The Concerned Citizens Committee

Are you concerned about what is happening to our natural world? Would you like to be better informed? Although our club is not an advocacy group, as concerned citizens, there are things we can do to make a difference.

KFN has created a new committee called the Concerned Citizens Committee so that club members can join forces as individuals to stay on top of what is happening in our community. See below for the issues that we have concerns about to date.

Our mandate is to bring matters which affect the environment at the local, provincial or national level to the attention of KFN members at general meetings, through the newsletter and on the website. Our work includes information gathering, petition signing, letter writing campaigns and following the activities of other organizations such as Ontario Nature, SEAL (Sustainable Ecological Alternatives to Living) and Towards Balance.

If you are interested in joining us, please contact me.

Susan Blayney 705-887- 4691 or susan.blayney@gmail.com

USEFUL WEBSITES

1. World Wildlife Federation.

2. Greenpeace.

3. Ecojustice.

4. Council of Canadians.

5. David Suzuki Foundation.

6. Lake Ontario Waterkeeper.

7. Ontario Nature.

1. Greenup.

2. Toward Balance Support Network.

1. City of Kawartha Lakes.

ISSUES OF CONCERN

Kawartha Highlands Provincial Park

Our members were made aware of the changes that the MNR were proposing regarding hunting regulations in this newly created park and how they could voice their objections to the ministry. These changes had proposed allowing hunting of an increased number of species and changing the hunting season from 3 to 9 months. As a result of submissions to the ministry the following resulted: Hunting will be permitted for game mammals, game birds, migratory game birds, and furbearing mammals, with the following exceptions; hunting will not be permitted for wolves, coyotes, snapping turtles, bullfrogs and for other wildlife that do not appear in the schedules attached to the Fish and Wildlife Conservation Act. These include groundhogs, porcupines, crows, and grackles. Hunting will not be permitted in Kawartha Highlands Signature Site Park from the Friday before Victoria Day to August 31. The summer hunting ban is designed to minimize potential conflicts with other park users.

Somerville Forest

There is a proposal to the City of Kawartha Lakes from the Ontario Federation of Trail Riders to create an ATV trail in the Somerville Forest in return for maintaining cross-country ski trails in this forest by this club. The Somerville Forest is adjacent to the Altberg Preserve and the concern is the effect of ATV's on the preserve. The next meeting is at the Burnt River firehall on May 13 at 7 pm. To read the proposal submitted by the ATV club, click here. The draft by-law by the CKL for use of the Somerville Forest is available here.

Food Charter

The CCC is taking an interest in developing an initiative of Victoria Land and Water Stewardship Council to create a local food charter. A public meeting was held April 7 at the Ops Community Centre. It was very well attended and should provide enough impetus to continue the process. Indeed, a further meeting has been scheduled for Thursday, May 28, 7 – 9 PM, at the Health Unit Office in Lindsay. Click here to see the Council's Food Charter overview. To see the actual Food Charter that Sudbury crafted, click here.