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

The Barrie Creeks, Lovers Creek and Hewitt’s Creek Subwatershed Plan
Like forests, wetland size and proximity
to other natural areas has a significant
influence on some wildlife species and
ecological functions (e.g. Detenbeck et
al., 1993; Gibbs 1998; Guadagnin &
Maltchik, 2006). Contiguous wetland
areas have been calculated and the
distribution of wetland patch sizes is
displayed in Figure 6-8 to Figure 6-10.
While the total area of wetland
represents the amount of wetland
completely within the subwatershed, the
number of patches also includes any
patches touching the subwatershed
boundary. This methodology was used
to avoid underestimating the number of
large patches.
There are approximately 115.7 ha of
wetland in the Barrie Creeks
subwatershed, which is approximately
What is a Provincially Significant Wetland?
The Ontario Wetland Evaluation System was developed by
the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (1993). It was
implemented in a response to an increasing concern for the
need to conserve wetland habitats in Ontario. The wetland
evaluation system aims to evaluate the value or importance
of a wetland based on a scoring system where four principal
components each worth 250 points make a total of 1000
possible points.
The four principal components that are considered in a
wetland evaluation are the biological, social, hydrological,
and special features. Wetlands which score 600 or more
total points (or 200 points in the biological or special feature
components) are classified as being Provincially Significant.
The Province of Ontario, under the Provincial Policy
Statement (PPS) protects wetlands that rank as Provincially
Significant. The PPS states that “Development and site
alteration shall not be permitted in significant wetlands.”
3.1% of the landscape, composed of a scattering of small riparian wetlands along Kidds Creek,
Bunker Creek, Dyments Creek, Hotchkiss Creek, and Whiskey Creek (Figure 6-7, Figure 6-8),
with a median size of only 1.5 ha. The total wetland cover within this subwatershed though is
dominated by the unevaluated wetlands contiguous with the Provincially Significant Bear Creek
wetland. This wetland feature accounts for 50% of the total wetland cover remaining in this
subwatershed (Figure 6-7). The Bear Creek wetland complex is the only evaluated wetland in
the Barrie Creeks subwatershed; approximately 27 ha of this provincially significant wetland is
within this subwatershed, and forms the headwaters of Dyments Creek (and also forms part of
the headwaters of the adjacent Bear Creek subwatershed which flows into Georgian Bay). The
remainder of the wetlands have been identified by LSRCA in their natural heritage system
mapping, but have never been evaluated under the Provincial system.
Chapter 6: Terrestrial Natural Heritage 275