THUNDER BAY – A section of Northern Ontario shoreline approved for 300 cottage lots will remain undeveloped after 15 years of negotiations between environmentalists and the American property owner.
On Wednesday Nature Conservancy of Canada officially announced a deal that will keep the 1,018-hectare property, located at Big Trout Bay, in its pristine condition. Comprised mainly of boreal forest and 21 kilometres of shoreline, the NCC’s James Duncan said the property was one of its highest-priority conservation targets.
“It’s the last privately owned undeveloped bay between Duluth and Thunder Bay. That in of itself made it incredibly important to take on,” said Duncan, the NCC’s Ontario region vice-president.
“As well it’s an important breeding site for peregrine falcons, which are a species of concern. And, because it’s been privately owned, we haven’t been able to get in there to really discover what else is on that property.”
The sale, which involved partnerships with a the J.A. Woollam Foundation, the Margaret A. Cargill Foundation, the Bobolink Foundation and the Rogers Foundation, was partially funded through a $3.3-million investment by the federal government’s Natural Areas Conservation Program.
A number of other organizations, including Green Leaf Advisors, the Conservation Fund and individual donors on both sides of the borders also gave to the cause.
It’s a massive international undertaking, Duncan said.
“When you look at the north shore of Superior, from Boundary Waters Canoe Wilderness Area, all the way over to Pukaskwa National Park, we have an opportunity to set aside the largest, most pristine freshwater coastline in the entire world,” Duncan said.
“So even though this may be a small part of that effort, we have a global responsibility to protect the Great Lakes and I don’t think there’s a better example of private action to do that than projects like Big Trout Bay.”
Liberal MP Don Rusnak (Thunder Bay-Rainy River) said development is important, but so too is the environment.
There needs to be balance.
“I don’t think anyone wants to destroy the environment,” he said, asked how conservation fits into the newly installed U.S. government’s business-first approach to environmental matters.
“I think responsible people realize that we need to protect our environment, but protect that environment responsibly. We have to have economic development, that’s just the nature of the game.”
