” said Reilly.
He also showed off the first edition of maps printed by the organization that mark out conservation areas both north and south of the border that make up the “Heart of the Continent,” with Fort Frances and Rainy River sitting along the western edge.
Co-operation between local conservation groups also was what Colin Langford, the meeting’s other guest speaker from the MNR, spoke about in his presentation about the Ontario Land Stewardship program.
The stewardship program was initiated to “bring people together, mainly land owners, organizations and agencies, and people who share an interest in responsible land care, to promote land stewardship at a community level, using volunteers and organizations that are already formed,” noted Langford, who is the stewardship liaison co-ordinator in Fort Frances.
While the stewardship program was launched back in 1995, 40 of the 43 areas involved have been in southern Ontario.
“Just recently, we’ve broken into the northwest, so Fort Frances is sort of the first one out of the gate,” Langford told RLC members.
The model for stewardship, Langford explained, is to have a council made up of around eight-15 community members who decide on projects that are important for the area.
The MNR provides co-ordinators, like Langford, to support and advise the council, maintain partnerships with community organizations, and serve as a connection to MNR resources.
The MNR also provides “seed” money to start leveraging for additional funds, resources, and aid in projects, he added.
Projects through the program in southern Ontario have included things like building osprey nesting platforms, interpretive trails, and workshops, as well as cover a range of topics, including forestry, birds, and native plants.
“There’s already some good projects going on in [Rainy River District],” said Langford, citing the Get Outdoors club through the Fort Frances Sportsmen’s Club and the Cranberry Peatlands Interpretive Trail, which the Rainy Lake Conservancy has been involved with.
“Some of those are perfect examples of where Ontario Stewardship would partner [and] get involved with,” he explained.
RLC president Anne Newhart also took the time to highlight the group’s achievements over the past year, which include receiving two awards from the Ontario Trillium Foundation back in October.
Another high point of the past year was receiving $11,200 in grant money from the Ontario Trillium Foundation in April, which has gone towards buying technology and equipment to help promote the organization.
Bob Hammar, Paul Larsen, and Gordon Martin, whose term on the board of directors ended in 2008, were re-nominated as candidates for the board.
Also joining the board for the first time will be Mary Ellis.
Newhart will be serving another term as president as the organization heads into its 10th year.