The Lake Simcoe Watershed What You Can Do Where We Are
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The Lake Simcoe Watershed What You Can Do Where We Are LAKE SIMCOE SUBWATERSHEDS AND ISLANDS We are one of 1. Barrie Creeks Be a Watershed Steward! 36 Conservation 2. Beaver River • A simple step every property owner can take – Don’t mow to the edge of ditches, Lake Simcoe 3. Black River Authorities across 4. East Holland River streams, and river banks. You’ll restore a natural grass and plant fi lter which will absorb Ontario under 5. Fox Island pollutants before they enter the water and will protect against soil erosion! 6. Georgina Creeks WATERSHED the umbrella 7. Georgina Island organization of 8. Hawkestone Creek • Plant native trees and shrubs on your property to increase wildlife habitat and maintain a Conservation 9. Hewitt’s Creek healthy ecosystem. Report Card 2013 10. Innisfi l Creeks Ontario. 11. Lovers Creek • Regularly maintain your septic system. 12. Maskinonge River 13. Oro Creeks North • Switch to phosphorus-free fertilizers for your lawn and garden. 14. Oro Creeks South What Does This Report Card Measure? 15. Pefferlaw River 16. Ramara Creeks • Connect with community and municipal programs. 17. Snake Island 18. Talbot River • Visit the Ontario Ministry of the Environment website to learn about My Actions, Our 19. Thorah Island Lake Simcoe at www.ontario.ca/lakesimcoe. 20. West Holland River Surface Water Quality Forest Conditions Groundwater Quality 21. Whites Creek • Find out about our Landowner Environmental Assistance Program (LEAP) at www.LSRCA.on.ca/leap. Funding may be available for environmental projects on your Why Measure? The Lake Simcoe watershed is a vibrant and diverse habitat and a precious source of water. It’s also a centre property. for tourism and recreation - generating over $200 million annually for the local economy - as well as industry Measuring helps us better understand our watershed. It helps us to focus our eff orts where they are needed and agriculture. Our lives and that of its animals, plants and insects rely on its health. A healthy watershed • Make a donation to our funding partner, the Lake Simcoe Conservation Foundation at most and track progress. It also helps us to identify healthy and ecologically important areas that require protection or enhancement. supports healthy communities. www.LakeSimcoeFoundation.ca. The Lake Simcoe watershed sweeps across 3,400 square kilometres and 20 municipal borders, from the Oak What is a Watershed? Ridges Moraine in the south to the Oro Moraine in the north, through York and Durham regions, Simcoe • Follow these tips and collect others! County and the cities of Kawartha Lakes, Barrie and Orillia. The lake itself covers 20 percent of the area and • Visit www.LSRCA.on.ca for more information about our Watershed Report Card. A watershed is an area of land drained by a river or stream. provides a source of safe drinking water to seven municipalities. There are over 400,000 residents in the Similar to the branch of a tree, creeks empty into streams, which then watershed; 18 major river systems; 4,225 kilometres of creek, stream and tributary channels; and it’s home to empty into larger streams, eventually forming one main trunk, or river. 75 species of fi sh, with over 50 in the lake alone. In our watershed, all of these rivers ultimately drain into Lake Simcoe. What We Are Doing Within this system, everything is connected to everything else. In other words, actions which take place at the top of the system can and Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority The Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA) works with many partners, including our do aff ect those downstream. communities and municipal, provincial and federal governments, year-round to provide the best scientifi c 120 Bayview Parkway, Newmarket, Ontario L3Y 3W3 information on the health of the watershed and to support programs for its protection and restoration. Lake P: (905) 895-1281 F: (905) 853-5881 and tributary monitoring is an essential part of our eff orts. Our monitoring program includes measuring E: [email protected] Grading water quality parameters in both surface and ground water, surveying fi sh and aquatic insect populations, www.LSRCA.on.ca measuring water temperatures, monitoring water levels and fl ows, and tracking changing land uses. Excellent We would like to acknowledge the fi nancial support of A In addition to our extensive monitoring activities, we also lead and support many other programs and Good projects in science and research, protection and restoration, and education and engagement. our communities and municipal, provincial and federal partners. B Fair The standards used in this report card were developed by Conservation Authorities to ensure consistent reporting across the Province of Ontario This Watershed Report Card has been developed to share the fi ndings of our analyses for the fi ve year If you require this document in an alternative format, please contact us. C Poor and are intended to provide watershed residents with information to period from 2007-2011. The indicators represent a number of commonly monitored parameters used to D protect, enhance and improve the precious resources that surround us. indicate changes in the environment. The standards used in this report card were developed by Conservation Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority Very Poor Authorities to ensure consistent reporting on the health of watersheds across the province. has prepared this report card as a summary F on the state of our forests, surface water, and groundwater resources. The Lake Simcoe Watershed What You Can Do Where We Are LAKE SIMCOE SUBWATERSHEDS AND ISLANDS We are one of 1. Barrie Creeks Be a Watershed Steward! 36 Conservation 2. Beaver River • A simple step every property owner can take – Don’t mow to the edge of ditches, Lake Simcoe 3. Black River Authorities across 4. East Holland River streams, and river banks. You’ll restore a natural grass and plant fi lter which will absorb Ontario under 5. Fox Island pollutants before they enter the water and will protect against soil erosion! 6. Georgina Creeks WATERSHED the umbrella 7. Georgina Island organization of 8. Hawkestone Creek • Plant native trees and shrubs on your property to increase wildlife habitat and maintain a Conservation 9. Hewitt’s Creek healthy ecosystem. Report Card 2013 10. Innisfi l Creeks Ontario. 11. Lovers Creek • Regularly maintain your septic system. 12. Maskinonge River 13. Oro Creeks North • Switch to phosphorus-free fertilizers for your lawn and garden. 14. Oro Creeks South What Does This Report Card Measure? 15. Pefferlaw River 16. Ramara Creeks • Connect with community and municipal programs. 17. Snake Island 18. Talbot River • Visit the Ontario Ministry of the Environment website to learn about My Actions, Our 19. Thorah Island Lake Simcoe at www.ontario.ca/lakesimcoe. 20. West Holland River Surface Water Quality Forest Conditions Groundwater Quality 21. Whites Creek • Find out about our Landowner Environmental Assistance Program (LEAP) at www.LSRCA.on.ca/leap. Funding may be available for environmental projects on your Why Measure? The Lake Simcoe watershed is a vibrant and diverse habitat and a precious source of water. It’s also a centre property. for tourism and recreation - generating over $200 million annually for the local economy - as well as industry Measuring helps us better understand our watershed. It helps us to focus our eff orts where they are needed and agriculture. Our lives and that of its animals, plants and insects rely on its health. A healthy watershed • Make a donation to our funding partner, the Lake Simcoe Conservation Foundation at most and track progress. It also helps us to identify healthy and ecologically important areas that require protection or enhancement. supports healthy communities. www.LakeSimcoeFoundation.ca. The Lake Simcoe watershed sweeps across 3,400 square kilometres and 20 municipal borders, from the Oak What is a Watershed? Ridges Moraine in the south to the Oro Moraine in the north, through York and Durham regions, Simcoe • Follow these tips and collect others! County and the cities of Kawartha Lakes, Barrie and Orillia. The lake itself covers 20 percent of the area and • Visit www.LSRCA.on.ca for more information about our Watershed Report Card. A watershed is an area of land drained by a river or stream. provides a source of safe drinking water to seven municipalities. There are over 400,000 residents in the Similar to the branch of a tree, creeks empty into streams, which then watershed; 18 major river systems; 4,225 kilometres of creek, stream and tributary channels; and it’s home to empty into larger streams, eventually forming one main trunk, or river. 75 species of fi sh, with over 50 in the lake alone. In our watershed, all of these rivers ultimately drain into Lake Simcoe. What We Are Doing Within this system, everything is connected to everything else. In other words, actions which take place at the top of the system can and Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority The Lake Simcoe Region Conservation Authority (LSRCA) works with many partners, including our do aff ect those downstream. communities and municipal, provincial and federal governments, year-round to provide the best scientifi c 120 Bayview Parkway, Newmarket, Ontario L3Y 3W3 information on the health of the watershed and to support programs for its protection and restoration. Lake P: (905) 895-1281 F: (905) 853-5881 and tributary monitoring is an essential part of our eff orts. Our monitoring program includes measuring E: [email protected] Grading water quality parameters in both surface and ground water, surveying fi sh and aquatic insect populations, www.LSRCA.on.ca measuring water temperatures, monitoring water levels and fl ows, and tracking changing land uses. Excellent We would like to acknowledge the fi nancial support of A In addition to our extensive monitoring activities, we also lead and support many other programs and Good projects in science and research, protection and restoration, and education and engagement.