Barrie Creeks, Lovers Creek, and Hewitt's Creek Subwatershed Plan

Fish Habitat –Fish communities in these subwatersheds vary.
Coldwater species, including mottled sculpin and brook trout, have
been found in Kidd’s, Whiskey, Hotchkiss, Lovers, and Hewitt’s
Creeks. Others show signs of stress with either no fish caught, or
with fish species found that are less sensitive to environmental
stresses. It is important to note that a number of sites in very urban
areas are still able to support coldwater species, indicating the strong
influence of groundwater in maintaining conditions. Benthic
invertebrate communities (organisms that live at the bottom of rivers
and lakes) also vary widely within the subwatersheds. The healthiest
sites are found in Lovers and Hewitt’s Creeks. Impacts to the aquatic
communities in these subwatersheds can be attributed to a wide range of factors, including expanding
urban areas, uncontrolled stormwater run-off, changes made to streams, invasive species, the removal
of streambank vegetation, and agriculture. Conditions can be improved through stream rehabilitation,
wetland protection, streambank planting, and treating stormwater run-off from both urban and
agricultural areas.
The Terrestrial Natural Environment – These features include
woodlands, wetlands, grasslands, and riparian (streambank) habitat,
and account for approximately 17%, 27%, and 21% of the land area
in the Barrie Creeks, Lovers Creek, and Hewitt’s Creek
subwatersheds, respectively. Woodlands cover 12% of the Barrie
Creeks subwatershed, 27% of the Lovers Creek subwatershed, and
15% of the Hewitt’s Creek subwatershed. These numbers fall below
Environment Canada’s Areas of Concern guideline of 30% as a
minimum threshold for maintaining woodland dependent biodiversity.
The Barrie and Hewitt’s Creeks subwatersheds also have low levels
of streambank cover, wetland area, and interior forest area; while the Lovers Creek subwatershed is
relatively healthier with respect to these parameters. Significant increases in urban area and climate
change are of significant concern to the natural environment features in these subwatersheds.
RECOMMENDATIONS
Recommendations based on analysis of the current conditions and stressors are provided in each
chapter of this subwatershed plan. There are close to 80 recommendations in total, with some
pertaining to all of the partners involved in the development of the plan, including the LSRCA,
municipalities, and the provincial ministries of Natural Resources; Environment; and Agriculture, Food,
and Rural Affairs. Through policies in the Lake Simcoe Protection Plan, it is expected that municipal
Official Plans will be consistent with these recommendations
These recommendations include:
• Continued implementation of on-the-ground stewardship projects to improve water quality and
aquatic habitat, promote infiltration of precipitation, and broaden the extent of natural features
• Promoting and supporting water conservation and re-use initiatives
• Improved land use planning practices to minimize the impacts of development
• Educating members of the public and targeted industries on topics including the dangers of
using invasive species in horticulture, the importance of maintaining groundwater recharge
areas, and good practices for the use of road salt to minimize environmental impacts
• Studying the potential impacts of climate change and developing plans to limit its impacts