Fall 2008 On the Don This publication can be viewed online at www.trca.on.ca In this issue: 1. Five years later, On the Don Five years later, On the Don comes to life once again comes to life once again 2. Discover your link to the Don After a lengthy five-year hiatus, we are pleased to re-introduce the new and updated 3. Another ‘fish story’? History On the Don newsletter. For many of you, it will be like getting together again with an of Pacific Salmon in the Don old companion; and for some, this newsletter will be like making a new friend. We 4. Hot Don issues and updates hope to update you about the watershed and the efforts to rehabilitate its waters and lands quarterly, as the seasons change. However, not only is this a new beginning for the newsletter, some of the most exciting changes are still ahead as we move further into the digital realm over the next year as and Region Conservation’s (TRCA’s) website is redeveloped and more innovative electronic newsletter tools become available. Hold on for the ride, as the new and improved On the Don takes shape into its electronic ‘alter ego.’ Let us know what you think. Email [email protected]

Discover your link to the Don By Peter Heinz, vice chair, Don Watershed Regeneration Council Seeing is believing; experiencing is even better. Discover what the Don watershed has to offer. At the May 4, 2008 Paddle the Don event, the Don Watershed Regeneration Council (DWRC) released the first Walk the Don guide map. Within a year, we hope to have much of the watershed covered with walking route descriptions. These downloadable, self-guided walks provide suggested routes, access points and description of items of interest along the way. Have you ever gazed out from the escarpment of former Lake Iroquois or walked across the site of Ontario’s first plowing match? Where is the second gristmill in Upper Canada or the site of one of the largest urban environmental restoration project in the world? Where might you find a wall of gabion baskets or a lost river? The answer is simple—in the Don watershed. The location, however, is for you to discover. What prompted this Walk the Don series? We live in a region blessed with wonderful opportunities to experience nature firsthand. Why drive two to three hours when it is as close as 20 minutes from your front door? The Don Watershed Regeneration Council offers you a chance to observe salmon, deer, beaver, falcons, herons and foxes in the comfort of your own municipality. Beaches, ponds, forests and meadows are included. We want people to visit the Don watershed, appreciate what it offers and learn how it affects our daily lives. Yes, we have a hidden agenda. We know that once you walk even one route, you will appreciate the value of protecting our greenspaces. We know that you will see a connection between Lake Ontario and your own property, complete with its drains, driveways and Don Valley Brick Works, one of the many sights downspouts. (conitinued on page 2) you’ll see along the Lower Don walk What equipment do you need for a Don watershed walk? (continued from page 1) Your run-off water shares part of the same route as these A pair of comfortable shoes, walks. We have chosen well-marked paths of interest, most with hard-packed trails. Most a downloaded Walk the Don are accessible by public transit and some have washroom facilities on a seasonal basis. guide and a couple of hours Rivers, creeks, valleys and ravines are a secret in the Toronto area because they are to experience, firsthand, one below the horizon. These walks, coupled with soon-to-be-announced water-crossing of Toronto’s hidden secrets. signage on bridges, will unleash these hidden treasures for everyone to enjoy. Enjoy! Go to www.trca.on.ca/walkthedon and download any of the following guides: On the Don Another ‘fish story’? Wilket Creek History of Pacific Salmon in the Don Burke Brook Lower Don By Phil Goodwin, chair, Don Watershed Regeneration Council With more to come! Early stocking of Pacific Salmon and trout species into Lake Ontario began in the 1800s. These early informal stocking programs met with little success. In the late 1800s, the stocking of Chinook Salmon was discontinued only to resume in the early 1900s. It was at this time, Lake Ontario’s ecosystem was way out of balance. Top native predators, the Atlantic Salmon and Lake Trout had been wiped out by the turn of the 20th century due to pollution, over-fishing and poor spawning conditions in rivers and streams. With the Atlantic Salmon and Lake Trout gone, populations of Smelt and Alewife began to take over. To restore balance to the ecosystem, two Pacific species, Chinook and Coho, were introduced. And it worked; the re-introduction of these two non-native, top-predator fish, as well as trout, reduced the growing populations of Alewife and Smelt. But why not just re-introduce the Atlantic Salmon? The Atlantic Salmon are far more sensitive to pollution, so it was felt at the time, given the state of the lake, they would not survive. So why are Pacific Salmon in the Don River? In the Don, stocking began in the 1990s with Rainbow Trout initially, followed more recently by Chinook Salmon. Chinook continues to be stocked in order to provide angling opportunities in Lake Ontario, as well as recreational viewing opportunities. Fisheries managers use these species to determine the health of rivers and to determine the impacts of our restoration efforts. In the Don, Chinook are stocked annually just below Road in the East Don River. Salmon have a natural instinct to return each year from the lake to the river they were stocked in. That is why we usually see the salmon soon after the first day of fall. The first time I saw them was at the official ‘opening’ ceremonies for the Donalda dam— dismantled, about five years ago. The dam, on the East Don in the Donalda Golf Club, just south of York Mills Road, had been removed and replaced with big river rock, creating rapids which the fish could navigate but, at the same time, maintain water levels in the river. Since then, the salmon have continued their upstream migration. The furthest north they have been reported is at Rutherford Road in Vaughan this past October. I saw one just Celebrate World Fisheries Day south of Highway 7 in Uplands Sunday, November 16, 2008, 2 p.m. Golf Course two years ago. Chinook Salmon, That salmon was later seen Todmorden Mills Heritage Museum & Arts Centre, Pottery Road, Toronto Upper East Don hitchhiking down Highway 7… Visit weirs on the Don River and discuss the impact of the River and that’s how they got salmon environment on fisheries. Organized by Lost River, the walk will be in the Humber! lead by Christine Tu (TRCA) and Ed Freeman. Wear sturdy shoes But on a serious note, a and dress appropriately for the weather. recently reinvigorated Atlantic World Fisheries Day highlights the importance of maintaining Salmon (continued on page 3) the world’s fisheries and is celebrated by fishing communities worldwide each year on November 21. 2 (continued from page 2) program is attempting to restore this native top predator to Lake Ontario. Since the program began in 2006, a million Atlantic Salmon have been ‘planted’ in the Credit River, Duffins and Cobourg creeks. They are our “canaries in the coal mine,” an indicator for clean water. Hopefully this re-introduction will be a catalyst for cleaning up our lakes, rivers and streams. Great work by the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters and partners Banrock Station Wines, LCBO, Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources, conservation authorities, Fishing Forever Foundation, Sir Sandford Fleming College, the Canadian Sportfishing Industry Association and the Trees Ontario Foundation. We thank you for your support. On theHot Don issuesDon and updates Cleaning up our waterways: The Don River and Central Waterfront Project Wade into the discussion! In 1987, the International Joint Commission identified the City of Toronto’s waterfront as one of 43 polluted Areas of Concern in the Great Lakes Basin, largely due to poor water quality conditions in the Don River and the Inner Harbour. Overflows from both storm sewers and combined sewers—sewers that contain both sanitary flows and stormwater—were identified as the main sources of pollution. In 2003, the City of Toronto approved the Wet Weather Flow Master Plan (WWFMP), a comprehensive plan aimed at solving this problem across the city’s watersheds. The City of Toronto has now started a project that brings together the Lower Don Lands Municipal Infrastructure recommendations in the WWFMP for improving water quality in the EA and Keating North Precinct Plan Don River and the Inner Harbour with necessary upgrades to the Don and waterfront trunk sewer system and its ability to service future Waterfront Toronto will hold its growth. Once completed and put into action, this project will help us second public meeting for the to improve water quality and the environment, and will be an important Lower Don Lands Municipal step to delisting Toronto’s waterfront as an Area of Concern. Infrastructure EA and Keating North Precinct Plan on December 10. Public participation in this study is critical—find out more about it and At this meeting, Waterfront Toronto get involved. Wade in! will present the recommended planning alternatives, draft block plan and • We want to know what is important to you. Visit us at the propose infrastructure design alternatives for further evaluation. Gerrard Square Shopping Centre on November 29 or Details of the public meeting are as follows: Yonge-Eglinton Centre on November 30. Date: Wednesday, December 10, 2008 • Learn more about the options and help decide how solutions will be Location: St. Lawrence Hall, 157 East, Great Hall chosen. Attend our second Project Information Centre on the Time: 6:00 p.m.–7:00 p.m. (Open House) evening of December 3 at Hotel Novotel Toronto Centre on 7:00 p.m.–9:00 p.m. (Presentation and Facilitated Discussion) . • Visit our website at www.toronto.ca/involved A summary report of Public Meeting #1 is available on the project website: www.waterfrontoronto.ca/lowerdonlands • Add your name to the stakeholder list. Email us at [email protected] or call 416-338-5470. Information will be distributed via e-mail wherever possible. Don Watershed Plan update Toronto and Region Conservation, in consultation with municipalities and watershed stakeholders, have developed a draft watershed plan for the Don River. This watershed planning process was initiated in response to a number of policy and planning developments, including the Oak Ridges Moraine Conservation Plan (ORMCP) and a need to update the original management strategy outlined in the Forty Steps to a New Don (1994). The study will fill identified information gaps, recommend updated management strategies that will guide land and water-use decisions, and provide direction for implementation of priority regeneration actions. (continued on page 4)

3 (continued from page 3) The DWRC has reviewed and provided input to the development of each individual component of the draft watershed plan as it has been developed over the last year. Input also has been provided by a Municipal Technical Advisory Committee. A public workshop on the plan’s vision, guiding principles, and key issues and objectives was held in June 2008. Concept site plans and an Implementation Guide for the Watershed Plan will be developed over fall 2008 and winter 2009, in consultation with municipalities, the DWRC, local non-government organizations and the public. The draft plan will be available for review on TRCA’s website at www.trca.on.ca/donplan in late November. Further public consultation on the draft watershed plan and proposed concept site plans is anticipated in winter 2009.

What is a watershed? A watershed is an area of land that catches rain and snow, and drains or seeps into a marsh, stream, river, lake or groundwater. Homes, farms, cottages, forests, small towns, big cities and more can make up watersheds. (Source: Conservation Ontario) What is a Watershed Plan? A Watershed Plan is a tool to guide management of human activities in an area defined by watershed boundaries in order to protect and rehabilitate land and water, and associated aquatic and terrestrial resources, while recognizing the benefits of orderly growth and development.

Other events of interest A fall day along the trails of the Don Walk at David Dunlap Observatory (DDO) Saturdays, 2–3 p.m., 123 Hillsview Drive, Richmond Hill Join Richmond Hill Naturalists for their weekly interpretive walks at DDO. For information, contact [email protected]

Mount Pleasant Cemetery Tree ID Walk Saturday, November 29, 10 a.m., meet at Davisville subway station Join Toronto Field Naturalists (TFN) for a walk in Mount Pleasant Cemetery. Bring your lunch. Contact TFN at 416-593- 2656 or email [email protected] for details.

On the Don is a newsletter about the Don River watershed and the efforts to rehabilitate its waters and lands. This newsletter is published by Toronto and Region Conservation in partnership with the Don Watershed Regeneration Council. Toronto and Region Conservation With over 50 years of experience, Toronto and Region Conservation (TRCA) helps people understand, enjoy and look after the natural environment, for a cleaner, greener and healthier place to live, for you today and for your children tomorrow. Don Watershed Regeneration Council The Don Watershed Regeneration Council is a volunteer, watershed-wide advisory committee established by Toronto and Region Conservation in 1994 to help restore the Don River watershed to a healthy, sustainable natural environment. Please send an email to [email protected] with the message ‘subscribe’ or ‘unsubscribe’ if you wish to be added or removed from the On the Don mailing list.

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