Upper Poole Creek is a cold to cool aquatic habitat.
Matt Craig, Manager for Planning and Regulations at Mississippi Valley Conservation Authority (MVCA) recently spoke to Stittsville Rotarians spoke about the work completed by the MVCA in partnership with the City of Ottawa and about the Upper Poole Creek Restoration Plan 2019.
Extensive development in the west end of Ottawa has created pressure for the MVCA, the largest geographical conservation area in Ontario, as Kanata is the fastest growing area in Ottawa. Stittsville is also expanding at a fast rate and two-thirds of Stittsville is in the Poole Creek watershed area. Other challenges have been presented by the extensive flooding in 2017 and 2019 and by cuts in funding for conservation initiatives from the provincial government.
The MVCA staff of 30 people is responsible for such functions as monitoring, flood forecasting, managing infrastructure such as dykes and dams, conservation areas such as Mill of Kintail, as well as determining the status of land use.
Matt highlighted the Upper Poole Creek Restoration Plan 2019 that is based on the Upper Poole Creek Subwatershed Study. The purpose of the study was to a) acquire an understanding of this subwatershed that is a cold to cool water aquatic habitat and b) prepare a plan for restoration and rehabilitation of Poole Creek that maintains and enhances a healthy ecosystem, while development proceeds in the area. The plan emphasizes monitoring and planting to improve and stabilize habitat along the creek. Initiatives include removing blockages, e.g. beaver dams, to promote migration of fish and removing invasive species and plants along the banks. Outreach to the community for volunteers is crucial to the success of the plan, e.g. 25 volunteers recently planted 240 trees. Low impact development is a new direction that deals with channeling storm water run-off through strips of gravel so clean water gradually returns to the creek. Providing free plants to residents along the creek is another strategy that is used. Check www.mvc.on.ca for more information.