Workshops: "Working toward a Strategic Roadmap for Connectivity"
A2A held two important workshops at the Queen's University Biological Station (QUBS) on the Opinicon Road in April and October 2012. They gathered partners and advisors to help reshape our organization as a Collaborative that takes on strategic regional projects in support of a network of local partner organizations instead of focusing on on-the-ground projects at the A2A pinchpoint in the Thousand Islands.
See Workshops Proceedings here for Workshop 1 and Workshop 2. |
June 2014 -- Our field team at work on the highway 401 road ecology project
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Gananoque River Watershed
In 2008, we, along with 14 partnering organizations, received a grant from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources Species-at-Risk Fund to conduct research on the Gananoque River, which is located within the bottleneck of the A2A landscape. Although this pathway hosts high biodiversity and is essential for species movement north and south, species at risk are understudied in the Gananoque river system. Data was collected in order to develop management strategies to ensure the long-term health of the waterway and better survival rates of species at risk. The project looked at the entire watershed of the Gananoque River, including 18 lakes.
Volunteers played an integral role in implementing the project, from taking water samples and helping researchers net fish and record data to observing their shorelines and participating in outreach. More than 70 local residents volunteered for the project. See the Stewardship Project Reports here: Phase 1, Phase 2, Phase 3. |
Summer 2010 -- The Gananoque River Watershed project engaged hundreds of landowners, worked with 14 partner organizations, assessed the river and 18 lakes, and found one beautiful American Eel.
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Biodigester Workshop
We believe that a strong farming community is essential for the welfare of the A2A region — people and landscape. In 2007, we hosted a one-day workshop about biodigesters at no cost to farmers. The intent was to provide owners of small farms with information on how they could increase their income, both through generating and selling electricity and through reducing costs associated with nutrient management and the amount of electricity they have to buy.
Speakers: > Nils Semmler, president of RENTEC Renewable Energy Technologies Inc. > Tom Hutchinson, farmer and professor of ecology at Trent University, in Peterborough, Ontario > Russ Christianson, consultant to cooperatives on strategic planning and development > Steve Clarke, energy and crop engineering specialist at Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs Eighty people attended the workshop, most of them farmers. In a questionnaire following the workshop , participants unanimously answered that the workshop was worthwhile. Many expressed an interest in the workshop being offered in other parts of the A2A region. Thank you to our partners: Township of Elizabethtown Kitley, Rideau Environmental Action League, Frontenac Arch Biosphere, Eastern Ontario Model Forest, Rideau Valley Conservation Authority, Toronto Food Policy Council, Hillside Farms, McCann Farm Automation, Leeds County Stewardship Council, E-Solutions, and Rural Leeds 2000 and Beyond. |
Highway 401 Porosity Study
To restore and enhance connectivity of the A2A region, we aim to document and understand the threats and opportunities related to connectivity. Among the most significant barriers: 401 Highway, intensive residential development and the urban barriers of the Town of Gananoque and Brockville. In 2004, we commissioned research focused on the 401 Highway.
The study sought to learn whether it was possible to improve crossing success and lower the barrier of the highway by diverting, guiding and channeling wildlife, large and small, to new and/or improved structures. This study was undertaken by the Frontenac Arch Biosphere Reserve and was done in collaboration with Eastern Ontario Model Forest, Leeds County Stewardship Council, and St. Lawrence Islands National Park. All map work was completed by Eastern Ontario Model Forest and was adapted from work completed by Eastern Ontario Heritage Working Group. The project was funded by grants from the Ontario Trillium Foundation and Environment Canada Habitat Stewardship Program. |
Download the results of the Highway 401 Porosity study
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