With the environment getting less attention from our politicians and media these days, it is important to stay focused and lead our communities in environmental projects.
Here are two sustaining examples of how to care for and support the environment and the local community.
The annual Rotary Adopt a Road spring clean-up
This bi-annual cleanup has been organized by our club for over twenty years. Every spring and fall a number of our members and guests meet along the Trent Severn waterway to collect garbage created by careless, unthinking people.
This 8 km stretch of road along the Otonobee River between Peterborough and Lakefield is one of the most scenic roads in Ontario. Visitors from near and far use this road for its scenic beauty and to relax from their busy lives.
Several members from the two local Rotary clubs along with several family members met on a beautiful Saturday in May prepared to pick up the ubiquitous garbage that is always strewn along the roadway and in the picturesque parkettes along the way. Garbage bags, safety vests, dumping permit and liability insurance complete the preparation and are provided by our county office.
Teams of two are assigned to various points along the route and are given safety instructions for picking up the garbage before heading out.
A whopping total of 110 kg. of trash was collected and taken to the local dump.
After the pick-up was completed, a lunch and social time was offered by the environment committee and hosted by a Kawartha Rotarian and his wife.
The participants were quite amazed at the amount of garbage that was collected, and the consensus is always how happy they are that they can positively impact the environment and community by spending a couple of hours on a Saturday morning making this stretch of roadway clean and pristine once again. We even had drivers and bicyclists thank us for doing what we were doing!
One day, we truly hope that this job will be obsolete. We can only hope!
Tree planting
A call by Rotary International, and the Environment is one of the Seven Areas of Focus, and scientists from around the world to plant more trees was recently answered by the Peterborough Kawartha club members.
On a coolish Saturday in May a group of 12 Rotarians and friends carpooled to the Ballyduff property of the Kawartha Land Trust near Pontypool, Ontario.
KLT manages 44 properties, 8100 acres of important and diverse land in the Kawarthas. Their mission is to restore and protect its biodiversity for the health of the land for generations to come and for public to take the opportunity to explore the beautiful trails in the area.
The 240-acre Ballyduff property was entrusted to KLT by the McKim and Garsonnin family in 2011.
Our Rotary team met with our KLT contact, Elliott Goen at 10:00 AM and led us, with shovels at hand, from the parking lot to the planting area, sharing with us, along the way, about the history and challenges the property is facing, such as combatting one such invasive species of flora - Dog strangling vine. This vine is one of the worst nemeses in our natural areas spreading far and wide and eventually covering all of the ground while choking out and killing other vegetation.
Planting various trees closely within an area will create dense shade and emits chemicals that prevent the spread of the vine and hopefully keep it at bay.
Within two hours, we managed to plant a variety of 450, 3- to 4-year-old trees within the designated area. Amongst them were sugar and red maples, red oaks, white pines, elder berries and more.
Everyone seemed to thoroughly enjoy the physical activity of planting and felt good about giving back to the environment. It was hard tiring work, but all knew it was worthwhile work.
To make the outing even better, we then met up at a Club member’s home where we were treated to a delicious lunch of homemade pizza, an incredibly delicious salad, and a Maple Light beverage. Our members always appreciate a little social time after any project, it helps to solidify our fellowship.
This was such an enjoyable project that our members have already requested for more outings just like this. Not only did we plant trees to sustain the local environment, but we also ensured that the beauty of nature would be our legacy for generations to come.
Here is an idea!
What is YOUR club doing for the environment to create sustainability and a legacy?
The District Environment Committee would like to challenge our District clubs and members to take on an environment project in their communities and share stories with the district membership.
Start planning an environment project now and let the Rotarians in District 7010 know how your club is supporting your environment and your community.
If your project is tree planting, it could be Rotary’s contribution towards the Ontario Government 50 million tree program.
Let’s create a 7010 ENVIRONMENTAL buzz!
The District Environment Committee