Save the Leitrim Wetlands

The Leitrim Wetlands has more than 500 species of plants 200 of them are regionally, provincially or nationally significant species. No other wetland in North America duplicates its flora. At least 90 species of migratory birds make Leitrim their home.

The Leitrim Wetlands are 815 acres of Class 1, provincially significant wetlands located south of the Ottawa airport. Here ancient cedars, hemlocks, white pines and larches, some up to 250 years old, flourish and along with a Great Blue Heron rookerie.

Leitrim is one of Canada’s finest examples of a complex wetland ecosystem and has been identified as a North American “biodiversity hotspot”. According to the Canadian Wildlife Service, “Leitrim Wetland is clearly an area of outstanding ecological significance.”

WHY SHOULD WE CARE ABOUT WETLANDS?

Bring on the Big Time Urban Sprawl

A proposed development plan would see over 4,000 housing units built on the Leitrim Wetlands complex. Over 200 acres will be bulldozed and the area will be drained.

Sure Pull the Plug it’s only a Biodiversity Hotspot

Lowering the water table will have devastating and permanent detrimental consequences for the delicate biodiversity of the Leitrim Wetlands. While approximately 25% of the wetlands are directly threatened by housing developments, the remaining areas, including the protected core, will be vulnerable to massive drainage along the boundaries.

A Little 1,4 Dioxane Never Hurt Anyone

The nearby Gloucester Landfill Site and the Federal Special Waste Compound (less than 1000 metres away) are known to be leaking toxic substances towards the proposed housing development. 1,4-dioxane, a probable carcinogen, has recently been detected in concentrations more than 120 times greater than “acceptable” levels in deep aquifer monitoring wells on the site of the housing development. (From a recent Transport Canada report.)

6 km of Prime Fish Habitat - Gone

Findlay Creek, one of the last cold-water fish spawning habitats in Ottawa, will be straightened and shoreline trees and shrubs removed under the current plan. This will irreversibly damage the creek and its tributaries, which are crucial to the integrity of the larger wetland, and destroy important fish habitat.

Forget Kyoto

A thick layer of peat underlies much of the Leitrim Wetlands. Peatlands are designated as carbon sinks for their well-known ability to store greenhouse gases. As Leitrim Wetlands are drained the peat will dry out and release massive amounts of these gases into the atmosphere. Over time, most if not all of the peat will disappear due to peat wastage. This will lower soil levels and expose the roots of old-growth trees making them vulnerable to being blown over.

The Screening Report

Because fish habitat is involved in the proposed Leitrim developments, the Department of Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO) has been the lead agency to assess the environmental impacts. They chose to initiate a Screening Report, merely a preliminary action as opposed to a full environmental assessment. Want to save the wetlands? Here’s what you can do:

Public response to the Screening Report is required NOW. Without a large public outcry about the deficiencies in the report by midnight, July 17th an Environmental Assessment will not happen.

The Friends of Leitrim Wetlands and other experts have analysed the screening report and identified the following deficiencies:

the original scope of the report is too narrow; it only addresses the effects of the stormwater remediation plan and fails to address the effects of the actual housing development;
the report fails to specifically address public concerns and uncertainty or provide any evidence-based assurances regarding the potential health risks to future residents of the developments of the nearby Gloucester Landfill Site and the Federal Special Waste Compound, and in particular, the report ignores recent finding which shows extremely high levels of 1,4 dioxane.
the report does not analyse the situation, does not review the environmental risks, fails to clearly designate responsibility and includes no cost estimates for monitoring and mitigation measures;
the report does not address the fact that baseline studies have not been done to allow for proper future assessment of the performance of the proposed stormwater management system and the significance of its impacts;
the report fails to address the considerable uncertainty about the effectiveness of the proposed stormwater remediation techniques on the continued integrity of the wetlands;
there is no consideration of the potential loss of biodiversity;
the cumulative impacts have not been adequately addressed;
the expert advice provided to DFO by the Friends of Leitrim Wetlands, and by federal departments have been ignored to marginalized in the report; and
there are no conditions laid down for on-going monitoring and any required remediation activities.

What you can do now:

Write a letter to (no postage necessary):

The Honourable Robert G. Thibault, P.C., M.P.
Minister of Fisheries and Oceans Canada
House of Commons, Ottawa, Ontario, KIA 0A6