Neville Park's Lost River

One of the biggest mistakes is to try to build right over a river, because this greatly interferes with nature's intended course. A whole street, with houses on both sides, was put in over what was obviously once a flourishing eco-system, on Neville Park Boulevard in the Toronto Beach area.

I once met a woman who lived in one of these houses, and she told me about the water and spongy ground in her driveway. I said I had noticed sloping front steps and repairs to the brickwork on some of the houses, where the movement of water underneath had actually shifted some of the buildings.

I also asked her about the houses on the west side of the street (north of Queen Street) which have very steep front yards and several flights of steps to get up to them. I said "Wouldn't it delay the response time of emergency personnel if they had to climb up all those steps - especially in the snow and ice in winter?" She replied that it was "no problem", because a friend of hers had been carried down to an ambulance one time. However, she added that the friend had died.

There are other places in Toronto where houses have been built right over rivers too. One is the houses on the east side of Glen Manor Drive, south of Queen Street, which were built right on top of a river which used to be big enough to have boats come up it from Lake Ontario. One of the houses has shifted so far over that it actually leans on the next house. Taddle Creek in the Toronto Annex area is another example: I have been in the house on the northwest corner of Bernard and St. George Streets, and the floors in it have shifted to an extreme slant. It looks down across the street to the Chinese Consulate, and one can only imagine how international relations are affected. The Garrison Creek regularly floods the basements on Shaw Street, and downhill from there, the playing field at the Christie Pits has water and spongy ground even on the dry summer days.

While on the subject of real estate you might want to consider not buying, the new houses on the southwest corner of Queen and Woodbine were built right on what used to be part of Ashbridges Bay, and they require sump pumps in the basements - not a good place to be if there is ever a repeat of Hurricane Hazel! And what does a street named "Fallingbrook" suggest to you? (Also, be suspicious of any house which is built with wood right down touching the edge of the lawn, as this makes wonderful termite habitat.)

Strategic Natural Places to Save

One important place which has fortunately been saved is Grant's Woods, near Orillia, Ontario. It has more than 52 acres of rare, old-growth forest. The man who owned it, William M. Grant, was a very responsible steward of the land and he donated it to the Couchiching Conservancy.

Volunteers worked hard to convert the house into a Conservancy Centre and foundations and local businesses donated money to it. There are now educational programs for schools and other community groups at Grant's Woods, as well as walking trails for those who wish to observe nature.

Another important place which should have been better saved is the kettle lakes of the Oak Ridges Moraine. Again, many volunteers worked very hard to educate the public about the importance of the kettle lakes for Toronto's future water supply. However, despite their pre-election promise to save the kettle lakes of Bond Lake and Lake Wilcox, the Liberal government failed to take effective action once elected. They claimed that it would have cost the taxpayers too much money to oppose the developers in court, but what judge would have ruled in favour of such ill-advised development?

An additional strategic place to save - or, at least, to be in harmony with - is the ley lines of the earth. The Indians used to travel in the same direction as the rivers flowed, often in canoes. However, what has happened more recently is that streets and highways have been built at right-angles to the rivers, with bridges carrying large amounts of traffic at right-angles to the natural flow.

People respond unconsciously to this lack of underlying harmony. For example, the large bridge called the Bloor Viaduct over Toronto's Don River has been the scene of numerous suicides. In addition, where the subway crosses the Humber River near the Old Mill, bodies have been found. Other behaviours in the places where roads cross at right-angles to rivers are accidents, graffiti, and other crimes. In other words, something is reminding people that something is wrong - and it will continue to do so until the rivers and nature are respected.

The Lost Species of Ontario

Ontario used to have large flocks of passenger pigeons. In fact, my grandfather told my father that there were so many of them that the sky would turn dark when they flew over. However, due to human mismanagement of the environment, there is not one passenger pigeon left today. One reason is that they were hunted . Another reason was habitat loss, because they nested in the white pines and pines were cut down for lumber.

There used to be plants which you no longer see as well. A relative of ours, Annabelle (Lucas) Noble of Lefroy, Ontario was interviewed for the Bradford Witness when she was over 100 years old in the late 1960s. She recalled:

"I remember plants growing almost wild around the door, plants unheard of today: Sweet Mary, when pinched gave off a lovely perfume. Live Forever was a thick-leafed green vine and of course, there was Old Man and Old Woman. These foliage plants grew around the old well, too."

How many other species have disappeared? Let us make sure that we take good care of the ones we have left, so that they will still be here in the future.

The Care of City Trees

The older parts of Ontario cities such as Toronto have tall trees - often red or white oaks. These trees have many benefits including shade for us from the sun, the cooling of houses in the summer, protection from wind in the winter, habitat for wildlife, beauty, and property value.

Yet, many of these trees are near the end of their life cycle, and not enough new ones are being planted. How about a law that, every time a tree is cut down, two new ones have to be planted?

Trees, like all living beings including us, need food. Their food comes from the leaves which fall on the ground and become soil again, so that the cycle of life will sustain itself. Yet, many of the leaves are taken away from the trees which provided them; the leaves are removed in bags. The trees eventually become less green.

Another problem is air pollution. Some types of trees are more susceptible to pollution than others. You can observe those trees which have just branches and no leaves at the top, which is where the new growth should be taking place. Norway maples are widely planted because they are pollution-resistant, grow quickly, and provide shade. However, they are not native trees, and the birds do not nest in them for that reason.

A more intelligent approach is obviously needed for the care of our trees.