While many area high school students are scrambling this time of year to find a summer job, GREC Grade 11 student Ryleigh Rioux already has hers all lined up — and what a summer job it is.

Rioux, who recently received her drone pilot’s licence (via geography/biology teacher Wade Leonard’s innovative and unique program at GREC), will be mapping Malcolm and Ardoch Lakes from the air thanks to a grant North Frontenac Township and the lake association managed to secure specifically for the project.

“We’ll be using the drone to collect aerial imagery,” she said. “They’ll be putting down burlap on the milfoil beds and we’ll track the results.

“We’ll be creating a baseline data set which is exciting because there hasn’t been much work done in this area as yet.”

She said planning will perhaps be the biggest part of her job.

“Flying over water and collecting video data is difficult because of the reflection and refraction,” she said. “I’ll be controlling the take off and landing of the drone but the computer does much of in-flight deployment.”

Leonard said the actual mapping will be very dependent on weather.

“It will take time,” he said. “Cloud cover is obviously a big issue.

“We can deal with ripples and even some whitecaps but the atmosphere can present problems.”

So can the fact that water creates refraction and reflection issues but Leonard thinks they’ve come up with a solution for most of those.

“We’ll be using polarizing optics to refine the features,” he said. “That will take several flights to orient the drone properly.”

And the project has attracted the attention of Carleton University professor Jesse Vermaire.

“Our job is to provide the baseline data so we can show the year-to-year incremental growth of the milfoil,” he said. “We can get down 15-20 feet from the surface and provide 3D data which will link up with the Carleton information well.”

He said that they can get detail that scuba divers and boat-side sonar devices can’t.

“We can look at the health of the entire weed bed, and measure the results if under attack by weevils,” he said. “But we have to get out there and grab the data.”

He said they’ve already done some work and it’s led to observations that boats going through the beds can help spread the milfoil as “it spreads through fragmentation.”

He’s optimistic there will be solutions found but “those are things we’ll have collect all the data to know.”

For example, he said, the life cycle of the northern milfoil weevil, which eats milfoil, may provide some answers.

“The weevils may overwinter in shoreline duff (vegetative cover) as much as 18 feet from the water,” he said. “And the weevils are a favorite food of sunfish and others.”

For Rioux, the prospects are exciting. She said she’d like to pursue a career designing environmentally friendly and sustainable building but many of the techniques they’ll be pioneering could shape the future of lake ecology and data collection.

“The ability to shape a new course,” she said. “How can you pass that up?”

The Land Between is your backyard: It is a region that extends from Georgian Bay to the Frontenac Arch, skirting the Algonquin Dome. It has the highest habitat diversity in Ontario, and the most shorelines too. It is a meeting place for species from north and south such as moose and deer, blueberry and strawberry, river otter and woodchuck, black fly and mosquito. Because of these features and this species richness, The Land Between is an important area, providing water and vital ecosystem services to all of southern Ontario during climate change. But the region does not have enough soil and with a starker climate, pollution and disturbance are far reaching and need to be managed wisely. Learn more about this significant region and its features, the rare wetlands and turtles that contribute to water quality and biodiversity, and how to live in harmony with this environment by creating native buffers, shoreline gardens and pollinator-friendly areas in your backyard. Leora Berman, founder of The Land Between organization, a national charity, is providing a free three-part workshop this Saturday, Sept. 24 at Land o’Lakes Emmanuel United Church in Northbrook. “Why the Land Between is important” will be presented at 10am; “All about turtles and wetlands” at 10:30am; and “Creating Natural Shoreline Gardens and Buffers” at 11am. While you are there, take advantage of the opportunity to book a site visit and create a stewardship plan for your property. Everyone is invited to drop in or RSVP to Leora at 705-457-4838 This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. For more information visit thelandbetween.ca

A fundraising BBQ was held by the Bon Echo Area Residents Against Turbines (BEARAT) at the Clar-Mill Hall in Plevna on Sept. 4. The event, which was attended by over 100 people and featured live music from the Pickled Chicken String Band and Roger Hermer, was organized to generate more interest and to raise money for BEARAT's expected upcoming battle against wind turbines being built in the North Frontenac and Addington Highlands areas.

Last year BEARAT was very active in fighting against two companies, Nextera and ResCanada, which had proposed building large wind turbine farms in both North Frontenac and Addington Highlands. The contracts eventually were awarded to projects elsewhere in the province, but they caused great debate and discussion in the area, drawing hundreds of people out to local council meetings, including the Ontario Provincial Police, who were brought in to keep the peace.

North Frontenac Mayor Ron Higgins, John Laforet from Broadview Strategy Group, and Dan Carruthers, a cottager from Ashby Lake, spoke to the attendees on Sunday about the current situation and fielded questions from the crowd.

“What we're doing right now is amping up our game,” Laforet said. “Individual actions are going to be extremely important as we begin to see what the timelines and benchmarks actually are for the IESO.”

The IESO is the Independent Electricity Systems Operators, an organization that oversees the supply and demand of the province's electricity and are responsible for choosing which companies receive contracts to build turbines in Ontario.

“We're basing this year's target funding on what we spent last year, which was $75,000,” Carruthers said. “We have about $30,000 raised (so far this year).”

Mayor Higgins and North Frontenac's Council, in a vote last year, declared their township “not a willing host” to industrial wind turbine projects and have since had it included in their Official Plan.

Addington Highlands voted last year to be a “willing host” to the proposed projects and so, during Sunday's BEARAT fundraiser, multiple people in the crowd were curious as to what could be done to sway that Council to vote against the projects this time around.

“Once we have a sense of what the ground looks like in Addington Highlands, who we're up against, where they're going, then there is a list of concepts that we're going to put forth,” Laforet said. “There is a real, or apparent, potential conflict of interest that would, or could, result in ties. Ties are interesting and helpful to us.”

Laforet also explained that they would offer “opportunities to oppose the project, in addition to opportunities to continue their support for the project, but in a way that is going to really upset the proponent and if they don't do it they look really bad to their constituents.”

“The plan is to wait until it's real, then put opportunities in front of them to oppose the project based on the community's sentiment, based on other real concerns about what could happen, and then (to offer them) other opportunities to be world class in protecting members of the community while supporting the project going forward,” Laforet continued.

One of BEARAT's tactics right now is to have landowners sign non-consent forms if they feel that their property could be impacted by a possible turbine in the future. The forms and more information are available on the BEARAT website at www.bearat.org.

(Editors note - a previous version of this article said, erroneously, that John Laforet is associated with Wind Concerns Ontario. In an email to the News Laforet said that he was the President of Wind Concerns Ontario over fiove years ago, but is now a private consultant.)

In 2015, the Mississippi Madawaska Land Trust (MMLT) was delighted to receive a donation of an additional 258 acres to its Rose Hill Nature Reserve north of Denbigh. On Saturday, August 6 there will be a dedication ceremony at 10:30am with the unveiling of a new plaque in honour of the families who donated this land. Following the ceremony, we will head out to explore the new Brodey Trail, which leads to a beautiful picnic spot at Fufflemucker Pond.

Rose Hill Nature Reserve lies within typical Canadian Shield country characterized by very hilly terrain of granite bedrock and frequent rock outcroppings. The reserve is densely forested except for one small area that was once the location of an old farm where you can still see remnants of an old stone foundation. On a rise beside the old farm stands a magnificent glacial erratic boulder. On the side of this boulder is a large bronze plaque commemorating two family members who died in a car accident after visiting the property back in 1979. The new plaque will also be mounted on the side of the great boulder in honour of the donors from the Armstrong, Brodey, Fincher, Hatton, and Nevers families.

Admission to the event is by $10 donation to the MMLT. Following the dedication ceremony, we’ll head over to the Brodey Trail, which is 458 meters one way and not difficult to traverse, but good walking shoes are advised. Visitors are invited to bring along a picnic lunch to enjoy at Fufflemucker Pond. After lunch there will be opportunities to explore other trails.

From Hwy 41, turn east onto Rose Hill Rd. for 3.4 km. Park at road side beside Rose Lake. Trail entrance is on west side of road, before parking area.

For more information about the Land Trust and this property, please visit mmlt.ca/protecting-nature/ourprotected-properties/rose-hill-nature-reserve/

The MMLT holds a deep conviction that nature offers numerous benefits that contribute to our physical, emotional and spiritual health. To that end, the Land Trust attempts, whenever possible, to allow public access to these properties so that the general public can enjoy their benefits.  

Mike Burrell finds beauty where many people can’t.

Looking past the night sky to a source of light, he admires the moths fluttering around the beam. He distinguishes their colour, size and species. He knows they are an invaluable part of nature. “We need moths for the health of our eco-system,” contends the 32-year-old zoologist. “Like anything, if we remove them, we’ll probably have issues.”

Burrell was helping a group of 12 people understand moths at an evening workshop at Elbow Lake Environment Centre (ELEC) on July 16. The workshop was an initiative of ELEC and Kingston Field Naturalists.

Considered a nuisance by many, moths are the quiet workers of the night. “They get a bad rap,” he admits. “Most of them are just going about their business pollinating plants. For the most part, they’re just another actor impacting the ecology of our forests.”

By last July, 783 types of moths were found in South Frontenac. Burrell believes that more than twice that number are waiting to be found and identified.

“I just love the diversity of them; there are so many,” he says with a smile. “You’re not going to go out and not see something new. It’s pretty neat to go out and see something new whenever you want.”

A volunteer with the field naturalists who works with rare animals in Ontario, Burrell is pleased with the public’s interest in the insects.

“We managed to see a lot of moths,” he says with a laugh about the workshop, which described the area’s mix of southern and northern species. “I’d say we were successful… Basically, every kind of plant you can find will have a moth feeding on it,” Burrell explains with authority. “There are all sorts of life histories with the species. There are some rare moths (too). They are just an amazing group of animals to learn about.”

We only saw the Blinded Sphinx on Saturday. 

Melissa Dakers and Chloe Lajoie of Watersheds Canada were in Cloyne July 16 to outline the natural shoreline program.

They explained the structure of a natural shoreline, and how it protects our waterfront properties, cleans our water and supports the natural inhabitants of our waterways. They offer a service that will come to our properties and discuss with us our goals for shoreline development. Using photos they will work out a waterfront plan, recommending species and placement of plants ranging from flowers to trees. This plan is discussed with the property owners and modified to their wishes. The most exciting part of the program is that they then will order the plantings and come and plant them on our properties. The landowner pays 25% of the cost of the plants and agrees to maintain them. The Waterfront Canada staff remain involved to offer suggestions if any difficulties arise with the plantings. They can be reached at 613-2641244 or www.watersheds.ca.

Monarch butterflies will be flocking to 14 elementary schools in Lennox & Addington County this summer and fall. Pollinator gardens are being planted in school yards and butterflies will be raised in classrooms. Participating local schools include North Addington Education Centre in Cloyne, and Enterprise Public School.

The Lennox & Addington Stewardship Council is spearheading the Monarch Breeding Kits for Schools Project. The Monarch butterfly population is dwindling and all of our pollinators need help. The pilot project began in 2015 when 20 Monarch kits were supplied to 13 elementary schools in L&A County. Kits included caterpillars, chrysalides, a milkweed plant, and an aviary. Students were able to observe the entire life cycle of the Monarch from caterpillar to adult. In September, the children released the Monarchs to begin their migratory route, and the butterflies could be tagged and reported in the Monarch Watch database. This fall generation of Monarchs - the super generation - is able to fly 4,000 km to its winter destination in the mountains of Mexico.

This year in the 2016 Program, nine schools are planting gardens to help attract pollinators of all kinds: butterflies, birds and insects. Native species will be planted, and when the flowers bloom, the students can watch the feeding action. In addition, 14 schools ordered Monarch Breeding Kits, which will be set up in the classrooms at the beginning of September. The breeding kits come from a nursery that is accredited by the International Butterfly Breeders Organization.

Partners are essential to the momentum of this program. Maya Navrot, from Quinte Conservation, has assisted many schools with site plans and advice on plantings. Volunteers have contributed native plants and planting time to the pollinator gardens. Funding for this program has been gratefully received from TD Friends of the Environment, Napanee District Community Foundation, Quinte Conservation, Friends of the Salmon River, and Kingston Field Naturalists, as well as the contributions from participating schools.

For more information, contact Marilyn Murray, manager of the Monarch program, at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

“We weren't sure what to expect,” said Rena Upitis, the director of Wintergreen Studios on Saturday, June 4, as she was entering species onto a log sheet on her computer.

“But this is fantastic, isn't it!” she continued as she looked out over a building full of mostly young people who were listening to and watching the Salamander Man, Matt Ellerbeck, as he showed them some of the salamanders in his collection and talked about the salamanders that can be found in the woods, fields, and water at Wintergreen.

Last year the Kingston Field Naturalists held a 24-hour BioBlitz at Wintergreen and they identified over 1,000 species of plants, insects, and animals on the property.

When they indicated they were not going to come back this year, Upitis thought that maybe there was a way to put on a different kind of BioBlitz.

“The field naturalists are experts, and they had a scientific focus to their blitz. I wondered if there was a way to put the focus on youth and education. So I put up a poster at Queen's in late March looking for students to co-ordinate an event.” Upitis is a professor at Queen's in the faculty of education.

As part of the Queen's education program, student teachers are required to do one “alternative practicum”, a teaching opportunity outside of the normal school environment.

Two students in the department took the bait, and their three-week 'alt-practicum' turned into a three-month project. Kate Belmore and Monica Capovilla did not seem to mind, however, as they shifted gears easily from greeting and registering participants of all ages and darting about the Wintergreen property, gathering materials and supporting the presenters of the many workshops that were given during the two-day blitz.

Over 50 participants showed up on Saturday, and even with the overnight rain a total of more than 80 people spent at least part of the weekend scouring the property, looking for species and attending workshops.

Belmore and Capovilla are about to graduate from Queen's and the experience they have had organizing, promoting and executing the BioBlitz has been a highlight of their time in university.

“This kind of education is something I want to pursue, now that I've seen it in action,” said Belmore. “It might have ruined me for classroom teaching.”

In addition to the salamander workshop, there were workshops on pond life, wildflowers, even a presentation of peregrine falcons from Quebec, all spread out over the two days.

Rena Upitis took the place of Dr. Graham Whitelaw, who had been scheduled to provide a tour of the 20 metre x 20 metre bio-diversity plot at Wintergreen. He had been monitoring the plot but was not able to make it to the event.

The plot is fully inventoried, with tags on all the trees that are more than 10 cm wide as part of an effort to monitor changes over time.

There are plots throughout Canada and the one at Wintergreen includes a number of mature Butternut trees, some that have been somewhat resistant to the Butternut canker, which has devastated the population of Butternuts in Eastern Canada.

There were about 500 species identified at Wintergreen over the weekend, about half as many as in 2015. The identification of species was not the ultimate goal of this year's event, however. Sparking an interest in ecology and biodiversity in 80 people took precedence.

The Frontenac Stewardship Council brought a number of local and regional organizations together at the Clar-Mill Hall in Plevna last Saturday to present information of cultural and environmental/ecological interest.

“This area is blessed with unbelievable natural riches, and on that land, many generations of people have added other riches,” said event organizer Gray Merriam.

The event was designed to build on a similar event that was held two years ago at North Addington Education Centre in Cloyne, but the focus was different this time around. At Cloyne, forestry and alternative energy proposals were a focus, and there were a number of formal presentations, as well as involvement from the school community

It was a drop-in event, with booths set up by a dozen different organizations.

They included booths by local artisans, who are putting the finishing touches on the Back Country Studio Tour this September, and the Clarendon-Millar Archives.

Glenn Tunnock, who is a land use planner and has written a thesis on the Algonquin Land Claim, provided information about the Algonquin Land Claim and its implications for landowners.

Members of Mazinaw Lanark Forestry, a corporation owned by local foresters who have the contracts for forestry on Crown Lands in the region, were on hand to talk about sustainable forestry practices.

The Mississippi Madawaska Land Trust was also there, with information about the 358-acre Rose Hill Nature Reserve, which is located at the northwest junction of North Frontenac and Addington Highlands.

One group that has an interest in North Frontenac but has a lower profile in the region is The Land Between.

Leora Berman is the founder and chief executive officer of the group, which is a Haliburton-based organization dedicated to developing an understanding, appreciation, and ultimately the preservation of a large swath of land in Central and Eastern Ontario.

The Land Between (TLB) refers to an “eco-tone”, a region located between two major geological regions, in this case the region between the St. Lawrence Lowlands to the south and the Canadian Shield to the north.

It is described on the TLB website as being “characterized by low relief exposed granite to the north side and 'stepping stones' of limestone plain along the south side. Small and connected lakes and wetlands between these dry open ridges and patches of cool shaded forest are the patterns of this unique natural system. “The physical character of The Land Between, as an eco-tone, is shaped by fundamental transitions in: geology; physiography; climate; and elevation.

The Land Between is the outer reach for species from both sides, in addition to being the home base for other species, making it the region with the highest biodiversity in the province. It is also set to play a major role in maintaining species in the face of the effects of climate change, as some species retreat to the north because of climate change and others retreat to the south.

The Land Between is at the northern limit for species in Ontario such as White Oak, Woodchuck, Yellow-throated Vireo, Cottontail, Green Heron, Chorus Frog, Common Crow and others.

It is at the southern limit for Shield species such as Grey Wolf, Moose, American Raven, Jack Pine, River Otter and others, and other rare and unique species are found in TLB that rely on the region for survival, such as Ontario’s only lizard, the Five-lined Skink, the Golden Winged Warbler, Whippoorwill, Common Nighthawk, snakes, turtles, etc.

While The Land Between generally follows a line parallel to but slightly above Highway 7, in Frontenac County the rock outcrops, thin soil, mixture of limestone and granite, and marshes and fens, extend south to the Godfrey area, and include most of Central and North Frontenac. Certainly, as bleary-eyed residents can attest, there are Whippoorwills throughout that area.

The Land Between is a charitable organization with a board made up of a majority of First Nation members. Its goal is to provide research and to foster public awareness of the land and the culture of the region.

The preponderance of undeveloped Crown Land in North Frontenac makes the township important for TLB, because many of the larger and some of the smaller lakes in Muskoka and Haliburton counties have been developed to the point where they are no longer a suitable habitat for all of the species that were supported in the past.

“In order for a lake to continue to provide for the habitat in its vicinity it needs to remain at least 75% untouched,” said Leora Berman.

“As lakes are developed, there are ways to do it so that condominium and resort developments allow for the shoreline to be shared, keeping most of the lakefront intact.”

TLB has a number of projects on the go, including some major habitat research projects; education campaigns, The Land Between Book an educational video about the role hunting plays culturally and ecologically in the region; and the Turtle Guardian Campaign, which is aimed at youth.

“No other species can replace the role that turtles play in cleaning the water in our lakes,” said Berman, “so with the turtle population down by 50% all over Ontario, and most turtles now on the endangered list, we are all at risk.”

For further information on TLB, go to thelandbetween.ca

On Saturday June 4, the people on the land -- those who know it well – are invited to share their knowledge at a special community day in Plevna with groups who have formal and technical information about that land. The event will take place from 9:30am to 3:30pm in the Clar-Mill Hall on Buckshot Lake Road.

The objective of the day is to combine the knowledge of the people on the land with that of stewardship agencies to begin an inventory of i) specially valued places, and ii) places that need special care, focusing on the northeastern section of Frontenac County and its watersheds; to make a record of these places.

There are many official lists of the riches of our region but the people who have lived on the land and used it, and still do, hold the best knowledge of those riches. Community Day 509 will be an opportunity for folks who have shaped the landscapes North of 7 to see what riches the agencies have listed, to which they can add their own special places—those places they learned about by being on the land and on the waters.

Our environment includes special places that are both natural and historical. Together with ongoing events these form an ever-changing community. We should place high values on all places that are, or have been, important in shaping and holding together our community.

Everyone is welcome to attend and contribute and the Clarendon-Miller Volunteer Firefighters will have lunch for sale at the hall.

Contact Gray Merriam, 613-335-3589, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.; or Richard Emery 613-479-8057, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.