Grace Lake Wetland Assessment
Title
Grace Lake Wetland Assessment
Author
Ainsley Taggett, Emily Colautti, and Jessica Livingstone
Host Organization
Grace Lake Association
Supervising Faculty
Tom Whillans
Reference Number
4955
Date
2023
Location of Document
Online
Area
Haliburton County
Subject
Wetland Assessment
Abstract
Wetlands provide a host of biological, social, hydrological, and cultural services, though they are being destroyed at an alarming rate in Ontario in the name of human development. The only way for a wetland to be fully protected from development is it being designated as provincially significant under the Ontario Wetland Evaluation System (OWES), created by the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (OMNRF). This study conducted a preliminary assessment of the wetland on the northwestern edge of Grace Lake to determine if there is merit for its designation as provincially significant following a formal environmental impact assessment.
Flora and fauna observational data, organic content data, water chemistry, and water flow data were collected. All data was then inputted into the OWES scoring manual for Northern Ontario, and a score for the Grace Lake Wetland (GLW) was calculated. Our preliminary results found that the wetland could be deemed provincially significant, as it scored 247.52 points in the “Special Features” component, and a wetland can score a minimum of 200 points in this component to be considered a provincially significant wetland (PSW).
Our findings suggest that there is likely justification for a formal assessment of the GLW, and there may be more findings by a professional team than we were able to gather in this preliminary assessment. There are various opportunities for the expansion of our findings in future research, including conducting the assessment over multiple seasons and engaging members of the Grace Lake community to partake in various citizen science initiatives. If a
formal assessment designates the GLW as provincially significant, then it and any area within 120 meters of it will be protected from unsustainable development.
Flora and fauna observational data, organic content data, water chemistry, and water flow data were collected. All data was then inputted into the OWES scoring manual for Northern Ontario, and a score for the Grace Lake Wetland (GLW) was calculated. Our preliminary results found that the wetland could be deemed provincially significant, as it scored 247.52 points in the “Special Features” component, and a wetland can score a minimum of 200 points in this component to be considered a provincially significant wetland (PSW).
Our findings suggest that there is likely justification for a formal assessment of the GLW, and there may be more findings by a professional team than we were able to gather in this preliminary assessment. There are various opportunities for the expansion of our findings in future research, including conducting the assessment over multiple seasons and engaging members of the Grace Lake community to partake in various citizen science initiatives. If a
formal assessment designates the GLW as provincially significant, then it and any area within 120 meters of it will be protected from unsustainable development.
Publisher
Trent University
Date Available
2024
Date Created
2023
Files
Collection
Reference
Ainsley Taggett, Emily Colautti, and Jessica Livingstone, Grace Lake Wetland Assessment, Trent University, 2023