Kawartha Land Trust (KLT) executive director John Kintare hopes in the future community members will be able to see “the direct impact” they had on the land around them as a result of a new partnership in the Kawarthas.

KLT and the Greenbelt Foundation recently announced a new effort to restore and steward vital ecosystems along sections of the Oak Ridges Moraine that are located in the City of Kawartha Lakes and Peterborough County.

A land conservation charity in the Kawarthas region, KLT received a two-and-a-half-year investment of $141,000 from the Greenbelt Foundation to support the restoration of 75 acres of forest and a 10-acre expansion of the tallgrass prairie at KLT’s Ballyduff Trails nature reserve.

The partnership builds upon the Greenbelt Foundation’s commitment to protect and enhance Ontario’s greenbelt, which a media release describes as “two million acres of protected land that provides clean air, fresh water, climate resilience, and a reliable food source to help Ontario thrive.”

Kintare said he has high hopes for the partnership.

“One of our biggest hopes for this partnership is to show how community members can take action to make a tangible difference on the land they love for their friends, families, neighbours, and future generations,” Kintare told kawarthaNOW.

“The trees they plant in the next two years will help restore degraded forests, improve biodiversity for the region, and create vital wildlife habitat. The tallgrass seeds they collect, and tallgrass plugs they plant, will help expand one of Ontario’s rarest ecosystems.”

“Everyone involved will be able to look back and see the direct impact they had on the land and hopefully inspire new acts of care for nature in the Kawarthas.”

The restoration and expansion efforts will centre around KLT’s Ballyduff Trails property, which is open to the public year-round, and private lands in the Fleetwood Creek watershed.

“Making long-lasting impacts on the landscape requires long-term support,” said Hayden Wilson, KLT’s land stewardship manager, in the release.

“This multi-year funding from the Greenbelt Foundation is the perfect opportunity to leverage our amazing staff and volunteer teams to make an impact on the land that will result in countless benefits for nature and local communities. We expect this project to engage people directly in conservation work that will affect ecosystem health in the region for decades to come.”

In addition to work at KLT’s Ballyduff Trails property, KLT expects to increase its impact on the landscape by building upon the organization’s network of existing relationships with private landowners through its Partners in Conservation program and local environmental organizations and businesses.

“Working together, we can increase natural cover in the area, support biodiversity, and contribute to regional climate resilience,” the organization noted.

In fall 2024, the KLT field team began invasive species mapping work at KLT’s Ballyduff Trails nature reserve and neighbouring private lands.

“Invasive plant species are a major threat to the resiliency of forests in Ontario and in Canada more broadly,” said Elliott Groen, KLT’s sustainable forestry coordinator, a shared position with the Ontario Woodlot Association (OWA).

“Plants like dog strangling vine prevent young trees from establishing themselves, meaning there is no future generation to replace trees lost to disease or age. The first part of our project is to map the presence of invasive plant species and patterns in relation to the native vegetation to inform the strategic implementation of best management practices that will improve the forests’ resiliency now and in the future.”

KLT noted it has also completed the first of six planned community tree planting-related events to support the ongoing health and resiliency of forests on the moraine.

In late November, KLT staff and students from Lakefield College School conducted regeneration surveys and transplanted 300 saplings from conditions where they would not survive due to overcrowding and low-light conditions. The transplanted saplings, which include eastern white pine, red oak, sugar maple, and ironwood, will be used for community tree planting events along the Oak Ridges Moraine in 2025 and 2026.

KLT said it plans to also work with private landowners to thin monoculture stands of trees to encourage the growth of native plant species in the understorey and contribute to the diversification of plant and tree species in these areas, improving biodiversity.

The grant also supports the expansion of the tallgrass prairie at KLT’s Ballyduff Trails. Only one to three per cent of the original extent of tallgrass prairies remain in Ontario.

“Tallgrass prairies are not only beautiful ecosystems, but provide vital ecosystem services, including improving water quality, and they are home to a rich diversity of plant and wildlife species, including those at risk like Dense Blazing Star and Grasshopper Sparrow,” the release noted.

This fall, with the assistance of volunteers from the community, KLT collected tallgrass and wildflower seeds from the prairie to support the continued restoration and expansion of the prairie through seed casting and future tallgrass seed plug planting. Efforts to remove invasive plant species that threaten the prairie like Scots Pine and Dog-strangling Vine are also planned.

“This partnership exemplifies the Greenbelt Foundation’s dedication to working with partners to preserve and restore the Greenbelt’s natural landscapes,” said Edward McDonnell, CEO of the Greenbelt Foundation, in a statement.

“By working with (KLT), we’re not only enhancing the health of forests and grasslands on the Oak Ridges Moraine but also fostering community engagement and building climate resilience for generations to come.”

Supported by Greenbelt Foundation investment and stewardship, Ontario’s Greenbelt contributes $9.6 billion annually to Ontario’s GDP, supports 177,700 full-time or full-time equivalent jobs, and provides Ontario communities with $3.2 billion worth of ecosystem services each year, the release noted.

Examples of ecosystem services include flood mitigation, air and water quality improvement (carbon sequestration, waste/nutrient regulation), biodiversity/wildlife habitat, recreation and tourism, climate change mitigation (temperature regulation), soil formation and retention, and more.

Established in 2021, Kawartha Land Trust protects 43 properties comprising more than 7,350 acres of diverse types of land and assists in the management of one additional property.

KLT’s Partners in Conservation program was created to build relationships with people and families who own land and to support them with various stewardship initiatives. The program has worked with landowners on a variety of initiatives, including shoreline restoration, tree planting, fish habitat restoration, sustainable management of agricultural and forestry land, managing invasive plant species, improving pollinator habitat, and other projects.