9.0 Historical Changes in the Land-Use and Wetland Availability in Old Norfolk County
9.3.2 Potential management actions to conserve and enhance the wetlands of old Norfolk County
Old Norfolk County's wetlands, as well as its creeks and drainage systems are extremely important for hundreds of species of wetland dependent flora and fauna, several of which are threatened or endangered (Section 9.2.1). From a landowner perspective, wetlands are an integral component of the landscape, as they serve many ecological, economic and educational purposes (Section 9.2.1). Also, while waterfowl production is limited in old Norfolk County, those birds that are produced do contribute to the sustainability of continental populations. However, because most of old Norfolk County lies within the Big Creek drainage basin which drains directly into Long Point Bay, one of the most important functions of maintaining healthy wetlands and river systems in old Norfolk County is the positive effect that this can have on the ecological integrity of Long Point Bay and its associated wetlands. Therefore, a landscape level approach should be taken to maintain old Norfolk County's wetlands.
The majority of wetlands remaining in old Norfolk County are privately owned. It is not always easy to convince landowners to conserve wetlands, as they do not always share an affinity with wildlife, and the benefits of flooding attenuation are generally realized by downstream properties. The benefits of wetland conservation are public in nature, while individual landowners are held responsible for their conservation. Consequently, conservation of wetlands and their benefits may require public acquisition of critical lands, and land-use regulations and/or incentives to guide private decision making (Wiebe 1995). Ontario Land Care, through NAWMP has been doing an excellent job of finding common ground between private landowners and both sustainable agricultural practices and wildlife conservation. It should be remembered that what is left of old Norfolk's wetlands is but a fraction of the original and that the cost of restoring and/or creating wetlands will preclude the realization of these high wetland densities ever again. However, we must do what we can to at least prevent any further net loss of wetlands in old Norfolk County, and throughout southern Ontario.
There is not any specific provincial legislation which pertains directly to wetland drainage, dredging, or filling. However, wetland uses are influenced by the Conservation Land Act, the Drainage Act, the Lakes and River Improvement Act, the Public Lands Act, the Ontario Water Resources Act, the Environmental Protection Act, The Fisheries Act, The Endangered Species Act, and others. While these acts can influence the management actions of certain landowners, it is apparent from successful programs such as Prairie Care and Ontario Land Care that incentives are more effective and are more readily accepted than are government regulations or outright protection.
Some of the groups that may provide financial or technical help or advice with the restoration or enhancement of wetlands in old Norfolk County are:
These agencies employ numerous options for protecting wetlands and their ecological functions, the use of which can depend on the particular wetland type or size and the desires of the landowner (GLWCAP 1997). They are:
2/ Outright Purchase - land is purchased from willing landowners by the government or a conservation organization.
3/ Right-of-first-refusal - this is a legally binding agreement in which the landowner agrees to allow the interested party to make the first offer should the land eventually be put up for sale.
4/ Donation - landowners donate their land to a conservation organization or government.
5/ Conservation Easements - this is a legal agreement in which the landowner retains ownership but restrictions are placed on what can be done to the land by the easement, even if the land is sold to
someone else.
6/ Lease - conservation organizations may lease land from property owners in order to protect significant wetlands over a specific time period.
7/ Verbal Agreement - organizations provide information about the importance of wetlands to
landowners and encourage them to agree informally to conserve wetlands on their property.
8/ Private Agreement - landowners are contracted to conserve wetlands on their own property.
Wetland creation or restoration can also be used to increase wetland density where it is low because of drainage. Restored wetlands provide habitat for waterfowl and several other species of wetland dependent flora and fauna, while having numerous benefits for humans as well (Section 9.2.1). Some considerations when conserving, rehabilitating, or creating wetlands:
1/ Extensive wetland drainage and rapid and efficient drainage on the old Norfolk Sand Plain have resulted in a low density of natural wetlands. This and the need for irrigation water by tobacco producers has resulted in manmade waterbodies being possibly the most common type of aquatic habitat in old Norfolk County. The use of agricultural ponds by waterfowl has been shown to increase with pond size, age, presence of loafing sites, emergent vegetation, shoreline irregularity and proximity to other ponds (Lokemoen 1973; Evrard 1975; Hudson 1983; Colahan 1984; Belanger & Couture 1988). Consequently, incentives and guidance should be provided to farmers to encourage proper construction, management, and enhancement of farm ponds for waterfowl and other wetland dependent wildlife. Often, very minor changes in pond construction or placement can result in habitat that is more suitable to wildlife. This practice will partially offset the effects of extensive wetland drainage and destruction in old Norfolk County, while increasing the number of waterfowl and other wetland dependant that are produced in the county (Hudson 1983). For instance, tobacco farmers construct ponds that are excessively deep with very steep banks that are not conducive to aquatic plant growth. By convincing them to build ponds with sloped shorelines and water depths less than approximately one metre, the wildlife potential of these ponds would increase dramatically.
2/ Marsh size is a particularly important management consideration when creating or rehabilitating wetlands, as many wetland dependent species prefer marshes that are greater than 5 ha (Brown and Dinsmore 1986). Mallards are the most common species of breeding waterfowl in southern Ontario and they tend to occur more regularly on wetlands that are greater than 5 hectares (Brown and Dinsmore 1986).
3/ Species richness is often greater in wetland complexes than in larger isolated marshes (Brown and Dinsmore 1986). Marsh isolation is particularly important when considering waterfowl reproduction, as few pairs settle in areas with low wetland density (Stoudt 1971, Batt et al. 1989). Also, waterfowl broods use several different wetlands and brood survival is directly related to wetland density (Stoudt 1971; Batt et al. 1989; Rotella and Ratti 1992). This can be attributed to the fact that the distance moved by broods is directly related to wetland density, and duckling suffer high mortality during overland movements (Rotella and Ratti 1992b). Therefore, creating or rehabilitating wetlands in intensively-farmed cropland, far from other wetlands or other aquatic habitats, may do little more than provide ecological traps for waterfowl. The few areas in old Norfolk County where fairly diverse wetland complexes do occur should be viewed as priority areas for wetland protection, creation and rehabilitation.
4/ Cattle trampling adversely affects the water quality and vegetation of wetlands and streams. One option for management is to exclude cattle from the water source and provide an alternate watering system. A gravity feed or solar powered pump can be used to provide continuous, safe access to clean water, well away from the wetland. However, there are very few cattle operations in old Norfolk County.
5/ Ducks Unlimited Canada has long used control structures to manipulate the water levels of wetlands. By regulating water levels in a manner that simulates natural water level fluctuations, managers can increase the productivity of important wetlands. While this may be an option in certain areas of old Norfolk, the coarse sand sediments of the area are not likely to respond well to drawdowns (Kadlec 1962; Kadec and Smith 1992)
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