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SCRCA Celebrates 50 Years
at Annual Meeting
February 18, 2011
Point Edward, February 17, 2011:
The St. Clair Region Conservation Authority held their 2011 annual
meeting in Point Edward on Thursday. Andy Bruziewicz representing the
City of Sarnia was elected Chair and Larry McKenzie representing the
Village of Point Edward was elected Vice-Chair. Steve Arnold was
appointed as the Conservation Authority representative on Conservation
Ontario.
The Board voted
unanimously to accept the 2011 budget of $6,179,967.
This budget represents a great deal of conservation work for our
region,” Andy Bruziewicz said. It includes outdoor education programs
for school children, grants for landowners to implement conservation
projects, erosion protection along the St. Clair River, environmental
monitoring, flood warning, Conservation Areas and much more,” Bruziewicz
explained. “Our General Levy, which is the part of budget funded by
municipalities, was $567,260 or 9% of the total budget”. The remaining
funds come from self generated revenue, government grants and fundraised
dollars.
Following the
meeting, a special celebration was held to commemorate the Conservation
Authority’s 50th Anniversary. Gord Miller, Environmental
Commissioner for Ontario was the key note speaker. Mr. Miller talked on
climate change and the challenges that face Municipalities and
Conservation Authorities. He noted that Conservation Authorities were in
a good position to respond because they have the ability to react and
plan for local conditions.
During his opening
remarks, Authority Chair Andy Bruziewicz talked about the past 50 years.
“We are proud of our record of engaging partners to create watersheds
that will sustain us for generations to come,” Bruziewicz said. (remarks
attached)
Steve Arnold, a
member of the Conservation Authority Board presented three Conservation
Awards at the celebration:
Catherine
Creber
Catherine began her
career at Dow in Sarnia as a young engineer. Her name is most frequently
associated with environmental remediation efforts in Sarnia, across
Canada, as well as parts of the United States. Catherine advocated for
innovative remediation technologies including phytoremediation which led
to the development of The Dow Wetlands project. The Wetlands have
evolved into an 80 acre sanctuary for plant and wildlife located
adjacent to an urban and industrial area. Catherine has been a key
supporter of the Conservation Authority’s Outdoor Education Program for
the last 10 years. Over this time, Dow has contributed approximately
$200,000 to support Conservation Education Programs at the wetland.
Municipal
World
Municipal World is the oldest
continuously published monthly municipal magazine in the world.
Founded in 1891, the magazine is devoted to promoting effective
municipal government.
Over the years the importance of
conservation has increasingly been highlighted through a wide variety of
articles on energy conservation, urban natural areas and wetlands to
mention a few. Municipal World has tapped into the talents and expertise
of people in the environmental field to share their experiences with
managing municipalities in an environmentally sustainable way. The
articles of full of innovative solutions to the environmental challenges
municipalities face.
In addition to articles,
Municipal World published a book called
Stepping up to the Climate Change
Challenge, edited by Susan Gardner and David Noble. Susan Gardner,
Municipal World’s Executive Editor, was a guest speaker at the 2009
SCRCA Annual Meeting. Her remarks clearly showed Municipal World’s
commitment to building sustainable communities throughout Canada and the
world.
RBC
Blue Water Project
The RBC Blue Water
Project is an innovative, 10-year, global commitment to help protect the
world’s most precious natural resource: fresh water. Under the RBC Blue
Water Project, RBC has committed:
- To provide $50 million in
charitable grants to not-for-profit organizations that protect
watersheds and provide or ensure access to clean drinking water.
Since 2007, RBC has committed more than $25 million in single and
multi-year grants to 292 organizations.
- To promote responsible and
sustainable water use with their employees and clients through
education and awareness programs that create an understanding of the
value and vulnerability of our water resources; and to reduce the
intensity of their own water footprint;
- To encourage the growth of
North American businesses that develop and commercialize innovative
solutions to the water issues facing the world and increase their
ability to provide financial services to these companies;
- To take a leadership role
to encourage the involvement of other corporations and encourage a
spirit of collaboration among and between all sectors to help
protect the world’s fresh water.
Through the RBC Blue Water
Project, funding supported two projects of the Authority.
The first supported the Strathroy Water Trail and the second
supported education programs related to Species at Risk.
Both of these grants provide a significant contribution to
conservation programs for the region.
For more information contact:
Ralph Coe, General Manager or
Rick Battson, Director of Communications
St. Clair Region Conservation Authority
(519) 245-3710
stclair@scrca.on.ca
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