I am a volunteer who helps…

I am a volunteer who helps clear and maintain trails on my own time in Toronto Conservation Authority Lands in Durham Region. If it weren’t for many volunteer hours these forests would be a mess, perhaps safe for protecting our drinking water sources but for human recreational access dangerous.

It is beyond the primary mandate of these conservation authorities to provide safe trails. It is often an afterthought to improve access and enlarge parking lots. Mowing of trails where enough sunlight permits growth is limited to two times a year when more often is necessary. Keeping trails wide enough reduces the opportunities for ticks to come in contact with the walker, hiker, biker.

Municipalities place councillors on these conservation boards who have no interest in promoting, increasing and preserving these lands, let alone maintain them for its taxpayers to use. They are often connected to developers who want a piece of the conservation lands removed from protection and sold at a low price. If this is not the reality it certainly is the appearance of current stewardship by lands within its regional boundaries.

These conservation lands are a public trust. This trust is an asset of natural habitats that makes our own human habitat richer for its inclusion in our lives. This pandemic has clearly demonstrated the need for more open and forested land near where people live. They also need adequate access to these lands not just by car but cycle and hiking connector trails linking a variety of communities. Investments in these lands, brings higher quality workers and economic performance to these areas.