Volunteers with the Friends of the Mad River have partnered with the Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority (NVCA) to develop a habitat restoration plan for the Mad River.
Restoration plans are currently being developed in the area of Carruthers Memorial Park in Avening.
“The Mad River is at the heart of our community here in Creemore. It not only provides us with the water we need for our community to live and work here, but it also feeds our fields and our forests, provides essential habitat for fish and wildlife, and provides a place for us to enjoy nature,” said volunteer coordinator Jesse Wright.
Fish community, aquatic insect, water temperature and stream flow studies are being completed in 2022 to provide the background information needed for the restoration plan, and large-scale river restoration work is scheduled to start in 2023.
The Friends of the Mad River have set up a donation page to raise the funds needed. They are looking to raise $9,000 toward a River Morphology Study. The study, which includes a drone flight survey, will generate the information needed to guide future habitat restoration and bank stabilization work. The NVCA has already raised $6,000 to contribute to the total study cost of $15,000.
The goal of the Mad River Enhancement Program (MREP) is to improve water quality; restore native fish habitat; and provide flood mitigation and erosion control through habitat restoration. Projects will be undertaken at priority sites to optimize improvements, supporting: habitat for native fish species such as brook trout; nursery and spawning habitat for migratory rainbow trout and salmon floodplain wetlands and flood mitigation; water quality; and erosion control.
“The Mad River needs our help. The river habitat is relatively good and intact upriver from our village, but once it passes through Creemore it faces challenges such as a sudden lack of forest cover, channelized runs that can lead to ice damming and local flooding, and eroding river banks that are moving increased amounts of soil and phosphorus into the system. In turn, this situation of degraded river habitat around the village is changing the Mad River and making it less hospitable to fish and wildlife populations, and overall, less healthy,” said Wright.
“The health of our village and community is inextricably tied to the health of our river, and with the help of the NVCA this is our chance to make a difference and begin to address these challenges. The Mad River Enhancement Project is a multi-year effort to take action and start this habitat restoration work, but it needs our support. In partnership with the NVCA, the Friends of the Mad River has a goal to raise funds annually to support this work. Community members and local businesses are strongly encouraged to donate what they can to show our commitment to the health of our river and our community.”
Donations can be made through Nottawasaga Valley Conservation Authority’s charitable donation page on CanadaHelps.org. Use the drop down menu to select funds be applied to the Mad River Enhancement program. Charitable receipts for donations over $25 will be issued. Donations can be made online at www.canadahelps. org/en/charities/nottawasaga-valley- conservation-authority, at the NVCA head office, or be calling 705-424- 1479.