2022 Year in Review
As we settle into the new year, the Upper Thames River Conservation Authority (UTRCA) is reflecting on many highlights and achievements of 2022.
Watershed residents continued to enjoy the physical and mental health benefits offered by the outdoors as we welcomed more than 160,000 visitors to Fanshawe, Pittock, and Wildwood Conservation Areas.
With many COVID-19 restrictions lifting over the last year, we were once again able to engage with over 600 students and over 850 community members through Communities for Nature projects. Thanks to everyone’s hard work, we planted:
- 3,144 trees, 478 of which were Memorial Trees,
- 2,530 wildflowers, and
- 960 aquatic plants.
We ran the eleventh annual London Hydro Tree Power, the second Festival Hydro Tree Power in Stratford, the second Perth South Tree Power, and the first ever St. Marys Tree Power. These programs provide local residents with low-cost native hardwood trees to plant on their property.
Demand for trees was high for the second year in a row. In 2022, UTRCA staff assisted landowners in planting:
- 28,580 seedlings,
- 3,054 large stock conifers, and
- 1,050 large stock hardwoods.
The Clean Water Program was also active, resulting in:
- 57 fragile land retirement projects,
- 5 erosion control projects,
- 3 wetland creation projects, and
- 1,400 acres of funded cover crops.
Species at risk work continued with Scott Gillingwater and his dedicated team. Together, they incubated and released over 10,000 turtles from five different species, as well as marking and studying over 300 endangered and threatened turtles and snakes as part of our species-at-risk research program.
The UTRCA issued 11 flood bulletins to alert municipal flood coordinators and watershed residents of impending heavy rain, rising streams and rivers, significant snow melt, and boating bans.
Our Planning and Regulations Unit:
- issued over 200 permits,
- responded to over 175 legal inquiries, and
- processed over 1000 Planning Act applications in 2022.
Wildwood Community Education programs reached 6,000 students in-person through programs held at Wildwood Conservation Area, in schoolyards, and in the community. They also had 89 participants in Wildwood Nature School and 35 in their PA Day program.
Staff delivered the Stream of Dreams educational program to 12 schools, reaching over 3,980 students. They also held two public Children’s Water Festivals. One in Stratford with 536 participants, and the other in Woodstock with 927 participants.
Fanshawe Community Education staff reached over 19,200 students and community members, both virtually and through in-person programs at Fanshawe Conservation Area, in London’s Environmentally Significant Areas (ESAs), or in schoolyards. These included:
- 3,000 visitors at Western University’s Science Rendezvous day,
- 925 students receiving the River Safety program,
- 35 students receiving their Specialist High Skills Major Certification,
- 795 people taking part in guided visits to the Sifton Bog Wetland, and
- 180 people participating in events and/or hikes at Fanshawe Conservation Area.
We also hosted a series of seven free Celebrating Natural Connections public events in natural spaces across the watershed. The events included guided hikes with activities, displays, and presentations. Local artists and municipalities were involved, as well as hiking, naturalist, and angler clubs. All of the events were well received with nearly 2,000 people attending overall. The first Celebrating Natural Connections event of 2023 is at Wildwood Conservation Area on January 21st. For more info, visit here. We hope to see you there!
