Skip to content

David O. pushes back against pushy plants and insects (update)

The province announced $339,200 this morning for an early detection and rapid response program to fight invasive plants and insects.

 

The province announced $339,200 this morning for an early detection and rapid response program to fight invasive plants and insects.

The program is a two-year pilot project in which experts will train volunteers in spotting harmful plants and insects, and how to pull them or trap them.

Sault Ste. Marie, Thunder Bay, Halton Region and Peel Region are the four areas chosen to take part in the program.

“The backbone of this will be volunteers,” said Dilhari Fernando, Invasive Species Centre executive director, speaking to reporters at today’s funding announcement, made by Sault MPP David Orazietti.

“There are already very active volunteers who are part of horticultural clubs and other organizations which go out on a Sunday afternoon and try and do their part in identifying and tracking invasive species in their neighbourhoods.”

“What we need to try and do is make it more systematic and organized, to link up the volunteers and groups that are already out there,” Fernando said.

Volunteers will be trained how to spot bad plants and insects in open houses and workshops (and how to tell the difference between bad plants and good ones).

“It’s going to be invasive species 101,” Fernando said.

“If you like to get outside and you care for the environment, that’s what we’re looking for.”

“The volunteers will be taught what invasive species are, why they are a problem, how they spread, and what species they’re looking for, plants like dog-strangling vine and garlic mustard, plus insects like emerald ash borer…these insects can be found in the local park as well as the forest,” Fernando said.

Environmental experts who work for the provincial or municipal governments, horticultural experts and members of organizations like the Ontario Federation of Anglers and Hunters, well-skilled in indentifying invasive species, will share their knowledge with the volunteers, and supply them with guidebooks and digital applications to do their work.

“They’ll go out there and do weed pulls, put traps in trees, to identify, track and eventually control invasive species in the community,” Fernando said.

The Invasive Species Centre will oversee the program in the Sault.

“We’re very excited to get going and we’re already starting to think how the open houses and training sessions will roll out…we’re hoping the training will kick off this summer,” Fernando said.

Training for Sault volunteers will be done at the Sault Ste. Marie Region Conservation Authority office on Fifth Line, Fernando said.

Those interested in the program may go online, to the Invasive Species Centre website, for information updates on open houses and training.        

Funding announced by Orazietti today covers travelling expenses for experts travelling between the four pilot project locations, rental space fees for open houses and other expenses involved.

A news release from Sault MPP David Orazietti’s office is posted below:

*************************
The Invasive Species Centre, in partnership with the Ontario Invasive Plant Council, is receiving $339,200 from the Ontario Trillium Foundation in order to establish early detection and rapid response networks for invasive plant and insect species in four pilot areas across Ontario, announced David Orazietti, MPP.

“Our government is committed to fighting the threat of invasive species and has demonstrated this with the introduction of the Invasive Species Act and our continued funding and support of projects which target invasive species,” said Orazietti.

“This grant will enable staff at the Invasive Species Centre and the Ontario Invasive Plant Council to co-operatively develop Early Detection and Rapid Response initiatives that will help to protect Ontario’s ecosystems.”

Volunteer networks consisting of environmental professionals, conservation groups, farmers, woodlot owners, educators, students, and interested community members will be established in four areas in Northern and Southern Ontario and specifically in Sault Ste. Marie, Thunder Bay, Halton Region and Region of Peel.

These groups will receive training on how to respond to and control priority species, as well as receive hands-on experience handling invasive species removal.

“The Invasive Species Centre is excited to work with the Ontario Invasive Plant Council on this project to support Ontario in its mission to build an effective communication network with municipalities, conservation authorities, Aboriginal communities, NGOS, and other key stakeholders to fight the introduction and spread of invasive species,” said Dilhari Fernando, Executive Director of the Invasive Species Centre. 

“The Early Detection Rapid Response Network project will build capacity among community members to become engaged, trained and empowered in invasive species prevention and control. This work will increase awareness of invasive species among citizens, improve knowledge transfer from experts to community volunteers, and support hands-on work to more rapidly detect and reduce invasive species in our province.”

The Invasive Species Centre was officially opened in March 2011. 

The Centre is dedicated to combating invasive species that threaten Canada’s natural resources and ecosystems. 

The government of Ontario committed $15 million toward the invasive species initiatives, which included:

  • $5.29 million to support innovate projects and annual operation costs of the Invasive Species Centre
  • $3.83 million towards the research centre laboratories and offices
  • $800,000 for an invasive species research chair at Algoma University

A leading grant maker in Canada, the Ontario Trillium Foundation strengthens the capacity of the voluntary sector through investments in community-based initiatives.

An agency of the Government of Ontario, the Ontario Trillium Foundation builds healthy and vibrant communities and has invested over $7 million since 2003 to support numerous organizations in Sault Ste. Marie.  www.trilliumfoundation.org

*************************

(PHOTO: Taylor Wright, Invasive Species Centre project officer, Kelly Withers, Invasive Species Centre project manager, Suzanne Hanna, Ontario Invasive Plant Council, and Dilhari Fernando, Invasive Species Centre executive director, with Sault Ste. Marie MPP David Orazietti at a funding announcement for an invasive species control project, April 7, 2015,  Darren Taylor/SooToday)


What's next?


If you would like to apply to become a Verified reader Verified Commenter, please fill out this form.




Darren Taylor

About the Author: Darren Taylor

Darren Taylor is a news reporter and photographer in Sault Ste Marie. He regularly covers community events, political announcements and numerous board meetings. With a background in broadcast journalism, Darren has worked in the media since 1996.
Read more