Quebec/ eastern region ( Atlantic )
Quebec • New Brunswick • Nova Scotia • Prince Edward Island • Newfoundland and Labrador
volume 28, number 3, 2007
École secondaire Mont-Sainte-Anne’s Wetland Centre of Excellence
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Ducks Unlimited Canada’s (DUC) Centres of Excellence Program is for experienced groups of students at the high school level who are interested in participating in a hands-on wetland conservation project. It is a multi-faceted program spread over several years, carried out by DUC’s education staff in co-operation with other organizations. In Quebec, we are very proud to now have our Centre of Excellence at École secondaire du Mont-Sainte-Anne in the Côte-deBeaupré area. DUC and a group called Les Amis du Cap Tourmente have united their efforts so that the Secondary 1 students at École secondaire du Mont-Sainte-Anne (ESMSA) can discover the importance of wetlands – and there are many of them – in the Côtede-Beaupré area. So far, the young people have been able to apply their practical knowledge at the site of the Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area in addition to discovering a variety of professions related to the sciences. The program was launched at the beginning of the 2006-07 school year when Louis-Bernard Nadeau, DUC’s provincial education co-ordinator, discussed the project Students learn at Cap Tourmente as part of Wetland Centre of Excellence.
with Isabelle Le Bihan of the Association des Amis du Cap Tourmente. At the same time, Marie-Lyne Binet, a science teacher at ESMSA, had spoken with the guides at the Wildlife Area about taking part in activities there. This project, which is very rewarding on both the scientific and the ecological levels, would never have come into existence without funding from the J.W. McConnell Foundation through the Green Street Program, which allowed the school to acquire equipment required for springtime sampling.
Although the program is supported by Ducks Unlimited Canada, it is important to emphasize the commitment of various stakeholders, especially Isabelle Le Bihan of the Association des Amis du Cap Tourmente, who provided the link with the school community and made it possible to undertake on-site activities. Equally important is the contribution of the Cap Tourmente National Wildlife Area, which gave free access to the site and provided interpretive guide services, allowing us to promote the project well beyond our dreams. S
Early Canada goose seasons in New Brunswick
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Each spring, biologists from across the continent conduct surveys to estimate the number of waterfowl breeding in North America. Eastern Canada is no exception to this effort, having established a helicopter survey program in the early 1990s that continues to this day. Over the past decade, surveys in Nova Scotia and New Brunswick have identified a 10-fold increase in the number of breeding Canada geese. The reasons for this increase are still uncertain, but a relocation program in the mid-’90s that moved geese from southern Ontario to New Brunswick is at least in part responsible. Over the longer term, changes in land use such as an expansion in green areas within cities, a reduction in the number of predators in urban and suburban environments, and the increase in abundance of suitable wetlands and adjacent areas available for feeding and brood-rearing may have created favourable conditions for nesting Canada geese in the Maritimes. The increase of temperate-breeding geese is not unique to the East Coast, as numbers of geese breeding across eastern and central North America have steadily increased in recent years. With the increased numbers, more concerns have been voiced by a wide variety of
people and organizations. These range from issues of public safety at airports and crop damage complaints from agricultural producers, to concerns about the fecal material found in parks and sports fields and the possible human health effects of these droppings. In order to help reduce the growth of temperate-breeding geese in New Brunswick, the Canadian Wildlife Service will implement an early September Canada goose hunting season in 2007. Similar seasons have been effective in other provinces in Canada and many states in the U.S. The new hunting season will occur before the arrival of northern migrant geese and as such will not affect the geese that breed in Quebec and Newfoundland and Labrador. To prevent disturbance to other waterfowl, hunting during the September Canada goose season will be restricted to farmland only. Hunting will be prohibited on wetlands during this early season, which will protect late-breeding ducks. During the September special season hunters can shoot eight geese per day with a possession limit of 16 geese. In 2007 the dates for the early September Canada goose season in New Brunswick are Sept. 4 through Sept. 14 inclusive, closing immediately before Waterfowl Heritage Day. S
Regional plans for wetland conservation now online!
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On May 2, DUC Quebec announced that four new regional plans are now online at www.canardsquebec.ca, as part of an ambitious project involving the preparation of a plan for wetland conservation for each of Quebec’s 17 administrative regions. The new plans are for the administrative regions of l’Estrie (Eastern Townships), Lanaudière, the Laurentides and the Outaouais. They are available to any person or organization wanting to get a picture of wetlands at least one hectare in size in each of these regions. The new plans have been added to the Chaudière-Appalaches, Montérégie and Central Quebec plans, which were launched in October 2006 at a press conference held by Bernard Filion, DUC manager of operations in Quebec, in the presence of Quebec’s Minister of Sustainable Development, the Environment and Parks and the Director of Wildlife Development, part of the Quebec’s Department of Natural Resources and Wildlife. When examining these new regional plans, you will realize the extent to which wetlands in the Estrie region are linked to
those bodies of water most sought after for resort use or for waterfront residential development. You will also sense the very strong pressures for development along the shores of the St. Lawrence and the Ottawa Rivers, as well as in the Lower St. Lawrence and in the Lanaudière, Laurentides and Outaouais regions, three administrative regions located close to major population centres. You will also discover, if you don’t already know, that the Outaouais region boasts wetlands and ecological diversity which are of an exceptional nature in Quebec, or that the Laurentides region is experiencing one of Quebec’s most rapid growth along the Montreal-Mont Tremblant axis. And if you are interested in the Lanaudière region, you will learn how important the Lac Saint-Pierre flood plain is to waterfowl, especially in the Saint-Barthélémy area, and of the extreme pressures threatening many of the last wetland complexes of the St. Lawrence River and the Lower St. Lawrence. S
e a s t e r n r e g i o n ( q u e b e c / at l a n t i c )
Impressive donation for the preservation of Angell Woods delights area residents
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On April 11, 2007, Bob Benedetti, mayor of Beaconsfield, Helen Fotopulos, member of the City of Montreal’s executive committee responsible for the environment, parks, green and blue spaces, Mount Royal and the status of women, along with Bernard Filion, Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) manager of operations in Quebec, announced a new partnership that will allow for the preservation of Beaconsfield’s Angell Woods. The 22-hectare property, which belongs to Alta Industriel Ltée, will become a Protected Natural Environment integrated with l’Anse à l’Orme Nature Park. At the press conference, DUC expressed its thanks to Alta Industriel Ltée for having facilitated the preservation of a portion of their property through the donation of land valued at $4.5 million. Pierre Latreille, president of the Alta Industriel Ltée Company, which specializes in property and industrial development, said he was proud to contribute to the protection, for future generations, of the large piece of property which could have brought substantial gains to the company in the long term had the land been developed. Angell Woods, whose total area is 100 hectares, is located in the Municipality of Beaconsfield, west of Montreal Island. The woods, which once belonged to the Angell family after whom they are named, are made
up of mature broadleaf trees, some of them 100 years old. This magnificent forest bordered by a large wetland is home to rare plant species and to some animal species in a precarious state. Since the partnership was announced, DUC has had many calls from area residents, and has even received cards thanking our organization for its involvement in the project. Many residents and stakeholders in the area have been working for over 20 years to raise municipal awareness on the importance of protecting the site, and the rapid increase in property values has slowed down the desire for acquisition and stimulated conservation initiatives. The funds required to protect the parcel at the heart of Angell Woods, which is valued at $8.5 million, included a $4 million investment from the City of Montreal and Beaconsfield, and the donation to DUC valued at $4.5 million. This partnership demonstrates once again that it is possible to integrate the preservation of natural environments into the urban landscape by promoting predevelopment planning. DUC hopes that this co-operative effort will serve as an example to other natural environment property owners and encourage other municipalities to get financially involved in the protection of our valuable ecosystems. S
Lafarge Canada Inc. partners with Ducks Unlimited Canada
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Lafarge Canada Inc. has signed an agreement with Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) to conserve and restore wildlife habitat in Nova Scotia. The 20-year Conservation Agreement protects over 38 acres of wetland and associated upland habitat which will be conserved for waterfowl and other wildlife. Lafarge agrees to conserve the habitat while DUC will provide technical assistance and monitor site conditions. A large portion of this area consists of new waterfowl wetlands created during the Marsh Brook diversion project. This is the first of three projects that Lafarge intends to complete on its properties in conjunction with DUC. When completed, the projects will have secured a total of 80 acres of wildlife habitat. “Lafarge has been consulting with Ducks Unlimited Canada for a number of years to ensure that the wildlife areas created would have the features desired to attract local and migrating wildfowl,” says Chris Richards, environmental manager for Lafarge Canada. “Lafarge is pleased to be able to partner with Ducks Unlimited Canada for future projects in the area. These projects fit well into Lafarge’s corporate goal of fostering wildlife habitat creation and conservation.” The Lafarge Canada Inc. cement manufacturing facility, located in Pleasant Valley, Colchester County, is the only operating cement plant in Atlantic Canada. It has been in operation for 41 years, producing 300,000 tonnes of high-quality cement each year, and employs 80 people locally. The plant has an excellent safety record: in the past five years the workers have amassed over one million hours without a “loss time” accident. S
Wetland study wins medals for Grade 4 Cape Breton student
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“I gave Ava some Nine-year-old Ava ideas of what she Sturm used to think might study and that marshes were sent her some of places where the our Project Webonly creatures you’ll foot educational find are ducks – and materials,” explains clouds of mosquiRick Wishart, toes. But when she DUC’s director of began to look more education, “and I closely at the marsh was delighted when out back of her home she told me she had in Louisdale, the eyes done so well in the of this young Cape science fair. I was Bretoner were opened Ava and “Rascal,” her talking raccoon, explain to impressed by her to its teeming wildlife. science fair visitors what goes on in a wetland. interest in wetlands, She started to take and her dedication and commitment in photos of the animals she found there, the following the project through all four seaducks, geese, beaver and muskrat, and the sons. These attributes show a lot of potential plants. Soon she was fascinated. for her future studies and her future career, So when the time came for Ava to choose whatever that might be.” a science project, she decided to study how A young environmental scientist in the a wetland really works, over the course of a making perhaps? Ava says she hasn’t begun full year. Her project turned out so well thinking about careers yet, but as she moves that she not only won first place at her on to another science project, this one focusschool for her grade, she went on to win ing on beavers, she is sure of one thing. the silver medal for Grade 4 projects at the From now on she’ll always be interested in 2007 Strait Regional Science Fair at Port wetlands and their wildlife. S Hawkesbury. Some 350 students from Grades 3 to 12 participated in this year’s fair, and as if the competition wasn’t tough enough, Ava decided to make things harder for herself by presenting her project in her second language, French. Although Ava did all the work herself, she turned to DUC for a little help in getting started.
quebec/ eastern Region ( atlantic )
The Flyway newsletter is published by Ducks Unlimited Canada Oak Hammock Marsh Conservation Centre P.O. Box 1160, Stonewall, Manitoba R0C 2Z0 tel (204)467-3000 fax (204)467-9028 toll-free 1(800)665-DUCK Please direct your inquiries to the following: Eastern Region Atlantic: Kelly MacDonald Quebec: Bernard Filion Ontario: Lynette Mader Marci Dube Western Region
Flyway production staff Director of Communications and Marketing: Madeleine Arbez Editor: Duncan Morrison Assistant: June Finnson Art Director: Tye Gregg Graphic Designers: Lindsay Pikta-Marie, Aquila Samson, Jeope Wolfe © Ducks Unlimited Canada, 2007 Printed in Canada on 100% recycled paper including 100% post-consumer fibres
Area Contacts Manager of Provincial Operations, Atlantic Tom Duffy (866) 903-8257 ext.234 Manager of Provincial Operations, Québec Bernard Filion (800) 565-1650 ext.15 Fundraising Manager, Québec Jocelyn Landry (877) 551-5757 Fundraising Manager, New Brunswick Barry Burke (888) 920-3330
Betsy Jardine of the Strait Regional Science Fair Planning Committee presents Ava with her Science Fair award.
Fundraising Québec (West) Pascal Desmedt
(877) 547-9494
Nova Scotia & PEI Darren Hasson
(888) 340-4555
Newfoundland and Labrador Kelly Sandoval (877) 243-8257 Greenwing Liaisons Kim Votour, Fredericton
(888) 920-3330 ext. 3
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