May 2024 - The marsh is awaking to Spring


 ... but still no decision on protecting it as a Natural Urban Park. 

Please write to the City of Pickering Council and MPP Bethlenfalvy to urge them to work together and create the Whitevale Natural Urban Park in their current review of the City of Pickering Official Plan

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Write an email to the politicians asking them to work together to create the Whitevale Urban Park

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Provincial and Municipal politicians need to sit down and work together as Pickering is reviewing its official plan (May 27, 2024 Council Meeting) .  The marsh and former aggregate pit immediately north of the hamlet of Whitevale (west of North Road) needs to be protected. It is for now in the hands of the Province but has been offered for sale to developers. We are asking you to sign the petition on May 25, 2024 during the Whitevale Festival and to start writing letters of support for the creation of this Whitevale Natural Urban Park to our MPP Bethlenfalvy (peter.bethlenfalvyco@pc.ola.org,   Constituency office. Suite 213 1550 Kingston Rd. Pickering, ON L1V 1C3   Tel.: 905-509-0336),   our Mayor Kevin Ashe ( mayor@pickering.ca ), and our Ward 3 councillors David Pickles ( dpickles@pickering.ca ) and Shaheen Butt ( sbutt@pickering.ca ). Other councillors should be contacted too, as they have expressed their continued support. They need to receive these emails b...
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Some Background

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The Whitevale Nature and Marsh Committee is dedicated to preserving and restoring the former quarry located immediately North of Whitevale and West of North Road. This area is for now in public hands, owned but the Province of Ontario but Infrastructure Ontario has included in Package 10, which is presently offered for sale to developers. Infrastructure Ontario has even applied for rezoning with the City of Pickering, and has proposed a residential plan, which seems superimposed to the site, without consideration to its ecology nor topography. This site has not been recently studied for its environmental significance. This area is in the process of regenerating. Its flora and fauna are rich, including milkweed where monarch find the ideal habitat, numerous patches of thyme thriving in the sandy areas, woodlots and meadows with diverse habitats for birds and other wildlife. Its striking topography of valleys occupied and marshes, as well as dramatic cliffs overlooking these lower a...
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 It has been almost three years since our last post! In the meantime, COVID change our way of living. Going to an office, a cinema, a play, a conference or a workshop were not an option for a while, People communicated by phone or through the internet. However, what increased tremendously was our need for the outdoors, our need to walk or play outside, our connection to nature. The outdoors were relatively safe and we could walk, hike, explore, exercise or run freely outside. The parking lots of the trailheads and local parks were full. We realized even more clearly our need for green space and parks. The Seaton Trail was busy and people signed our petition to protect the Whitevale Marsh. Our group continued to meet on line, or at times face to face with masks, with politicians. We met with MPP Bethlenfalvy, former Pickering Mayor Dave Ryan and councillor Pickles. We were given some hope that there was something in the works to protect the marsh (see attached the letter from former...
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