People can donate ecologically-sensitive land through Canada’s Ecological Gifts Program (EGP). The Canadian EGP has officially welcomed Ausable Bayfield Conservation Foundation (ABCF) as an environmental charity eligible to receive ecological gifts.

“Ausable Bayfield Conservation Foundation is honoured to be approved as a qualified recipient eligible to receive donations of land through this program,” said Dave Frayne, ABCF Chair. “Preserving land permanently is one of the most effective ways to protect water and habitat for wildlife.”

People can donate land in Ausable Bayfield watersheds. They can also donate land, or partial interests in land, throughout the historic area of the former Huron Tract. That area includes parts of Huron, Lambton, Middlesex, and Perth counties. It includes Goderich in the north, Stratford and St. Marys to the east, Arkona and Parkhill to the south, and many communities in between.

If you have any questions about ABCF, or about making a donation of land or money, feel free to contact the Conservation Foundation by email at info@abca.ca or leave a voicemail message by phone at 519-235-2610 or toll-free 1-888-286-2610.

A demonstration day drew hundreds of interested people from far and wide to the Huronview Demo Farm, near Clinton, Ontario, in June of 2019. One year later, in 2020, the industry and community partners continue to move forward with this innovative agriculture and water quality research project.
 

“One year ago we introduced this important project, at the demo day, to agricultural producers, people in the drainage industry, and other interested people from the community,” said Alan Willits, President of Huron County Soil and Crop Improvement Association (HSCIA). “A year later, we are pleased to see how much has been done to keep this project on track and progressing.”

The Huronview partners completed the installation of controlled drainage, on a slope, in 2019. This is believed to be a first in Ontario. The Huronview team is continuing to implement work, at the demo farm, in 2020. They are working to find new ways to build soil health, achieve the best possible yields, and protect downstream water quality. Huron County Soil and Crop Improvement Association is leading the project along with the County of Huron, Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA), and other industry and community partners.

Farmers and agronomists are keeping track of the crop yields and inputs. A team from Ausable Bayfield Conservation is monitoring impacts on flow and quality of water on the surface and below the surface. Staff have monitored the site since October 2018 to document pre-installation and post-installation data. The demonstration farm site features a side-by-side-by-side plot of contoured/controlled drainage, conventional drainage, and an area that remains undrained.

The site also features a plot comparing 15-foot and 30-foot tile spacing and a demonstration of surface drainage with terraces, a constructed wetland and a grassed buffer.

The team is working with the University of Waterloo to help determine the science-based actions that farmers can implement in their operations. In the meantime, the team have made some of the data (e.g., air temperature, rainfall, soil moisture, eventually tile water levels) available in real-time.

To check out this real-time data visit this web page:

Huron Soil and Crop members are busy in 2020 adding features to the demonstration farm including grassed buffer and pollinator strips.

ABCA staff have produced and shared information videos about some recent work at the Huronview site.

To learn more visit the Huronview website:

The Huronview Demonstration Farm drainage innovation project was funded and supported by dozens of partners, including the Huron County Clean Water Project, the Land Improvement Contractors of Ontario (LICO), Ducks Unlimited Canada, and Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority. This project was also funded in part through the Canadian Agricultural Partnership, a federal-provincial-territorial initiative.

To learn more visit:

 

Lake Huron partners are promoting a healthy Lake Huron from land to the lake.

The Healthy Lake Huron partnership says we are all a ‘piece of the puzzle’ when it comes to keeping this Great Lake great.
 

Local partners are creating videos and social media posts to engage people in best management practices for towns, villages, and cities and for agriculture and industry.
 

To view or read some of this information on protecting Lake Huron search these hashtags on Facebook or Twitter:

#healthylakehuron #landtolake #pieceofthepuzzle 
 

You may also visit the Healthy Lake Huron website here:

The information campaign began in spring of 2020 and runs for several months. The themes are Soil, Water, Food, Beach, Nature, and Community.
 

Everyone’s actions fit into one or more of these categories, according to the Partnership.
 

“Together, each of our puzzle pieces create the complete and complex puzzle of a Healthy Lake Huron,” according to the healthylakehuron.ca website.
 

“We cannot see the whole picture without fitting the pieces together first. How do you fit in, and what can you do to help improve the health of this beautiful watershed?”
 

There have been many positive actions over the past decade. They range from soil health and cover crop initiatives to reduction of water quality impacts from multiple sources, to water quality monitoring.
 

“However, we realize we still have work to do to address ongoing water quality and soil health challenges,” according to Healthy Lake Huron.
 

Partners in the Healthy Lake Huron initiative, along Lake Huron’s southeast shore, include local public health, local government, Departments and Ministries, communities and landowners, and local conservation organizations.

Learn more here:

What is your drinking water source?

Is it drawn from Lake Huron for treatment?

Or, maybe your water is from a municipal well, drawn from underneath your feet from aquifers acting like sponges.

If so, learn about your local municipal well, and the zones of protection around it, in fact sheets newly updated here:

 

European Gypsy Moth is a defoliating insect (an insect that consumes leaves) and it can severely weaken trees.

Ausable Bayfield Conservation has created a new web page and fact sheet about this insect.
 

Ausable Bayfield Conservation Authority (ABCA) Forestry Specialist Ian Jean, said " … in our area, Oak, Aspen, Birch and Basswood are the tree species preferred by the Gypsy Moth." However, in years with high populations, Ian cautions caterpillars will move on from preferred hosts to eat a wider variety of trees including Maple, Pine, and Spruce. “When there are a lot of them, they’re hungry, they’ll eat whatever is available,” he said.

As the weather warms in June, caterpillars tend to feed at night, and climb down the tree to shelter from the heat during the day. At this stage, burlap or light-coloured cloth can be wrapped around tree trunks to collect the caterpillars.

“It is important to fold the burlap back over itself to create a cavity, they’ll congregate within there for disposal,” Ian said. Caterpillars should be collected and disposed of daily by scraping them into a bucket of soapy water and re-applying the burlap.

To learn more visit: