March 17 is awards evening this International Year of Forests
The year 2011 is International Year of Forests so it’s fitting Registered Professional Forester Terry Schwan is speaker at this year’s Ausable Bayfield awards evening to recognize the Conservationist of the Year. He will present on ‘Sustainable Forestry: Is It Happening in the Ausable Bayfield Watershed?’
“We are very fortunate to have Terry presenting his research on the sustainability of current timber harvest in Huron and Perth counties,” said Ian Jean, Forestry and Land Stewardship Specialist with Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA). Much local cutting is by diameter limit or similar method where all of the trees above a certain size are cut, according to Jean. This removes the largest, most vigorous and often most potentially valuable trees and species. Younger, less vigorous and poorly formed trees are left to make up the future stand. Jean said “I am interested to hear from Terry whether our current harvest rates and practices are sustainable and what his research predicts for the future of forestry in our region.”
Schwan is District Forester with Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) and is involved in promoting good forestry practice, supporting stewardship projects, forest health issues, technical training, tree bylaw issues, and more. The Hanover native and Guelph resident has studied the value trees and good forestry practices have to landowners in this area. He is a graduate of University of Toronto Faculty of Forestry and has a Master of Science from Macdonald College of McGill University. He taught forest technology at John Abbot College near Montreal for 13 years before joining MNR.
The annual Conservationist of the Year awards evening takes place on Thursday, March 17, 2011 at Ironwood Golf Club, 70969 Morrison Line, two kilometres east of Exeter, across from Morrison Dam Conservation Area. Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) invites conservation partners and members of the public to this early-evening event which begins at 5:30 p.m. Please respond to ABCA by Thursday, March 10, 2011 if you plan to attend. You are invited to phone 519-235-2610 or call toll-free 1-888-286-2610 or e-mail sfunk@abca.on.ca
The annual event recognizes watershed conservation partners as well as board and staff years of service. This year’s Ausable Bayfield awards evening will also feature recognition for landowners restoring and enhancing wetlands through the Healthy Headwaters Wetlands Initiative. The winners of the first Watershed Tales Environmental Writing Competition will also be announced that evening.
Nominations for the Conservationist of the Year Award can be submitted to the ABCA until Thursday, February 17, 2011. Individuals, organizations or companies which reside in, or have completed conservation work within, the area of jurisdiction of the Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority, are eligible to win the Conservationist of the Year award. Current ABCA staff and directors are excluded. The nominee individual or group will have undertaken conservation efforts over a number of years that have shown long-term benefits for the natural environment and society. Examples of conservation activities include improving local water quality, conservation farming, reforestation and afforestation, environmental education, providing wildlife and fish habitat, or promoting environmental ethics and awareness.
Landowners in Ausable Bayfield watersheds showed their commitment to conservation this past autumn when they ordered almost twice as many trees as the autumn before. The final date for over-the-counter pre-paid spring tree orders at ABCA is February 28. You are invited to phone the conservation authority or visit them online at abca.on.ca for information. |
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Conservation Dinner committee names feature artist
Exeter-area artist Catherine Weber likes intense, true colours of pastels
Dinner takes place April 14, 2011 - Tickets available now
The Conservation Dinner committee has announced the feature artist for 2011 is Catherine Weber, a Swiss-born artist who lives near Exeter.
“We are extremely pleased and honoured to name Catherine Weber as feature artist for 2011,” said Conservation Dinner Committee Chairman Bob Gehan, of the Exeter Lions Club. “The Conservation Dinner is a great opportunity to support local conservation projects such as accessible trails, commemorative woods, the annual fishing derby for families, and conservation education – but it is also a great chance to showcase the talented artists of this area.”
The dinner is a gala auction of art and memorabilia which supports conservation in Ausable Bayfield watersheds. Recognition as the year’s feature artist has been bestowed upon some of the area’s brightest creative lights over the 22-year history of the dinner. Past honorees have included Fran Roelands, Bill Nieuwland, David Bannister, Tim Clark, Teresa Marie, Rae Ann Ladouceur, Elisabeth Tonner-Keats, Randy Jones, Fred Negrijn, Ken Jackson, Kent Wilkens, Barry Richman, Flora Doerr, Peter Etril Snyder, and Tammy Laye.
“I’m truly honoured and I thank the Conservation Dinner Committee,” said Catherine Weber, after learning she had been selected.
Catherine and her husband Franz have three children and are dairy farmers in RR 1 Exeter. She works on the farm, she paints, and she has also sewn costumes for professional theatre companies in Ontario.
Catherine Weber grew up in Europe, where she had the chance to see original paintings by great masters in museums there. She was greatly inspired by French Impressionists such as Renoir. She began creating art work as a child, and she earned a diploma in fashion design in Switzerland, but it was after moving to Canada in 1992 that she began pursuing fine art seriously. She has continued to develop as an artist and study and teach art in the years since.
The relatively flat farm land of southwestern Ontario was a change from her native terrain in a mountainous, German-speaking region of Switzerland, but she has found inspiration in painting figures, portraits and landscapes here in Canada. The former clothes designer has created works in several media, and says each art medium has its own advantages, but she most often returns to the rich, true, and “intense colours” of pastels.
She has exhibited in more than 50 invitational and juried art shows since 1995 and has been an award winner at several shows. For more information on Catherine Weber visit her web site at artcweber.com
The Conservation Dinner features a live auction, silent auction, special raffles, general raffles, a wonderful meal, an honoured feature artist, and a celebrity special guest. Past special guests or emcees of the event have included Order of Canada recipient John A. MacNaughton, Canadian hero John Davidson (of Jesse’s Journey), CTV sportscaster Randy Tieman, local broadcaster and overseas volunteer Kristylee Varley, Canadian statesman Jack Riddell, and other individuals of note.
The 22nd Ausable Bayfield Conservation Dinner takes place Thursday, April 14, 2011 at South Huron Recreation Centre in Exeter. Tickets are $50 each and purchasers receive a $25 charitable gift receipt for income tax purposes.
Anyone wishing to donate to the Conservation Dinner or purchase tickets is encouraged to phone 519-235-2610 or toll-free 1-888-286-2610 or speak to a committee member. For information on the Conservation Dinner visit conservationdinner.com orabca.on.ca
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