A  group is forming to educate us and take action to protect our Nordheimer Ravine.  The group, led by Susan Aaron of the University of Toronto with the assistance of Barbara Chernin who heads our Environmental Group, is organizing a walk through the ravine and is working to bring in staff from Toronto Parks, the Toronto Region Conservation Board and Councillor Josh Matlow’s office.   We will inform you when a date is chosen. If you are interested in helping in this very worthy endeavor, please contact Susan or Barbara for more information.

An earlier CLRA report referencing our ravine was published on April 15, 2022.  In addition, there have been many reports referencing the environmental issues affecting the ravine emanating from the 3 tower condo development at St. Clair & Bathurst.  For further work on efforts to protect Toronto’s ravines please see the recent article in the Globe and Mail below.

Update November 17: Organizers of the walk were not able to coordinate a time with city officials before the onset of winter.  Another attempt will be made next year.

Toronto’s ravines are in a critical state, threatened by invasive species, climate change and intensive land development

Globe & Mail, September 10, 2022

Toronto’s ravine system makes up a significant part of the city’s green infrastructure, as natural parklands and urban forests provide countless environmental, health and recreational benefits. However, the city’s ravines are in a critical state, threatened by invasive species, climate change and intensive land development.

In January, 2020, Toronto City Council adopted the Ravine Strategy Implementation Plan to protect the city’s ravines. A group of volunteers formed the Toronto Nature Stewards (TNS) to help implement the plan and advance independent stewardship to restore the ecological health of Toronto’s ravines.

Daniel Cushing prepares to remove lily of the valley from Roxborough Parkette North site. JOEL RODRIGUEZ/THE GLOBE AND MAIL

Hundreds of volunteer stewards work under the direction of lead stewards and meet regularly to pick up litter and remove invasive plants, such as lily of the valley, Japanese knotweed and dog-strangling vine, which can crowd out native species.

Before the program started, only city park officials were allowed to remove invasive species from ravines. But the partnership allows volunteers to identify and remove these plants without supervision.

 

 

Catherine Berka, Geoffrey Chan and John Oyston work on identifying and removing Japanese knotweed. JOEL RODRIGUEZ/THE GLOBE AND MAIL

Geoffrey Chan and Catherine Berka are lead stewards at TNS’s Roxborough Parkette North site.  Mr. Chan says the stewardship work has given him an appreciation for the rich variety of life that exists within the city’s ravine system.

“I used to think only of places like the Amazon as being powerhouses of biodiversity, but here in this part of Ontario, we have a wealth of biodiversity too,” he said.  “Although I grew up in Toronto, I never knew this until now. It’s right in our backyard, and it’s a treasure.”

 

 

Finbarr O’Callahan works on identifying and removing Japanese knotweed. JOEL RODRIGUEZ/THE GLOBE AND MAIL

Toronto Nature Stewards now oversees 23 sites and has 60 trained lead stewards across the city. The stewardship year begins in April and runs until late October or early November.

 

 

 

 

Leslie Kestin, Geoffrey Chan, Finbarr O’Callahan, John Oyston, Jonathon Martynski and Anqi Dong at Roxborough Parkette North site. JOEL RODRIGUEZ/THE GLOBE AND MAIL