Nottawasaga Valley WATERSHED

Transcription

1 ONSERVTION IN OUR WTERSHED NV is a ublic agency committed to innovative watershed management that suorts a healthy environment and healthy communities. We work closely with municial, rovincial and federal governments, landowners and community grous to rotect, restore and manage the natural resources of the watershed. WHERE RE WE? WTERSHED Reort ard 218 HELTHY WTERS HELTHY OMMUNITIES What is a Watershed? We all have a role to lay in keeing our watershed ecosystem healthy. Through innovative lanning and wise stewardshi, we can sustainably manage our local streams, lakes and natural areas for the benefit of resent and future generations. What re We Doing? Watershed Stewardshi What an You Do? Environmental Monitoring & Reorting: We collect data to evaluate and reort on existing watershed conditions and hel establish targets for rotection and rehabilitation activities. Stewardshi rojects like tree lanting, stream habitat restoration and agricultural best management ractices that reduce erosion and runoff, can be simle and cost effective ways to imrove watershed health. Here are some things you can do at home to hel: Minimize your use of fertilizers and esticides, and kee your setic system in good working order to avoid contaminating groundwater and nearby streams and lakes. Plant trees, shrubs and wildflowers to imrove water quality, hel clean the air and enhance local wildlife habitat. Prevent the sread of invasive secies by gardening with non-invasive lants, washing your boat when moving from lake-to-lake, disosing of bait away from the water, and cleaning your shoes and bike tires after using local trails. Install bird, bat and ollinator boxes to rovide wildlife habitat on your roerty. Environmental Planning & Regulations: We rovide land-use lanning inut and administer Ontario Regulation 172/6, which ensures that develoment does not imact wetlands, shorelines or waterways. onsidering a stewardshi roject? ontact NV for free technical suort, workshos, advice on financial grants and more! Why Measure? Measuring hels us better understand our watershed. We can target our work where it is needed and track rogress. We measured: lood orecasting & Protection: We monitor water levels, issue flood alerts and manage flood control structures like dams and berms to hel rotect life and roerty from natural hazards such as flooding and erosion. Education, Outreach & Stewardshi: We rovide hands-on learning oortunities, roject advice and financial assistance, and educate the ublic about conservation and the environment. Groundwater onservation Lands: We manage,3 hectares of land in the watershed to rotect imortant natural ecosystems and rovide outdoor recreation and tourism oortunities. Visit nvca.on.ca to learn more about our watershed and NV rograms and services. The onservation uthority has reared this reort card as a summary of the state of your forests, wetlands, and water resources. onserve water by using a rain barrel, reducing lawn and garden watering, lanting drought-resistant native lant secies and installing low-flow household roducts. Don t our anything down storm drains these drains often flow untreated into local water bodies. watershed is an area of land drained by a creek or stream into a river which then drains into a body of water such as a lake or ond. Everything in a watershed is connected. Our actions ustream can affect conditions downstream in our Great s. onservation uthority 819 8th Line, Utoia, ON LM 1T admin@nvca.on.ca Website: nvca.on.ca Phone: ax: The Watershed Reort ard is available online and in other formats uon request. Surface Water orest Wetland What is a watershed reort card? Ontario s onservation uthorities reort on watershed conditions every five years. The watershed reort cards use onservation Ontario guidelines and standards develoed by onservation uthorities and their artners.

2 ONSERVTION IN OUR WTERSHED NV is a ublic agency committed to innovative watershed management that suorts a healthy environment and healthy communities. We work closely with municial, rovincial and federal governments, landowners and community grous to rotect, restore and manage the natural resources of the watershed. WHERE RE WE? WTERSHED Reort ard 218 HELTHY WTERS HELTHY OMMUNITIES What is a Watershed? We all have a role to lay in keeing our watershed ecosystem healthy. Through innovative lanning and wise stewardshi, we can sustainably manage our local streams, lakes and natural areas for the benefit of resent and future generations. What re We Doing? Watershed Stewardshi What an You Do? Environmental Monitoring & Reorting: We collect data to evaluate and reort on existing watershed conditions and hel establish targets for rotection and rehabilitation activities. Stewardshi rojects like tree lanting, stream habitat restoration and agricultural best management ractices that reduce erosion and runoff, can be simle and cost effective ways to imrove watershed health. Here are some things you can do at home to hel: Minimize your use of fertilizers and esticides, and kee your setic system in good working order to avoid contaminating groundwater and nearby streams and lakes. Plant trees, shrubs and wildflowers to imrove water quality, hel clean the air and enhance local wildlife habitat. Prevent the sread of invasive secies by gardening with non-invasive lants, washing your boat when moving from lake-to-lake, disosing of bait away from the water, and cleaning your shoes and bike tires after using local trails. Install bird, bat and ollinator boxes to rovide wildlife habitat on your roerty. Environmental Planning & Regulations: We rovide land-use lanning inut and administer Ontario Regulation 172/6, which ensures that develoment does not imact wetlands, shorelines or waterways. onsidering a stewardshi roject? ontact NV for free technical suort, workshos, advice on financial grants and more! Why Measure? Measuring hels us better understand our watershed. We can target our work where it is needed and track rogress. We measured: lood orecasting & Protection: We monitor water levels, issue flood alerts and manage flood control structures like dams and berms to hel rotect life and roerty from natural hazards such as flooding and erosion. Education, Outreach & Stewardshi: We rovide hands-on learning oortunities, roject advice and financial assistance, and educate the ublic about conservation and the environment. Groundwater onservation Lands: We manage,3 hectares of land in the watershed to rotect imortant natural ecosystems and rovide outdoor recreation and tourism oortunities. Visit nvca.on.ca to learn more about our watershed and NV rograms and services. The onservation uthority has reared this reort card as a summary of the state of your forests, wetlands, and water resources. onserve water by using a rain barrel, reducing lawn and garden watering, lanting drought-resistant native lant secies and installing low-flow household roducts. Don t our anything down storm drains these drains often flow untreated into local water bodies. watershed is an area of land drained by a creek or stream into a river which then drains into a body of water such as a lake or ond. Everything in a watershed is connected. Our actions ustream can affect conditions downstream in our Great s. onservation uthority 819 8th Line, Utoia, ON LM 1T admin@nvca.on.ca Website: nvca.on.ca Phone: ax: The Watershed Reort ard is available online and in other formats uon request. Surface Water orest Wetland What is a watershed reort card? Ontario s onservation uthorities reort on watershed conditions every five years. The watershed reort cards use onservation Ontario guidelines and standards develoed by onservation uthorities and their artners.

3 GROUNDWTER QULITY SURE WTER QULITY OREST ONDITIONS Groundwater is water that is located underground in sands and gravel or bedrock fractures. dynamic system, groundwater sustains stream flow and wetland levels during dry sells. It suorts a variety of human uses including drinking water sulies, agricultural irrigation and recreational activities. Surface water is the water we see around us daily - the water found in streams, rivers and lakes. The quantity and quality of our surface water has imlications for municial drinking water, agricultural irrigation, commercial uses and recreation, not to mention the health of the environment. forest is a diverse ecosystem of trees, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers and wildlife. orests rovide many social and ecological benefits, including carbon sequestration, habitat for flora and fauna, building materials and oortunities for recreation. NV monitors water levels and concentrations of nitrate and chloride at 16 Provincial Groundwater Monitoring Program wells across the watershed. Groundwater grades are based on samles from these wells. Surface water quality is graded using insects that inhabit the stream (strong indicators of stream health), hoshorous levels, and bacteria (E. coli concentrations). Grades are redominantly, with the excetion of a grade for chloride (salt) in Midhurst and an grade for nitrate in maranth. oth lower grades are linked to local land uses. Grades range from to D, with mostly grades. The amount of forest cover, dee forest habitat and stream-side (riarian) cover are imortant indicators that can be used to describe forest health within the watershed. NV measures forest cover by looking at the ercentage of forest cover in the watershed, the ercentage of forest interior (woodland more than 1 m from the edge of a forested area), and the ercentage of natural riarian area. Note that water quality in nearby wells should not be extraolated from that of the monitored wells, as in some cases there are multile aquifers in close roximity. In general, all sub-watershed grades remained steady over a five-year eriod. However, marginal imrovements in the Pine and oyne sub-watersheds resulted in a higher grade. Higher grades in western sub-watersheds are likely influenced by forest cover and groundwater discharge from the Niagara Escarment. WETLND OVER Wetlands lay an imortant role in the ecological health of a watershed. They imrove water quality by filtering runoff from agricultural and urban areas. Wetlands hold back water on the landscae, controlling flooding, reducing erosion and maintaining stream flows during dry eriods. Wetlands also rovide habitat for a rich variety of flora and fauna. NV evaluates wetland cover using Geograhic Information Systems (GIS) data and field observations. Grades range from to, with mostly grades. Wetland cover has not been udated for this reort card and is based on 212 maing. Grades range from to, with mostly grades. orest conditions have not been udated for this reort card and are based on 212 maing. or more details about the information found in these mas, visit nvca.on.ca or contact us. You can find our contact information on the back anel. MONITORING WELL Nitrate GR 1 km V V D 1 km LSR LSR LSR G LSR GR G G G hloride GR 1 km V GR 1 km V

4 GROUNDWTER QULITY SURE WTER QULITY OREST ONDITIONS Groundwater is water that is located underground in sands and gravel or bedrock fractures. dynamic system, groundwater sustains stream flow and wetland levels during dry sells. It suorts a variety of human uses including drinking water sulies, agricultural irrigation and recreational activities. Surface water is the water we see around us daily - the water found in streams, rivers and lakes. The quantity and quality of our surface water has imlications for municial drinking water, agricultural irrigation, commercial uses and recreation, not to mention the health of the environment. forest is a diverse ecosystem of trees, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers and wildlife. orests rovide many social and ecological benefits, including carbon sequestration, habitat for flora and fauna, building materials and oortunities for recreation. NV monitors water levels and concentrations of nitrate and chloride at 16 Provincial Groundwater Monitoring Program wells across the watershed. Groundwater grades are based on samles from these wells. Surface water quality is graded using insects that inhabit the stream (strong indicators of stream health), hoshorous levels, and bacteria (E. coli concentrations). Grades are redominantly, with the excetion of a grade for chloride (salt) in Midhurst and an grade for nitrate in maranth. oth lower grades are linked to local land uses. Grades range from to D, with mostly grades. The amount of forest cover, dee forest habitat and stream-side (riarian) cover are imortant indicators that can be used to describe forest health within the watershed. NV measures forest cover by looking at the ercentage of forest cover in the watershed, the ercentage of forest interior (woodland more than 1 m from the edge of a forested area), and the ercentage of natural riarian area. Note that water quality in nearby wells should not be extraolated from that of the monitored wells, as in some cases there are multile aquifers in close roximity. In general, all sub-watershed grades remained steady over a five-year eriod. However, marginal imrovements in the Pine and oyne sub-watersheds resulted in a higher grade. Higher grades in western sub-watersheds are likely influenced by forest cover and groundwater discharge from the Niagara Escarment. WETLND OVER Wetlands lay an imortant role in the ecological health of a watershed. They imrove water quality by filtering runoff from agricultural and urban areas. Wetlands hold back water on the landscae, controlling flooding, reducing erosion and maintaining stream flows during dry eriods. Wetlands also rovide habitat for a rich variety of flora and fauna. NV evaluates wetland cover using Geograhic Information Systems (GIS) data and field observations. Grades range from to, with mostly grades. Wetland cover has not been udated for this reort card and is based on 212 maing. Grades range from to, with mostly grades. orest conditions have not been udated for this reort card and are based on 212 maing. or more details about the information found in these mas, visit nvca.on.ca or contact us. You can find our contact information on the back anel. MONITORING WELL Nitrate V D GR 1 km V 1 km LSR LSR LSR GR G LSR G G G hloride GR 1 km V GR 1 km V

5 GROUNDWTER QULITY SURE WTER QULITY OREST ONDITIONS Groundwater is water that is located underground in sands and gravel or bedrock fractures. dynamic system, groundwater sustains stream flow and wetland levels during dry sells. It suorts a variety of human uses including drinking water sulies, agricultural irrigation and recreational activities. Surface water is the water we see around us daily - the water found in streams, rivers and lakes. The quantity and quality of our surface water has imlications for municial drinking water, agricultural irrigation, commercial uses and recreation, not to mention the health of the environment. forest is a diverse ecosystem of trees, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers and wildlife. orests rovide many social and ecological benefits, including carbon sequestration, habitat for flora and fauna, building materials and oortunities for recreation. NV monitors water levels and concentrations of nitrate and chloride at 16 Provincial Groundwater Monitoring Program wells across the watershed. Groundwater grades are based on samles from these wells. Surface water quality is graded using insects that inhabit the stream (strong indicators of stream health), hoshorous levels, and bacteria (E. coli concentrations). Grades are redominantly, with the excetion of a grade for chloride (salt) in Midhurst and an grade for nitrate in maranth. oth lower grades are linked to local land uses. Grades range from to D, with mostly grades. The amount of forest cover, dee forest habitat and stream-side (riarian) cover are imortant indicators that can be used to describe forest health within the watershed. NV measures forest cover by looking at the ercentage of forest cover in the watershed, the ercentage of forest interior (woodland more than 1 m from the edge of a forested area), and the ercentage of natural riarian area. Note that water quality in nearby wells should not be extraolated from that of the monitored wells, as in some cases there are multile aquifers in close roximity. In general, all sub-watershed grades remained steady over a five-year eriod. However, marginal imrovements in the Pine and oyne sub-watersheds resulted in a higher grade. Higher grades in western sub-watersheds are likely influenced by forest cover and groundwater discharge from the Niagara Escarment. WETLND OVER Wetlands lay an imortant role in the ecological health of a watershed. They imrove water quality by filtering runoff from agricultural and urban areas. Wetlands hold back water on the landscae, controlling flooding, reducing erosion and maintaining stream flows during dry eriods. Wetlands also rovide habitat for a rich variety of flora and fauna. NV evaluates wetland cover using Geograhic Information Systems (GIS) data and field observations. Grades range from to, with mostly grades. Wetland cover has not been udated for this reort card and is based on 212 maing. Grades range from to, with mostly grades. orest conditions have not been udated for this reort card and are based on 212 maing. or more details about the information found in these mas, visit nvca.on.ca or contact us. You can find our contact information on the back anel. MONITORING WELL Nitrate V D GR 1 km V 1 km LSR LSR LSR GR G LSR G G G hloride GR 1 km V GR 1 km V

6 GROUNDWTER QULITY SURE WTER QULITY OREST ONDITIONS Groundwater is water that is located underground in sands and gravel or bedrock fractures. dynamic system, groundwater sustains stream flow and wetland levels during dry sells. It suorts a variety of human uses including drinking water sulies, agricultural irrigation and recreational activities. Surface water is the water we see around us daily - the water found in streams, rivers and lakes. The quantity and quality of our surface water has imlications for municial drinking water, agricultural irrigation, commercial uses and recreation, not to mention the health of the environment. forest is a diverse ecosystem of trees, shrubs, grasses, wildflowers and wildlife. orests rovide many social and ecological benefits, including carbon sequestration, habitat for flora and fauna, building materials and oortunities for recreation. NV monitors water levels and concentrations of nitrate and chloride at 16 Provincial Groundwater Monitoring Program wells across the watershed. Groundwater grades are based on samles from these wells. Surface water quality is graded using insects that inhabit the stream (strong indicators of stream health), hoshorous levels, and bacteria (E. coli concentrations). Grades are redominantly, with the excetion of a grade for chloride (salt) in Midhurst and an grade for nitrate in maranth. oth lower grades are linked to local land uses. Grades range from to D, with mostly grades. The amount of forest cover, dee forest habitat and stream-side (riarian) cover are imortant indicators that can be used to describe forest health within the watershed. NV measures forest cover by looking at the ercentage of forest cover in the watershed, the ercentage of forest interior (woodland more than 1 m from the edge of a forested area), and the ercentage of natural riarian area. Note that water quality in nearby wells should not be extraolated from that of the monitored wells, as in some cases there are multile aquifers in close roximity. In general, all sub-watershed grades remained steady over a five-year eriod. However, marginal imrovements in the Pine and oyne sub-watersheds resulted in a higher grade. Higher grades in western sub-watersheds are likely influenced by forest cover and groundwater discharge from the Niagara Escarment. WETLND OVER Wetlands lay an imortant role in the ecological health of a watershed. They imrove water quality by filtering runoff from agricultural and urban areas. Wetlands hold back water on the landscae, controlling flooding, reducing erosion and maintaining stream flows during dry eriods. Wetlands also rovide habitat for a rich variety of flora and fauna. NV evaluates wetland cover using Geograhic Information Systems (GIS) data and field observations. Grades range from to, with mostly grades. Wetland cover has not been udated for this reort card and is based on 212 maing. Grades range from to, with mostly grades. orest conditions have not been udated for this reort card and are based on 212 maing. or more details about the information found in these mas, visit nvca.on.ca or contact us. You can find our contact information on the back anel. MONITORING WELL Nitrate V D GR 1 km V 1 km LSR LSR LSR GR G LSR G G G hloride GR 1 km V GR 1 km V

7 ONSERVTION IN OUR WTERSHED NV is a ublic agency committed to innovative watershed management that suorts a healthy environment and healthy communities. We work closely with municial, rovincial and federal governments, landowners and community grous to rotect, restore and manage the natural resources of the watershed. WHERE RE WE? WTERSHED Reort ard 218 HELTHY WTERS HELTHY OMMUNITIES What is a Watershed? We all have a role to lay in keeing our watershed ecosystem healthy. Through innovative lanning and wise stewardshi, we can sustainably manage our local streams, lakes and natural areas for the benefit of resent and future generations. What re We Doing? Watershed Stewardshi What an You Do? Environmental Monitoring & Reorting: We collect data to evaluate and reort on existing watershed conditions and hel establish targets for rotection and rehabilitation activities. Stewardshi rojects like tree lanting, stream habitat restoration and agricultural best management ractices that reduce erosion and runoff, can be simle and cost effective ways to imrove watershed health. Here are some things you can do at home to hel: Minimize your use of fertilizers and esticides, and kee your setic system in good working order to avoid contaminating groundwater and nearby streams and lakes. Plant trees, shrubs and wildflowers to imrove water quality, hel clean the air and enhance local wildlife habitat. Prevent the sread of invasive secies by gardening with non-invasive lants, washing your boat when moving from lake-to-lake, disosing of bait away from the water, and cleaning your shoes and bike tires after using local trails. Install bird, bat and ollinator boxes to rovide wildlife habitat on your roerty. Environmental Planning & Regulations: We rovide land-use lanning inut and administer Ontario Regulation 172/6, which ensures that develoment does not imact wetlands, shorelines or waterways. onsidering a stewardshi roject? ontact NV for free technical suort, workshos, advice on financial grants and more! Why Measure? Measuring hels us better understand our watershed. We can target our work where it is needed and track rogress. We measured: lood orecasting & Protection: We monitor water levels, issue flood alerts and manage flood control structures like dams and berms to hel rotect life and roerty from natural hazards such as flooding and erosion. Education, Outreach & Stewardshi: We rovide hands-on learning oortunities, roject advice and financial assistance, and educate the ublic about conservation and the environment. Groundwater onservation Lands: We manage,3 hectares of land in the watershed to rotect imortant natural ecosystems and rovide outdoor recreation and tourism oortunities. Visit nvca.on.ca to learn more about our watershed and NV rograms and services. The onservation uthority has reared this reort card as a summary of the state of your forests, wetlands, and water resources. onserve water by using a rain barrel, reducing lawn and garden watering, lanting drought-resistant native lant secies and installing low-flow household roducts. Don t our anything down storm drains these drains often flow untreated into local water bodies. watershed is an area of land drained by a creek or stream into a river which then drains into a body of water such as a lake or ond. Everything in a watershed is connected. Our actions ustream can affect conditions downstream in our Great s. onservation uthority 819 8th Line, Utoia, ON LM 1T admin@nvca.on.ca Website: nvca.on.ca Phone: ax: The Watershed Reort ard is available online and in other formats uon request. Surface Water orest Wetland What is a watershed reort card? Ontario s onservation uthorities reort on watershed conditions every five years. The watershed reort cards use onservation Ontario guidelines and standards develoed by onservation uthorities and their artners.

8 ONSERVTION IN OUR WTERSHED NV is a ublic agency committed to innovative watershed management that suorts a healthy environment and healthy communities. We work closely with municial, rovincial and federal governments, landowners and community grous to rotect, restore and manage the natural resources of the watershed. WHERE RE WE? WTERSHED Reort ard 218 HELTHY WTERS HELTHY OMMUNITIES What is a Watershed? We all have a role to lay in keeing our watershed ecosystem healthy. Through innovative lanning and wise stewardshi, we can sustainably manage our local streams, lakes and natural areas for the benefit of resent and future generations. What re We Doing? Watershed Stewardshi What an You Do? Environmental Monitoring & Reorting: We collect data to evaluate and reort on existing watershed conditions and hel establish targets for rotection and rehabilitation activities. Stewardshi rojects like tree lanting, stream habitat restoration and agricultural best management ractices that reduce erosion and runoff, can be simle and cost effective ways to imrove watershed health. Here are some things you can do at home to hel: Minimize your use of fertilizers and esticides, and kee your setic system in good working order to avoid contaminating groundwater and nearby streams and lakes. Plant trees, shrubs and wildflowers to imrove water quality, hel clean the air and enhance local wildlife habitat. Prevent the sread of invasive secies by gardening with non-invasive lants, washing your boat when moving from lake-to-lake, disosing of bait away from the water, and cleaning your shoes and bike tires after using local trails. Install bird, bat and ollinator boxes to rovide wildlife habitat on your roerty. Environmental Planning & Regulations: We rovide land-use lanning inut and administer Ontario Regulation 172/6, which ensures that develoment does not imact wetlands, shorelines or waterways. onsidering a stewardshi roject? ontact NV for free technical suort, workshos, advice on financial grants and more! Why Measure? Measuring hels us better understand our watershed. We can target our work where it is needed and track rogress. We measured: lood orecasting & Protection: We monitor water levels, issue flood alerts and manage flood control structures like dams and berms to hel rotect life and roerty from natural hazards such as flooding and erosion. Education, Outreach & Stewardshi: We rovide hands-on learning oortunities, roject advice and financial assistance, and educate the ublic about conservation and the environment. Groundwater onservation Lands: We manage,3 hectares of land in the watershed to rotect imortant natural ecosystems and rovide outdoor recreation and tourism oortunities. Visit nvca.on.ca to learn more about our watershed and NV rograms and services. The onservation uthority has reared this reort card as a summary of the state of your forests, wetlands, and water resources. onserve water by using a rain barrel, reducing lawn and garden watering, lanting drought-resistant native lant secies and installing low-flow household roducts. Don t our anything down storm drains these drains often flow untreated into local water bodies. watershed is an area of land drained by a creek or stream into a river which then drains into a body of water such as a lake or ond. Everything in a watershed is connected. Our actions ustream can affect conditions downstream in our Great s. onservation uthority 819 8th Line, Utoia, ON LM 1T admin@nvca.on.ca Website: nvca.on.ca Phone: ax: The Watershed Reort ard is available online and in other formats uon request. Surface Water orest Wetland What is a watershed reort card? Ontario s onservation uthorities reort on watershed conditions every five years. The watershed reort cards use onservation Ontario guidelines and standards develoed by onservation uthorities and their artners.