Press Release
The Rainy River District Stewardship Council has been actively involved in conservation and outreach projects throughout the district for more than three years now.
It is made up of volunteer members from across the district who represent a variety of stakeholder interests from agriculture to forestry to fish and wildlife.
The different backgrounds and connections of the council members has been the most important way the stewardship council has been able to engage the public and other partners in environmental stewardship projects.
It has been a phenomenal experience to see these stakeholder groups come together at one table over the common interest of being responsible stewards of the land, and to see how much we can accomplish by working together!
Each council member leads at least one project of their choosing every year, although the stewardship council is full of passionate “do-ers” who usually take on more and always support one another on projects.
By working closely with the Ministry of Natural Resources and our other key partners, we were able to leverage more than $140,000 to deliver more than 20 local stewardship projects and outreach events in the past year alone.
From the beginning, the stewardship council has been focused on engaging youth in our conservation efforts. We have been proud supporters of the Ontario Stewardship Rangers (OSR) program for several years now.
Just last week, council member Amos Brielmann worked with the OSRs to complete an exclusion fencing, alternative water source, and low-level crossing project on Wilson’s Creek.
Thanks to the leadership and hard work of Delton Martin (North End Farms) and the 2012 OSR crew, this project allows the farm to continue normal operations while improving water quality and important aquatic and near-shore habitats.
Now that we’ve worked with the landowner to prevent erosion and reduce nutrients entering the stream, we will be looking for more opportunities to engage youth to continue to restore this section of Wilson’s Creek, which eventually flows into Lake of the Woods.
This is just one example of the kinds of projects we have helped lead to advance the responsible care of nature in Rainy River District for benefits now and for the future.
The Rainy River District Stewardship Council currently is recruiting new volunteer members.
To learn more, visit www.ontariostewardship.org/councils/rainy-river
