PROTECTING SPECIES AT RISK AND THEIR HABITATS

For Immediate Release
November 06, 2008

PROTECTING SPECIES AT RISK AND THEIR HABITATS
McGuinty Government Funds Local Stewardship Projects

Applications are now being accepted for the third year of Ontario’s Species at Risk Stewardship Fund which supports volunteer efforts to protect and restore species at risk and their habitats across the province.

The four-year Species at Risk Stewardship Fund is part of the Ministry of Natural Resources’ stewardship-first approach to species protection. The fund is available to landowners, farmers, Aboriginal peoples, academic institutions, industries, municipalities, conservation organizations and stewardship councils for eligible protection and recovery activities.

The application deadline is end of business day, December 12, 2008. The application package is available online at ontario.ca/speciesatrisk.

During its first two years, the stewardship fund supported more than 200 projects covering a wide variety of activities that include: protecting nesting sites for piping plover, improving habitat for wood turtles, cleaning up river wetlands, restoring tall grass prairie habitat, and monitoring and tracking Ontario’s woodland caribou to get a better understanding of their habitat requirements.

To be eligible for funding, a proposal must aim to do one or more of the following:

• Improve the status of species at risk and their habitats through stewardship and recovery activities
• Encourage involvement in stewardship activities through outreach, education or youth employment
• Increase stewardship-related knowledge and skills of interested landowners or groups.

QUOTES

“Every region of Ontario is home to an amazing variety of natural habitats and an equally amazing variety of species,” said Natural Resources Minister Donna Cansfield. “I’m proud of the great work being done by volunteers across the province through the stewardship fund to protect and recover species at risk and help us keep other species from becoming endangered in the first place.”

QUICK FACTS

• Ontario is home to more than 30,000 species, of which more than 180 are currently identified as being at risk.

• Ontario’s new Endangered Species Act took effect on June 30, 2008, making the province a North American leader in species at risk protection and recovery.

LEARN MORE

• Find out more about Species At Risk in Ontario (ontario.ca/speciesatrisk).

For More Information

Ivan Langrish, Minister’s Office, 416-314-2212

Barry Radford, Communications Services Branch, 416-314-2123

ontario.ca/natural-resources-news

General Enquiries

Natural Resources Information Centre
1-800-667-1940
TTY 1-866-686-6072 (Hearing Impaired)