Trail Notice: A few sections of Bruce Trail remain closed due to ice storm damage. Most areas have re-opened. Details >
Caring for the Land
We are grounded in the evidence that land, in a natural state or brought back to health, is a critical step to building nature- based solutions to address our climate crisis. Rehabilitated, connected, large tracts of natural areas reduce the impacts of climate change by cooling the air, reducing runoff and flooding, improving water quality, as well as helping the continued survival of the Escarpment’s trees, plants and wildlife.
Our monitoring, planning, and active stewardship maintain and enhance biodiversity, improve connectivity of natural corridors, and protect Species at Risk and unique habitat.
Caring for the Land
We are grounded in the evidence that land, in a natural state or brought back to health, is a critical step to building nature- based solutions to address our climate crisis. Rehabilitated, connected, large tracts of natural areas reduce the impacts of climate change by cooling the air, reducing runoff and flooding, improving water quality, as well as helping the continued survival of the Escarpment’s trees, plants and wildlife.
Our monitoring, planning, and active stewardship maintain and enhance biodiversity, improve connectivity of natural corridors, and protect Species at Risk and unique habitat.
Land Stewardship Program
The Bruce Trail Conservancy manages thousands of acres of Escarpment land. The Bruce Trail Conservancy’s Land Stewardship Program was put into effect to effectively care for this land, and is the largest program of its kind run by a non-government organization in Ontario’s history.
Three full-time ecologists are dedicated to the Land Stewardship Program, supported by hundreds of local land steward volunteers in each of the nine Bruce Trail Clubs. This team works year-round to ensure the long-term health of the precious lands within our conservation corridor, while providing Bruce Trail access to the Niagara Escarpment.
Each Bruce Trail Conservancy natural area is cared for by a volunteer land steward who regularly monitors the site and carries out the activities outlined in the property’s stewardship plan. Stewardship includes understanding, planning, sustaining, and restoring the land.
As more land comes into the care of the Bruce Trail Conservancy, the work of the land stewardship program increases.
Understanding the Land
Once we have secured land along the conservation corridor, we get to know the land better by assessing the ecosystems and species present on the land and any existing damage or threats that might be harming them. BTC ecologists conduct 3-season inventories on each newly-secured parcel of land, during which they collect data on:
- the habitat types present
- the plant and animal species found
- birds that are breeding on the land
- the abundance, location and condition of any species-at-risk
- threats to the health of the land – including improper use, litter, damage to plants, climate change, etc.
This information helps us to come up with a plan to steward the land according to its unique needs and characteristics.
While these initial 3-season inventories provide important baseline information, the land is always changing, so it is important to regularly monitor its health. This regular monitoring is the job of 250 amazing volunteer Land Stewards. Each of our protected natural areas is assigned to a volunteer land steward, who visits the nature reserve at least twice per year and reports back on any new or continuing threats, any additional species found, and any changes to the condition of the land.
Volunteers and staff also conduct additional monitoring of species and ecosystems in several of our nature reserves to gain a better understanding of how they are changing over time. Biodiversity monitoring happening in our protected natural areas includes:
- annual breeding bird surveys
- bird box monitoring
- marsh monitoring
- bat monitoring
- citizen science observations through the BTC iNaturalist project
- restoration project monitoring
Planning to Care for the Land
Once we have a good understanding of the habitats and species that are living in a newly protected natural area, staff develop a stewardship plan for the area. These plans are based on the detailed inventories that have been conducted on the property along with background research, and they are used to guide the management of the area in a manner that is consistent with the mission and values of the Bruce Trail Conservancy.
Stewardship plans contain information such as:
- maps of the natural area, including locations of different habitats, important features and sensitive species
- a list of all plant and animal species observed on the land
- information on the history of the property
- threats that have been identified on the property
- Recommendations for maintaining and improving the health of the land and the safety and enjoyment of trail users – this may include suggested restoration activities, and plans to reduce damage to plants and wildlife by people
Planning the Trail
One important piece of our stewardship planning process is determining the route of the Bruce Trail. Our goal is to provide safe, sustainable access to nature for all to enjoy while protecting the biodiversity and functioning of these natural spaces. You can do your part to protect these precious spaces by remembering to follow the Trail User’s Code when visiting.
Before new sections of the Bruce Trail are blazed in a natural area, the information in the area’s stewardship plan is used to help determine the best path for the Bruce Trail. Staff ecologists work with the local Trail Development team to choose a route that minimizes the trail’s impact on the environment and that is safe and enjoyable for trail users.
Staff ecologists also assess the route of existing sections of the Bruce Trail in our nature reserves. They assess the Trail’s effects on nearby species and ecosystems and may suggest reroutes or upgrades such as boardwalks that protect sensitive species and habitats. Staff ecologists also provide recommendations on how to maintain the trail to keep it safe for trail users in a way that also maintains the health of the land. This includes removing dead or hazardous trees.
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Sustaining the Land
Our land stewardship work encompasses a wide variety of stewardship activities that all aim to maintain or improve the health of the land. Stewardship activities are geared to the unique needs of each protected natural area and are based on our understanding of the land and the recommendations outlined in the area’s stewardship plan.
The stewardship work carried out by staff and Land Stewardship volunteers includes:
- Garbage clean-up
- Mitigating improper trail use by installing signage, fencing and other structures
- Invasive species removal
- Regular monitoring
- Habitat Restoration
Restoring the Land
Another powerful way we are addressing climate change is by restoring natural environments, facilitating their resilience and adaptation to the effects of change.
Once land is under our care, ongoing land stewardship efforts are key to fulfilling our mission. From planning and ecological inventories, to major habitat restoration projects, to monitoring biodiversity and restoration success, our staff and volunteers work year-round to enhance biodiversity and ecosystem health ensuring the ecological sustainability of the Bruce Trail and the Niagara Escarpment today, and into the future.
We undertake a variety of restoration activities within our natural areas to reverse damage done to ecosystems and ensure they are on a healthy trajectory. Our restoration work focuses on helping ecosystems to be self-sustaining, resilient and adaptable to threats like climate change.
Invasive species removal is one of the most common restorative activities we carry out in our natural areas. Invasive species are non-native species that are having a negative impact on our natural environment, often by outcompeting native species and reducing biodiversity. BTC ecologists and volunteers manage invasive species like common buckthorn, dog strangling vine, garlic mustard, and many more using manual and sometimes chemical methods. Managing invasive species ensures that native plants and wildlife have the resources they need to thrive in our natural areas.
Tree planting is one of the ways that we restore forest habitat in our natural areas. Forests provide habitat for a wide variety of wildlife species, and also provide ecosystem services, such as carbon sequestration, cooling, air filtration and flood mitigation. When tree planting, we aim to connect fragmented forest patches so that wildlife can move through the landscape more easily.
In appropriate open areas, the BTC is conducting grassland restoration to bring back rare tallgrass prairie and meadow habitats. Tallgrass prairie once covered a significant portion of southern Ontario’s landscape, but due to urban development, conversion to agriculture and fire suppression, less than 3% of this habitat remains in the province. We are recreating tallgrass prairie and meadow habitat to provide space for rare prairie plants, food for pollinators, and nesting habitat for at-risk grassland birds.
The BTC also works to restore species-at-risk populations through targeted efforts including the installation of habitat enhancement features such as bird boxes, the planting of disease-resistant varieties of endangered plants such as American Chestnut, and protecting critical habitat for a variety of species-at-risk through the creation of protected natural areas.
