Port Lands Planning Initiatives
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SECTION Attachment 1: Section 4-10 4 Cormorant Nesting Area, Tommy Thompson Park 4.10 BIODIVERSITY The City’s Official Plan defines Lands are important aspects of the biodiversity as the rich variety of life city’s overall natural system, and include forms and recognizes the critical roles areas known for ecological succession, they play within varied ecosystems. The supporting rich biodiversity and being City’s Official Plan also recognizes that a concentration point for migratory ecological health is directly related to wildlife. Naturalizing the mouth of healthy biodiversity. The greater the the Don River and creating the Don biodiversity of an area, the greater the Greenway north and south of the Ship ecological health and resiliency of that Channel will have the broadest possible area. Regeneration and renewal within effect on Toronto’s urban ecology by a natural setting will be a critical aspect filling in a critical missing gap in the for the transformation of the Port Lands overall river and ravine system, linking to over the coming decades to ensure that a spine of designated Environmentally the Port Lands’ landscapes and habitats Significant Areas south of Unwin Avenue can continue to support a rich diversity and ultimately Lake Ontario. of life as the area urbanizes. While the river and Greenway will For a city of nearly three million people, add great richness and complexity on Toronto has an impressive natural multiple and mutually reinforcing levels heritage system and surprising diversity and provide a renewed biophysical of plant and wildlife species. Toronto’s connection between the Don River and natural system consists of a living, Lake Ontario, urban ecological systems dynamic system that includes major extend beyond a city’s traditional landforms, watercourses and associated natural system. Urban areas are riparian zones, valleys and floodplains, mosaics, consisting of a diverse range forests, wetlands, meadows, beaches of ecologically important, connected and bluffs, and other habitats (North- patches and corridors of all shapes and Shore Environmental Inc., 2012). These sizes – all of which contribute to a city’s natural areas support a significant ecological health. Wildlife is everywhere number of species and wide variety of in Toronto. It lives and moves through ecological functions. our natural systems, including in our parks, big and small, in our street trees, The landscapes and habitats within, on green roofs, and in community and and in close proximity to, the Port backyard gardens. Port Lands Planning Framework 350 SECTION DIRECTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS - 4.10 - BIODIVERSITY 4 Our streets and linear infrastructure, A deeper exploration of biodiversity such as rail corridors and hydro and the aspects required to support corridors, play a pivotal role in a rich diversity of life was undertaken connecting the various disparate areas. with the assistance of a working It is this variety of places and corridors, group comprised of biologists, coupled with the provision of a diversity academics, nature enthusiasts and of native plants and vegetation representatives from the Port Lands suitable to local contexts, that equally Stakeholder Advisory Committee contributes to Toronto’s ecological and Land Owner and User Advisory health and the city’s urban mosaic. Committee. Together, an approach was established for recognizing, supporting Much of the Port Lands landscape and enhancing biodiversity in the Port today is underutilized. This has provided Lands. The approach endeavours to opportunities for wildlife and vegetation create an urban mosaic in the evolving to colonize vacant sites. The area’s landscape and the appropriate tapestry of corridors has also enabled conditions to support native ecology movement through the area to the in an urban context. Remarkably, the natural systems to the south. As the approach is largely consistent with area urbanizes, a new, urban ecological earlier initiatives undertaken in the balance and enrichment of the built Port Lands, most notably Greening the landscape through natural solutions Toronto Port Lands prepared by Michael will be required to provide abundant Hough, Beth Benson and Jeff Evenson. biodiversity in the Port Lands. 11 don valley humber valley Toronto’s greenspace system 351 Port Lands Planning Framework 4.10.1 Life and Nature in the Port Lands Today The Ashbridges Bay Marsh was one of The water features present immediately the most extensive freshwater coastal within the Port Lands provide little wetlands in eastern North America opportunity for aquatic habitat and was abundant with animals and today. The Ship Channel, which will diverse terrestrial, shoreline and aquatic continue to be used for port activity, is habitats. Elizabeth Simcoe, in 1794, characterized by a hardened shoreline described Ashbridges Bay as a “low of concrete and sheet pile walls with lands covered with rushes abounding little to sparse instream vegetation. with wild ducks and swamp black birds Most fish species that have been with red wings” (Innis 1965: 138). documented in the Ship Channel are transient, using the limited habitat While the rapid urbanization of Toronto available for foraging. Similarly, the and ultimate creation of the Port Lands Keating Channel lacks habitat diversity itself led to the destruction of the and complexity with limited in-stream marsh, the Port Lands has reemerged cover (DMNP EA, 2015). as an area rich in biodiversity that provides important natural habitat. The The opportunity for the Port Lands as areas south of Unwin Avenue provide regeneration and renewal unfolds over a diversity of terrestrial, shoreline and the coming the decades is to create aquatic habitats within a number of new natural areas, expand existing designated Environmentally Significant natural areas and improve and create Areas, including Cherry Beach, Base of new aquatic habitats. The Port Lands the Spit and Tommy Thompson Park. may also recognize the importance More than 400 plants, 314 birds, 19 of providing a variety of green and mammal and 12 reptile and amphibian naturalized spaces throughout the species have been recorded in Tommy geography to contribute to a healthy Thompson Park (TRCA 2011). urban ecology. There are also a number of vacant and underutilized sites that have regenerated as meadows, wetlands or small woodlots. In some instances, these sites have limited ecological form and function on account of occasional maintenance that occurs. They nonetheless contribute to the overall natural system that exists in the Port Lands today. The Portlands Energy Centre (PEC) has been actively implementing reforestation and planting programs on their site, which has created habitat for native and migratory wildlife. The infrequently used rail corridors also provide important terrestrial connections for wildlife. Naturalization at the Port Lands Energy Centre Port Lands Planning Framework 352 SECTION DIRECTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS - 4.10 - BIODIVERSITY 4 4.10.2 Urban Mosaics and Biodiversity Urban areas are mosaics with a diverse a connected system while providing range of connected, ecologically natural habitat, can maintain viable important patches and corridors of all populations of species that would shapes and sizes, all of which contribute otherwise disappear from urban to a city’s ecological health. Where environments (Haq, 2011; Byrne and there is an increased number of habitats Sipe 2010). and microhabitats providing habitat heterogeneity, the more species an area There are numerous opportunities can support (Forman, 2014). for enhancing biodiversity in the Port Lands, from within the major new Critical to maintaining and enhancing natural areas and aquatic habitats, to biodiversity in urban areas is ensuring the creation of small, interconnected a network of connected natural areas patches of upland habitat, and through and open spaces anchored by major ensuring well-designed urban spaces natural systems. Green spaces, of all and buildings that include natural different sizes, that work to create features and elements. Patch, Corridors Mosaic Source: Waterfront Seattle Framework Plan, 2012 353 Port Lands Planning Framework In stream habitat Urban bird box Corktown Common Honeycomb Bee Hotel Rouge Park understorey Stork nest on a transmission tower Wetted fringe Stormwater feature in La Confluence, Lyon Tommy Thompson Park Port Lands Planning Framework 354 SECTION DIRECTIONS AND RECOMMENDATIONS - 4.10 - BIODIVERSITY 4 Natural Areas and Aquatic Habitats The naturalization of the mouth of the Cherry Street will result in the creation Don River will deliver five hectares of two shallow aquatic habitat coves of terrestrial habitat within the with coastal forest and successional constructed river valley system, as well habitat features (Figure 75). as create and enhance 14 to 15 hectares of aquatic habitat. A series of levies The Don Greenway south of the Ship will be introduced that will create 13 Channel, coupled with the realignment hectares of wetlands. These wetlands of Unwin Avenue, will create additional, would provide habitat for fish, birds and large contiguous natural areas capable turtles among others. An objective of of sustaining robust habitat and wildlife. the project is to also establish habitat The Greenway has been expanded from to support game fish, including walleye, the area originally contemplated in the northern pike and other native species. Central Waterfront Secondary Plan. This expanded area will provide enhanced In the Keating Channel,