Conservation

Conservation and the Environment

The Bruce Trail Conservancy acquires Niagara Escarpment land to ensure a secure and permanent  conservation corridor. Today almost 16,000 acres of Escarpment land are secured and managed by the BTC. This preserved land is cared for by Bruce Trail volunteers, with the support of a small BTC staff.

Many people don't realize that the Bruce Trail is not permanently secure, and that 66% of the Bruce Trail corridor is still vulnerable to development. The BTC is working to secure this corridor by receiving donations of land or by purchasing land. Each year the BTC spends from $1 to $2 million on land purchases, preserving hundreds of acres of Escarpment landscape and Bruce Trail corridor forever.

These acquisitions protect a diverse array of landscape types - wetlands, karst topography, open meadows, caves, towering scarp edges and lush forests. Many at risk species can also be found on the various landscapes, such as, Butternut trees and Hart's-tongue Fern - all within the Niagara Escarpment UNESCO World Biosphere Reserve.

Land Stewardship at The BTC

The Iroquoia Club presently has 30 properties, 345 acres of land that we steward. Contact us if you would like to volunteer to be a Land Steward.

The Bruce Trail Conservancy manages thousands of hectares of Escarpment land. The BTC Land Stewardship Program was implemented in order to effectively care for this significant land, and is the largest program of its kind run by a non-government organization in Ontario's history.

Volunteers are a vital component of the Land Stewardship Program. The primary volunteers in this Program are the Land Stewards who are the caretakers and eyes of the land. Land Stewards visit their assigned properties at least twice a year, complete annual reports on the conditions of the property, provide input into the stewardship plans, and help to organize and carry out stewardship activities such as tree planting in abandoned fields, garbage removal, and installing signs and fences. The activities of the Land Stewards are overseen by nine volunteer Land Steward Directors.

For more information click here.

Conservation Links

Bruce Trail Conservancy
http://brucetrail.org/

Hamilton Conservation Authority
http://www.conservationhamilton.ca/

Conservation Halton
https://www.conservationhalton.ca/

Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority
http://www.npca.ca/

Bay Area Restoration Council
https://hamiltonharbour.ca/

CONE
http://www.niagaraescarpment.org/

Niagara Escarpment Commission
https://escarpment.org/

Hamilton Naturalist Club
http://www.hamiltonnature.org/

Ontario Nature
http://www.ontarionature.org/

Carolinian Canada
http://www.carolinian.org/index.htm

Ontario Land Trust Alliance
http://www.olta.ca/

Environment Hamilton
http://www.environmenthamilton.org/

Burlington Green
http://burlingtongreen.org/

Halton Environment Network
http://haltonenvironment.com/