Watershed stewardship is caring for our water, land, air and biodiversity on a watershed basis, using sustainable practices. Balancing human and economic requirements against the needs of natural environments means that we need to plan, promote and implement stewardship actions to restore and protect natural resources.

Private landowners play a key role in ensuring we have healthy watersheds now and for the future; caring for our land, air and water sustains the natural processes on which life depends. How we treat our land impacts not just ourselves, but also our neighbours and future generations.

For more information please contact:
Patricia Lowe
Watershed Stewardship
905-579-0411, ext. 126
Email: plowe@cloca.com

What is a watershed?

Not sure if your property is in the Central Lake Ontario Conservation Watershed? 
Please click on our map of Durham Region which shows the administrative boundaries of Durham Region’s 5 Conservation Authorities.  Click on the  name for a direct link to the stewardship web page for each Conservation Authority.

Brochure
Durham Region Conservation Authorities Watershed Stewardship
Programs & Services 2010
(PDF - 3mb)

The Caring for the Moraine Project is a partnership of more than 30 organizations, which offer conservation and stewardship services to private landowners.  They have been working together since 2006 to enhance more than 1,000 acres of Oak Ridges Moraine lands through tree planting, wetland creation, riparian plantings, habitat management, wetland enhancement, livestock restriction and prairie restoration.  CLOCA has contacted 700 landowners, conducted 70 site visits and implemented 20 projects across the Moraine.  We have planted 60,000 native trees and shrubs, enhanced 50 acres of forest, wetland and riparian habitat through the establishment of 2 windbreaks, 9 reforestation , 2 wetland and 6 stream crossing projects in addition to taking 1 pond offline.  We could not have done these projects on our own and thank the Oak Ridges Moraine Foundation and our partners  Ducks Unlimited Canada, Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters, The Community Stream Steward Program, Trees Ontario and landowners in our jurisdiction.   Note funds for this program have been spent for 2010

Community Stream  Steward Program (C.S.S.P) is a multi-partner conservation and stewardship initiative hosted by the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters. With the aim of engaging landowners and communities, the program works to build a network of leaders in stream conservation, restoration, and stewardship across Ontario. The program provides these landowners and community members with the advice, support, and the tools required to conduct coordinated stewardship activities along stream reaches.  The staff provide a variety of services and fund restoration projects in the CLOCA watershed.

Environmental Farm Plan
Central Lake Ontario Conservation Authority is in partnership with Conservation Ontario and the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association to provide free technical assistance to farmers applying for Environmental Farm Plan Funding.

Farmers across Ontario can apply for funding in 28 project categories.  Funding covers either 30 % or 50% of project costs.  For more information, please visit the Ontario Soil and Crop Improvement Association website.

Healthy Lands, Healthy Horses
Between 2001 and 2006, there was a 16.7 % increase in the number of horses in Ontario.  Today there are approximately 3,272 equestrian farms in the Greater Toronto Area (Durham, Peel and York, representing about 42,241 horses (Wright 2007)).  Some of the challenges facing Equine operations include nutrient management, pasturing and a horse density per acre.  The Healthy Lands Healthy Horses program is design to introduce equine operators to environmental stewardship  through workshops, publications, site visits and technical and financial support for project implementation.  For more information and to find out about upcoming workshops, please visit the Equine Guelph website at www.equinequelph.ca.  CLOCA is an active member of the Healthy Lands, Healthy Horses Steering Committee.  Members of the equine community are asked to contact us if you have ideas about how to reduce your environmental hoofprint.

Stewardship of the Equine Environment, Reducing your Environmental Hoofprint
This 12 week on line course  is offered as part of an Equine Studies Diploma program through Equine Guelph.   For more information about costs, availability, registration and course topics, check out Equine Guelph at www.equineguelph.ca.

Our Clean Water Stewardship Program's (CWSP) intent is to encourage and support Central Lake Ontario Conservation's watershed landowners to conserve, enhance and monitor the ecological health and biodiversity of the natural resources on their properties. Click to access CLOCA's Clean Water Stewardship Programs.

Project Summary 2003 to 2010
Since 2003, the Clean Water Land Stewardship Program has implemented 91 projects with more than 68 well decommissionings and upgrades, 12 reforestation projects, 2 windbreaks, 2 wetland creations, 1 grass swale and 1 offline pond.  We have also completed 10 Beneficial Management Practices projects with farmers in our watersheds, installing a variety of livestock access fencing, alternative water sources, creek crossings, riparian plantings and land retirement.  The total value of our projects in this same time frame is just over $350,000 with landowners and our partners contributing more than 2/3 of the cost of the projects and our grant program providing the balance.  We have enhanced more than 55 hectares of forest, wetland and creek habitat across our jurisdiction with the majority of our projects (about 80%) in the Lynde Creek, Oshawa and Bowmanville/Soper Creek watersheds. 

Our Private Land Tree and Shrub Sales have resulted in the sale and planting of more than 75,000 native trees and shrubs engaging over 282 landowners since we began this program in 2004.

Copyright © 2005 Central Lake Ontario Conservation Authority, All Rights Reserved.
Webmaster   |   Photo Credits   |   Anti-Spam