Niagara working towards restoring coastal wetlands

A big Christmas tree that provided a gathering place for the Niagara community is being re-purposed.

Work is underway at Boyer’s Creek to restore coastal wetlands and provide an ideal place for fish to spawn.

Steve Barnhart, the Senior Director of Parks, Environment and Culture, says the 30-foot spruce will join felled ash trees at one of seven strategic locations along the Niagara River.

Over time, more than 75% of original wetlands have disappeared which has had a profound affect on the ecosystem.

The restoration project started in 2016 in collaboration with the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry and Environment and Climate Change. In 2017 efforts to repair the wetlands at Ussher’s and Baker’s Creeks took place and last year, Gonder’s Flats.

The goal of the project is to reduce shoreline erosion and create essential fish habitat along key areas of the Niagara River Parkway.

The project is similar to an initiative at Cootes Paradise through the Royal Botanical Gardens.

Recycled Christmas trees are used to build up the riverbank, help with pollution and create a barrier for carp, an invasive species.

Niagara Parks Commission says it will continue to work with the ministry to monitor fish habitat, the true measure of re-establishing an ecosystem.