Media Release: WaterScape – Community Discussions on Protecting Water for Future Generations

Canadian Environmental Law Association (CELA), Ontario Environment Network (OEN), and Ontario Headwaters Institute (OHI) are pleased to announce the dates, locations, and local partners for the community discussions on protecting Ontario’s water, as below.

The event is free, but to ensure the right amount of chairs and coffee we ask you to please register by clicking on the community-specific links below to access Eventbrite+.

5:30* Feb 6      Peel / Dufferin, Whole Village, 20725 Shaws Creek Rd, Alton, L7K 1L7 In partnership with Whole Village, Caledon, and Food and Water First, Dufferin

5:30* Feb 8      Durham County, Goodwood Community Centre, 268 Highway 47, Goodwood, L0C 1A0 In partnership with Green Durham Association & Ontario Soil Regulation Taskforce

1:30* Feb 13     Simcoe County, Midhurst United Church, 91 Doran Rd, Springwater, L0L 1X0 In partnership with the Simcoe County Greenbelt Coalition

5:30* Feb 14     Brant County, Langford Schoolhouse, 1694 Colborne St E, Brantford, N3T 5M1 In partnership with Sustainable Brant, Langford Conservancy, and Hamilton Naturalists.

6:30* Feb 20     Niagara, Niagara College, Room W216, 135 Taylor Road, Niagara-on-the-Lake, L0S 1J0 In partnership with Trout Unlimited Canada-Niagara Chapter and the Save Thundering Waters Forest community group

5:30* Feb 22     Peterborough, McDonnel St Activity Centre, 577 McDonnel St, Peterborough, K9H 2Y1 In partnership with GreenUp

+ If you don’t wish to use Eventbrite, please send an e-mail with your name to Andrew as below.

* The times noted above are recommended arrival times to register and network over maps, handouts, coffee, and light snacks. Each meeting will start 30 minutes after the times shown, SHARP, and will feature an hour of community discussion following two short presentations.

We will also be hosting a webinar, for those unable to attend any of the in-person meetings, on Wednesday, February 21 at 1pm. Please register here. Details about accessing the webinar will be communicated to those registered, closer to the webinar date.

——————————————————-

WaterScape is a collaborative effort of CELA, OEN, and OHI, in cooperation with the local partners listed above. The goals for the community discussions are:

• To educate and engage interested individuals and organizations about Ontario’s water protection policies, particularly in response to the government’s current proposal: Protecting Water for Future Generations: Growing the Greenbelt in the Outer Ring; and,
• To listen to the community, whose observations will inform a joint submission which meeting participants and others will be invited to endorse.

Issues to be addressed at the community discussions include:

• Are the increased measures in the Greenbelt adequate to the need to protect water there?
• Are there other areas of the province where increased protection for water should be applied? and,
• Is the Province doing enough to protect water?

A template agenda is here. For more information please contact Andrew McCammon of the OHI at 416 231 9484 or via andrew @ ontarioheadwaters.ca.