'Flood' Tests Brantford Emergency Response

THE GRAND STRATEGY NEWSLETTER Volume 11, Number 4 - July/August 2006

Grand River The Grand: Conservation A Canadian Authority Heritage River

Features 'Flood' tests emergency response 1

Look Who’s Taking Action New course for old Mill Creek 3 Industry supports greening of Brantford 5

Milestones Facilities available for wheelchair anglers 5 'Flood' tests Brantford Fly-fishing champs visit the Grand 7 emergency response

What's Happening By Dave Schultz streets, rushing past cars and pouring into base- GRCA Communications Co-ordinator ments. Environment minister to speak at forum 7 Soon the City of Brantford had a major disas- t was typical March weather - temperatures ter on its hands. Hundreds of homes were sur- Grand Strategy Iwere above freezing and rain was pouring rounded by freezing water. Thousands of people Calendar 8 down. had no way to get to safety. On top of the dam- The ice covering the Grand River was break- age in Holmedale, the floodwaters raised threats Cover photo ing up and huge chunks were floating down the that would soon affect the entire community. Members of the City of swollen river. How would the city cope? Brantford emergency In Brantford, the ice started to bunch up, team, led by Ted forming an ice jam, backing up the water in the * * * Salisbury, general river. That was the question confronting senior offi- manger of community Soon, it reached the top of the dikes protecting cials of the City of Brantford when they took part development services, discuss their strategy to Brantford's Holmedale area, a long-established in a mock emergency exercise in June. deal with a flood threat- neighborhood of houses, shops and factories. Flooding is a major concern in Brantford. The ening the community The water trickled over the dike, eroding the city has been flooded many times during its 200- during a test of the surface and slowly cutting a wedge into the dike. year-history. emergency response sys- Suddenly, the dike gave way and water The most recent flood, in 1974, inundated sev- tem. crashed down Grand River Avenue, flooding side eral neighborhoods. A dike breech allowed flood waters to enter the city's water treatment plant. The plant was shut down and the entire city was without a safe water sup- ply for close to two days. Following that flood, millions of dollars were spent to expand and improve the dike network, enclosing almost all of the inhabited parts of the city. The dikes provide protection from significant storms and have kept the city safe and dry ever since. But as the residents of New Orleans learned in 2005, sometimes the forces of nature are just too great to be contained by any man-made structure, no matter how well built. That's one reason why the decision Terry Spier, director of environmental services (with back to camera) talks to Steve was made to test the city's emergency Collete, a senior foreman with Brantford Power in the mobile command trailer. response system with a flood scenario, Operations Centre, a room on the second parked next to the river. These were sen- said Gina Cliffe, Community Emergency flood of the new main fire station in ior officials from the same departments Management Co-ordinator for the City downtown Brantford. The room is well as the members of the emergency opera- of Brantford. equipped with communications equip- tions group. Even though the actual exercise only ment and other gear. The people in the trailer knew exactly lasted about four hours, it took six Though they knew beforehand that what was going to unfold, because they months for a project team to put the sce- they would be taking place in an emer- were working from carefully prepared nario together and write the script. gency drill, they didn't know the details. scripts that outlined the details of the The scenario had to be both realistic Keeping the nature of the emergency a impending disaster down to every and challenging, she said. secret from the Operations Group would minute. Like the real flood in 1974, the mock be the best way to test their skills and At predetermined times, each team disaster called for the city's water treat- reactions. member in the trailer would send a mes- ment plant to be knocked out of opera- Meanwhile, another group of people sage to the operations centre, providing tion, which put the safety of the entire were gathered in a mobile command some tidbit of information about the city at risk. centre - a trailer equipped with commu- flooding and everything flowing from it. And, added Cliffe, the mock disaster nications equipment and other tools -- As they rolled through the scenario, was prepared in such a way as to deny the scope of the disaster grew. Homes the city access to some tools that would were surrounded by water, with resi- be important in dealing with a natural dents stranded on upper floors. Large disaster. The Holmedale area is home to storage tanks were floating down the the Brantford Transit bus barns and street, possibly leaking dangerous chem- Brantford Power's depot, which meant icals. A car was crushed by a floating emergency transportation and heavy chunk of ice. equipment would be out of reach. But not all the action was taking The pace of the exercise was fast and place in the stricken area. The flood put furious, and put the city's emergency the water treatment plant out of opera- team to the test. tion, forcing the emergency operations The city's Emergency Operations group to find enough water to meet the Advisory Group is made up of the heads needs of an entire city. Some of their of police service, the fire department, communication systems failed. social services, the city engineering Problems cropped up in the most department, ambulance service and oth- unexpected places: egg salad sandwiches ers with a role to play in a disaster. Gina Cliffe talks to Inspector Scott given to evacuees were bad, causing They gathered in the Emergency Easto of the Brantford Police food poisoning.

2 Share the resources - Share the responsibility But as bad as it got on the ground, the atmosphere in the emergency centre remained calm and focused as the members of the operations group worked through the ever-growing list of problems. Not that everything ran smoothly, noted Cliffe. The purpose of an exercise such as this is to find the weaknesses in the system so they can be repaired before the real thing. Immediately after the session, an informal gathering of participants showed that they were frus- trated by the pace of communications, said Cliffe. "Everyone is used to direct contact with telephones, e-mail and radio communications," she said. When some of these tools were wiped out during the disaster, it had a big impact on the abili- ty of the emergency team members to Jamie Naylor (left) and Matt Naylor prepare the stream bed of the new course for communicate with each other, she said. Mill Creek. From that point of view, the exercise was a success, she said. A six-page list of recommendations Community effort sets was developed in the weeks after the test. The suggestions addressed some major items - training, more robust com- Mill Creek on new course munication systems - and some that as the McKinnon Pond — which was were not as big, but still important - full of silt and caused the temperature of more power outlets in the trailer so peo- LOOK WHO’S the creek to increase 3.5 to 4 degrees. ple can recharge cell phones. TAKING ACTION Though most of the channel’s construc- But apart from the specific goals of tion took only two days, the project has testing for weaknesses, exercises such as By Chris Daponte been in the planning stage for some Wellington Advertiser this have another purpose, noted Cliffe. time. It helps to build a stronger team. esidents of Puslinch Township are It was expected to go ahead last sum- "This is a good way to get these peo- Rnot the only locals trying to cool off mer, but was put off because of all the ple working together, using the this summer – and last month the aquat- permits required and the scheduling con- resources they have to come up with ic wildlife in the area was granted a flicts for all the parties involved. creative solutions to the problems they're huge reprieve from increasing water “It’s one of those things that takes dealing with," said Cliffe. temperatures. time to get momentum and develop, but Katie Silcox, a water resources proj- On July 21, water ran for the first now you can see the results,” said Ron ect co-ordinator with the GRCA who time through a newly constructed, 187- Van Ooteghem, site manager for observed the drill, said tests such as metre channel on Mill Creek. Dufferin Aggregates, one of the compa- these "enable the emergency manage- The purpose of the channel, which is nies involved in the construction. ment team and the GRCA to understand located just outside Aberfoyle on the He is also involved with Friends of one another's capabilities and limita- McKinnon family property, is to narrow Mill Creek (FOMC), which is comprised tions." the stream to help lower the water tem- of residents, interest groups, and govern- "They provide a link of communica- perature and improve the habitat for fish ment and industry partners, and aims to tion and understanding between the and other wildlife. improve the health of the Mill Creek GRCA and its municipal partners," she The new channel will effectively watershed. added. remove a large pool of water — known He said the channel project, which is

GRAND ACTIONS • July/August 2006 3 unique, was identified some time ago as a priority for the FOMC. “I’ve never been involved with anything like this before,” he said, adding the project’s value cannot be over stressed. “You might say 200 metres is not very long, and dropping the temperature by three or four degrees is not a big deal, but from an environmental point of view, it is a big deal.” Van Ooteghem said the project would not have been possible without “the tremendous amount of teamwork” of 30 to 40 community partners. Some donated cash or in-kind labour or materials, and others offered technical support. In addition to the FOMC —- and the Mill Creek Stewardship Rangers, the flagship program of the FOMC —the list of those involved includes: ■ Parish Geomorphic (design of the channel); ■ Capital Paving (construction of the channel); Members of the Mill Creek Rangers and the companies involved in the project take a ■ Dufferin Aggregates (stone and moment to survey their work. material); this project is a key part of that work, “We decided that if we wanted to do ■ John Watson (the company that and a great achievement. some work, this would give us the delivered the material); Robert Messier works for Wildlife biggest bang for our buck,” Timmerman ■ Wayne Tuffin (donated time and Habitat Canada and is the technical said. operated excavator); adviser for the MCSR program. He said He added that the channel will not ■ Grand River Conservation the new channel will go a long way only help provide the cold, pure water Authority and the Ministry of Natural towards “eliminating the impacts of the that brook trout and other fish need to Resources (offered technical support); on-line pond,” which he called a “big, flourish, but it will also provide a better and black muckhole.” food source than the existing pond. ■ Township of Puslinch, and count- Messier said the new channel will be “I think there will be fish going in less others who donated time or money, monitored for signs of erosion over the there right off the bat,” he said, adding or both, through the FOMC. next few years, and trees will also be the channel will improve with time. Van Ooteghem said special thanks brought in and planted nearby. Larry Wilson, vice president of should go to the Puslinch Optimist Club, But Mill Creek will show immediate Capital Paving, said his company was one of the project’s major partners. signs of improvement, he said, noting more than happy to help, especially con- This year, the MCSR received that only 10 minutes after the waterway sidering it has been a member of the $18,650 from the Ontario Trillium was opened, a frog was taking a dip. Puslinch community for so long, and Foundation (as part of a four-year, The creek was diverted in front of the because its property is located so close $76,000 grant from 2003 to 2007), pond in the morning of July 21 and the to the creek. which would not have been possible bottom end of the pond was blocked off “We like to give back to the commu- were it not for the Optimist Club. later, after it had a chance to partially nity, show good stewardship of the land, Puslinch Mayor Brad Whitcombe, drain. and be good corporate citizens,” he said. who was on hand to witness the opening MNR biologist Art Timmerman, an “We’re as excited about this as any- of the channel, was impressed with the FOMC representative, played a key role body.” water diversion. He said the FOMC has in testing water temperatures along the This originally appeared in the talked about improvements in the water- creek to find out where exactly to build Wellington Advertiser and is reprinted shed since its formation in 1997, and the channel. with permission.

4 Share the resources - Share the responsibility Local industry increasing support from local industry as tinue their site project development with one of the major goals. annual spring plantings and to lend supports greening ACIC has embraced the Brantford assistance to other corporate neighbours of Brantford Tree Coalition goals and expects to con- in their own projects. taff from two local Brantford phar- Smaceutical companies, ACIC and Apotex Pharmachem, joined forces in April to celebrate Earth Day by planting more than 300 native trees and shrubs along a stretch of creek behind ACIC’s office building on Sinclair Boulevard. The goal is to naturalize the area for wildlife and prevent erosion on the banks of the creek. ACIC and Apotex staff worked with staff from the City of Brantford and GRCA to carry out the planting. The trees and shrubs were locally grown at the GRCA’s Burford Nursery. For Apotex staff this work was old hat, having already planted over 230 trees in an unused portion of their property last year in order to create a small tree nursery. These trees will be main- tained and left to grow for a number of years. They will then be transplanted to Cheryl Thompson (left) and her daughter Rebecca Kellman tried out the wheelchair- various schools and local parks in accessible fishing platform in Caledonia in July 2003, soon after it opened. Brantford where large shade trees are mother’s loathing of touching a fish. lacking. Unfortunately, up until a few years A GRCA study conducted in 2004 MILESTONES ago, most natural lakes, creeks and using satellite imagery, determined that rivers were inaccessible to wheelchairs all five major cities in the Grand River Milestones are progress or products due to the constraints of the landscape. watershed were well below the target 40 of The Grand Strategy Joint Work Plan. The status of accessible fishing opportu- per cent tree canopy cover required for a nities in this region is gradually chang- healthy urban forest. Wheelchair-bound ing. Both private and public facilities Several local groups and community anglers make the within a one-hour drive of Wilmot members in Brantford recognized that Township provide options for wheel- action is necessary to restore tree cover most of fishing holes chair-bound anglers and ensure the long term health of the By Cindy Matthews And since people with disabilities are urban forest. not required to have a fishing license A group called the Brantford Tree itchener teen Harley Kaufmann- and many provincial parks give a dis- Coalition has recently formed to take KSacrey happens to get around using counted rate for vehicles with disabled action toward this initiative. Partners in a wheelchair. But it doesn’t prevent him parking permits, the sport is affordable. the group include the City of Brantford, from maintaining a positive, engaged When Kaufman-Sacrey goes fishing, Brantford Community Foundation, attitude. After spending a few minutes in a boat usually gives him the best advan- Grand River Conservation Authority, his presence, his infectious vitality and tage with a rod and reel. For example, Brant Resource Stewardship Network zest for life shines through. He has inter- Guelph Lake has an accessible dock and and Apotex Pharmachem. ests in music and sports, including one Harley is able to easily transfer from his The group hopes that the ACIC tree of his favourite pastimes, fishing. chair to the boat. He and his father have planting is just the beginning of more The only thing that limits Harley’s gone fishing with great success using a successful projects to come, with exposure to fishing opportunities is his zodiac-style boat.

GRAND ACTIONS • July/August 2006 5 Mitch Wilson with the Ontario room facilities are not wheelchair acces- and parents with strollers and wagons to Ministry of Natural Resources said sible. Anglers may choose to use their be able to fish from the shore. Ontario tax dollars do go into accessibil- own tackle or rent from the facility. The A company called Accessible ity projects. In most cases the ministry admission is only $3 per outing or $15 Canadian Adventures specializes in cre- provides the funds and technical advice for a season’s pass. Fishing is available ating an outdoor adventure (hunting and and a service-club partner provides the on weekends and holidays from 9 a.m. fishing) for people with disabilities. hands-on coordination to get the work to 4 p.m. and as an added bonus, no They will create a holiday anywhere in done. Projects have been completed fishing licenses (for any anglers) are Canada and they have affiliations with along the Grand River in the Fergus- required to fish at this facility and staff contacts in Australia. Their website is Elora area, between Paris and Brantford will clean what you catch! http//www.acadventures.ca/. and Caledonia. The Caledonia access is Shades Mills, another park which is Accessible fishing is alive and well. wheelchair accessible. part of the GRCA, is in Cambridge off Go ahead and choose your bait. Here's Guelph Lake Conservation Area is Franklin Boulevard. Much of Shades to your successful, accessible casting! just northeast of Guelph, off Victoria Mills is accessible by wheelchair. The Cindy Matthews is a vice-principal Road, and has a lake which is 1,000 Toyota Trail and a fishing dock are fully who works for the Waterloo Region acres in size. Part of the Grand River accessible as is the washroom facility. District School Board. She and her hus- Conservation Authority (GRCA), it is Toyota provided funding for the Toyota band, John, live with their three children extremely popular for events like dragon Trail while the Ministry of Natural in Wilmot Township. boat racing and triathlons. Northern Resources providing some of the fund- This article originally appeared in pike, smallmouth and largemouth bass, ing for the fully accessible dock area. the New Hamburg Independent and is black crappie, yellow perch, and carp In fact, Brian Hunt, Area reprinted with permission. will be safe from land-casting anglers Superintendent at Shades Mills, said the who use wheelchairs, though, as the lake GRCA is working diligently to provide is only accessible to those with mobility greater access to their facilities. He also Grand River issues if they have access to a boat. Area cited that “accessibility provides equal watershed attracts Superintendent for Guelph Lake, Gary opportunity for all to enjoy the outdoors MacMillan, has been in discussion with and activities.” fly-fishing champs the MNR about installation of a board Christie Lake, part of the Hamilton By Steve May walk but these discussions are in the Conservation Authority, is on Highway 5 Grand River Fisheries Plan early stages. near Highway 8. Christie Lake has nine Implementation Co-ordinator Stephen Kerr, senior fisheries biolo- ponds, all stocked with trout, ready to he Canadian Fly Fishing gist with the MNR in Peterborough said catch from last weekend in April right TChampionships were held in the the MNR has recently prepared detailed into September. The trout are always Grand River Watershed from June 22- fishing access information for the hungry! Pond 8 is designed to be wheel- 25. The event was hosted by Friends of Greater Toronto Area and the Regional chair accessible. If anglers forget bait, it the Grand River and Fly Fishing Municipality of Ottawa-Carleton. is available at the gatehouse. Boats are Canada. These two organizations, with When asked about statistics, he said also available for rental. the help of other partner groups includ- no numbers for mobility disabled people Byng Island, located at the ing the Grand River Conservation who utilize provincial parks are avail- Intersection of Regional Roads 20 and 3, Authority, Fergus/Elora Chamber of able but the MNR and province in gen- in Dunnville, also falls under the GRCA Commerce, and a team of over 30 vol- eral have a mandate to improve accessi- umbrella. It is a fully accessible site unteers, hosted eight teams of five bility. which boasts camping, a swimming pool anglers. These anglers were tested by the One of the best fishing opportunities and fishing area (both lake and river waters and fish of the Grand River tail- for wheelchair-bound anglers is within fishing). Over the years, facilities at water and the Conestogo River tailwater. the Township of Wilmot. It is a pay-as- Byng Island have been gradually con- The goals of the event were to help raise you-go trout fishing farm situated on verted in order to accommodate accessi- awareness and money for conservation Queen Street between Petersburg and bility needs. efforts and to help select team members New Dundee. Spring Valley Trout Farm The Grand River near Freeport to represent Canada at international fly- boasts a one-acre pond featuring fresh Hospital has become more people- fishing events in the future. rainbow trout. It is ideal for beginners friendly with easier access to the river. Forty anglers from across the country and all fish caught must be purchased. The landscape permits people in wheel- fly-fished during five, three-hour compe- While the site is fully accessible, wash- chairs, as well as the elderly with canes tition sessions. During these outings they

6 Share the resources - Share the responsibility landed more than 900 brown trout which were carefully measured and immediate- WHAT’S ly released back into the river. This far exceeded the total number of fish caught HAPPENING? at all of the previous championships combined. Even with this total number Environment of fish caught, there were still many, many fish stories involving the ones that minister to speak got away. The fish that were measured at Water Forum averaged about 24cm in length and the ntario Environment Minister Laurel catch rates were higher in the Conestogo OBroten will be the keynote speaker River than on Grand River. As an overall at the Sixth Annual Grand River average, each angler landed about five Watershed Water Forum in Cambridge or six fish during every three-hour fish- on Sept. 15. ing session. The forum will be held at the Grand In the end, an angler from the River Conservation Authority headquar- Northwest Territories, Terrence Jack Simpson of Fly Fishing Canada ters, 400 Clyde Rd., Cambridge. The Courtoreille was the top rod. He was (left) presents the championship trophy forum runs from 8 a.m. to 3:30 p.m. awarded the Doug Austin Memorial to Terrence Courtoreille of Team This will be Broten’s second appear- Trophy for this accomplishment. He Northwest Territories ance at the annual event. She also spoke landed 52 fish during the competitive at the 2005 forum. Leona Dombrowsky, sessions. Team Airflo was the wining Financially, the event raised some Broten’s predecessor as environment team. This five-member team from the funds for future fisheries improvement minister, addressed the forum in 2004. Hull-Ottawa area collected 139 fish. projects. More than $7,000 will be split Broten’s appearance will come soon The competitors and members of the between Fly Fishing Canada’s national after the conclusion of public hearings public also took in a conservation sym- conservation initiatives and local Grand on the proposed Clean Water Act, which posium on Sunday afternoon. This sym- River projects. In addition, a team from are scheduled for late August. The bill is posium highlighted activities such as the Muscular Dystrophy Canada competed expected to pass in the fall session of the Grand River Fisheries Management against local media members and raised legislature. Plan, the Grand River Tailwater more than $14,000 through their The theme of this year’s forum is Fisheries Plan, the Exceptional Waters “Casting for a Cure” pledges. Without “Building the Toolkit for Healthy Program and developments in source volunteers' commitment this event Waters.” water protection. Larry Halyk’s inspiring would not have been possible. Friends of The goal of the forum is to provide talk at the closing banquet also helped the Grand River volunteers logged in government leaders, municipalities, let the anglers know about the link excess of 900 hours of service to make businesses, farmers and others with between agency and volunteer efforts this event happen. knowledge about new technologies, and improved fishing in this area. The spin off benefits from hosting innovations and community involvement The comments from the anglers about this event and showing the river to peo- needed to protect and improve our valu- the rivers that many partners have ple from around the country are difficult able water resources. worked hard to develop into top notch to measure at this time. But, when peo- Tickets are still available. The cost is fisheries were glowing. Past events have ple from British Columbia, $90 ($45 for students) which includes a been held at exclusive fishing resorts in Newfoundland, Prince Edward Island, barbecue lunch. Kenauk, Quebec and Manitoba’s Quebec and Nova Scotia all say that More information on registration, Parkland. Last year the competition was they will be back with friends and fami- exhibit space and sponsorships is avail- held in Campbell River, British ly because of the quality rivers, quality able on the GRCA website at Columbia. This is the first time the event of environment and interesting activities www.grandriver.ca under the heading has come to Ontario. Here in the Grand available in the area it speaks volumes to Conferences: 2006 Water Forum. River watershed the anglers enjoyed the the fact that the people working to Other speakers at the event are: scenery, the accommodations and local improve the Grand River and its fishery ■ Herb Gray, co-chair of the amenities. But, most of all they liked the are on the right track. International Joint Commission, the numbers of fish that were rising to their For more information about this event Canadian-U.S. body which monitors the flies. contact Steve May [email protected] Great Lakes.

GRAND ACTIONS • July/August 2006 7 ■ Paul Emerson, chief administrative water festivals, the Exceptional Waters officer of the GRCA who will present an program and the Rural Water Quality update on conditions in the Grand River Program in the Grand River watershed. watershed Members of the panel are: ■ Gord Miller, environmental com- ■ Cecilia Ferreyra of the University missioner for Ontario, who will provide of Guelph an overview of the presentations made ■ Peter Gray of Frontline during the water forum and put them in Environmental Management the larger perspective of environmental ■ Jack Imhof of Trout Unlimited concerns across the province. Canada ■ ■ Lorrie Minshall, program director Tracey Ryan of Grand River Conservation Authority for source water protection in the Lake In addition to the presentations and Erie Watershed Region, who will pro- panels, there will be displays and vide an update on the program. exhibits highlighting innovative water Two panels of experts will address technologies and services, as well as innovations in water technology and environmental programs of business, watershed management: government agencies and environmental Innovation in Technologies for Environment Minister Laurel Broten organizations. Healthy Waters will include speakers on ecological goods and services, waste- Ministry of Natural Resources water treatment, drain and wetland ■ Andy Oding of Reid’s Heritage About this restoration, urban development and natu- Homes ral channel improvements. ■ Bill Annable of the University of newsletter This newsletter is produced bi-month- Members of the panel are: Waterloo ly as a communications tool by the ■ Robert Bailey of Delta Waterfowl Innovations in Community Grand River Conservation Authority on ■ Jim Higgins of Jacques Whitford Development will have speakers on behalf of the partners in The Grand ■ Dave Richards of the Ontario community development, children’s Strategy. This newsletter can be seen at www.grandriver.ca For information on The Grand Strategy contact: The Grand Strategy Calendar Barbara Veale, GRCA, 400 Clyde Road, Box 729,Cambridge, On. N1R 5W6 Stream Rehabilitation Day, Critter Creek, RIM Park, Waterloo on Phone (519) 621-2763 Ext. 274 Saturday, Sept. 16 from 9 a.m. to noon. — The Laurel Creek Citizen Fax: (519) 621-4844 Committee will be holding a stream rehabilitation day on Critter Creek at RIM E-mail: [email protected] Park. This part of the stream is currently being assessed to determine the type Web site: www.grandriver.ca of work needed. Due to the nature of the work, participation is limited. This day For newsletter submissions contact will include working in the stream. Waders will be provided. Contact: Denise Dave Schultz, GRCA McGoldrick, Environmental Project Manager, Water Resources, Tel: (519) 747- Phone: (519) 621-2761, Ext. 273 8642 or e-mail [email protected] Fax: (519) 621-4844 Community Parks Week Tree Planting, Critter Creek, RIM Park on E-mail: [email protected] Saturday, Oct. 7 from 9 a.m. to noon — The Laurel Creek Citizens Deadlines for submissions are the Committee will participate in Community Parks Week with a tree planting day 15th of January, March, May, July, on Critter Creek at RIM Park. To improve the health of the Critter Creek September and November. Submissions ecosystem, the LCCC will be planting native trees and shrubs along its banks at may be edited for length or style. RIM Park. Park in the Grey Silo Golf Course parking lot nearest the trail kiosk Tax deductible donations and spon- and we will meet at the trail kiosk off of Woolwich and Park streets. Wear boots sorships toward the cost of producing and clothing appropriate for the weather. Also, bring a pair of gloves to protect this newsletter are always welcome. your hands. Publications Mail Agreement #144871

8 Share the resources - Share the responsibility Think Green! Recycle your cell phones and print cartridges for outdoor education in the Grand River watershed!

ThinkGreen is a cost-free print cartridge and cell phone recycling program that provides free collection materials and free shipping. This easy to use program offers cash rebates in exchange for used print cartridges and cell phones.

When you recycle these items, you can choose The Living Classroom, Campaign for Outdoor Education to receive the funds that are generated by your recycling efforts. To date, almost $10,000 has been raised in support of several GRCA projects! All you need to do is throw your empty print cartridges and cell phones in the ThinkGreen collection box instead of in the garbage.

Getting started is as easy as 1,2,3: 1. Call to enroll and choose the GRCF as recipient for the funds: 1.888.265.2895 2. Collect empty print cartridges and cell phones and deposit them in the provided ThinkGreen boxes. 3. Call for a pick up, order more supplies, and watch your funds help outdoor education in the Grand River watershed!

Thinking green makes a world of difference! Protect the environment and create tomorrow’s environmental ambassadors ~ support