8132 - NPCA SNF Watershed Report.indd - Niagara Peninsula ...

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WATERSHED PLANOBJECTIVESRESPONSIBLE AGENCIES AND GROUPS RECOMMENDED MANAGEMENT ACTIONS COSTNPCAMUNICIPALITIESREGIONAL NIAGARANPCMNRMOEOMAFRADFOCONSERVATION GROUPSAGRICULATURAL COMMUNITYPRIVATE LANDOWNERSIMPLEMENTATION$COMMUNICATION, EDUCATIONAND RECREATIONLEGENDLEAD STAKEHOLDERINVOLVED STAKEHOLDERSHORT TERMMEDIUM TERMLONG TERMFoster and develop partnerships betweenand amongst agencies, interest groups andlandownersPromote awareness of the linkages betweenhealthy water, healthy lifestyles andeconomic viability of rural and urban landusesPromote the wise use of groundwater andsurface water resources in terms of human,agricultural and ecological needsContinue to recognize groups and individuals for their environmental effortsin the South Niagara Falls watershedPresent Watershed Plan findings and successes to regional and municipal governmentofficials and policy makersDevelop communication networks with agricultural groups, Niagara College, BrockUniversity, and others for information sharing and project implementationContinue the NPCA’s Water Quality Improvement Program whereby landowners areprovided with incentives to carry out projects on their landsWork with landowners and conservation groups to foster partnerships pertaining toSpecies at Risk and inform interested parties of funding programssuch as the Habitat Stewardship FundAssemble and meet with a Watershed Plan Implementation Committee made up of localrepresentation (government agencies, organizations, landowners) to annually re-evaluatethe Fifteen-Sixteen-Eighteen Mile Creeks Watershed Plan’s components, and provide inputon new or revised restoration initiatives in the watershedContinue creating demonstration sites to educate landowners about the water quality benefitsof riparian buffers, wetlands and upland restorationDisseminate material pertaining to alternative fertilizer use for residential lawnsCreate and disseminate a Watershed Report Card highlighting restoration initiatives in thewatershed after 3 to 5 years watershed plan implementationSeek partnerships with local recreation groups to improve natural heritage feature andrecreational opportunities (e.g., Niagara Parks Commission, conservation groups)ONGOINGONGOINGONGOING120,000/yr**EXISTING PROGRAMONGOINGEXISTING PROGRAMEXISTING PROGRAM12,000/Report CardONGOINGDEVELOPMENTPromote environmentally-sound land usedecision making in the watershed forcurrent and future urban development andrural/agricultural land useIdentify and incorporate significant natural areas and ecological linkages into planningdocuments and policies to ensure they are buffered from developmentContinue to implement NPCA Plan Input and Review Policies(NPCA 1993 as amended in 2003; 2005)ONGOINGONGOING* Includes project costs and NPCA salaries** Based on grant ceiling under NPCA’s Water Quality Improvement Program for landowners92
The recommended actions have also been identified in terms oftheir implementation. Green denotes short term implementation,yellow represents medium term implementation and red is usedto indicate long term implementation. For example, projectsthat are ongoing are almost always implemented over the longterm and are therefore, represented in red. Projects that havespecific funding requirements or require approvals, for example,are often represented in green and yellow, thereby indicatingshort term or medium term implementation respectively.MonitoringMonitoring serves two purposes in watershed planning.Monitoring is required to update the watershed plan as landuses change and new issues are identified, and monitoringalso serves to measure the success of restoration projects interms of enhancing and protecting water quality for all usersin a watershed. Monitoring the achievement of a watershedplan’s objectives involves continually reviewing the SouthNiagara Falls Watershed Plan. The Plan will be reviewedby the NPCA Restoration Team and the South Niagara FallsWatershed Plan Implementation Committee (comprised ofpublic interest groups, watershed municipalities, agency, andcitizen representatives) annually. As part of the review process,the plan will be amended whenever necessary to reflect thechanging environmental, economic, technical, or social trendswithin the jurisdiction of the NPCA, and more specificallywithin the South Niagara Falls watershed. A complete reviewand necessary revisions will occur ever 5 years.In addition to monitoring the objectives or outcomes of theWatershed Plan, the monitoring process includes measuringthe performance and success of the management actions usedto achieve the objectives. In this regard, monitoring serves tocollect and analyze aquatic, terrestrial and socio-economic datato identify changes in the watershed; both from restorationactivities, and growth and development. This component of themonitoring program should include:• Water quality sampling, benthic studies (BioMap), andwater temperature monitoring through the NPCA’s WaterQuality Monitoring Program. This data can be used as anindicator of whether or not the recommendations providedin the Watershed Plan have maintained and/or improvedthe physical and chemical characteristics of water quality inthe watershed. Continued groundwater monitoring shouldalso be included as part of the water quality monitoringprogram.• On-going classification of vegetative communities usingstandardized protocols (Ecological Land Classification).These habitat areas are recorded as Geographic InformationSystem layers and are updated bi-annually to evaluate changesin community composition, habitat size and fragmentation.• Biological life assessments (qualitative and quantitative)such as insects/pollinators, fish and birds.• A compilation of the number and location of BMPsimplemented in the watershed. This will also include pollutantloading reduction measurements. This information will behoused in a restoration database and updated as projects arecompleted.• Watershed landowners should also be surveyed (at least every5 years prior to the Watershed Plan review) to help watershedplanners and the restoration team identify new watershedissues, and evaluate changes in knowledge and behaviour.Land use and land use change in the watershed will also beevaluated. This can be completed using the Agricultural Non-Point Source Pollution (AGNPS) model. AGNPS is a computermodel that is used for evaluating the effect of managementdecisions impacting a watershed system, such as predictingnonpoint source pollutant loadings within agriculturalwatersheds. For example, AGNPS can simulate the effects ofvarious management practices on pollution in the watershed.The model can predict where runoff from rain, snowmelt,or irrigation may carry pesticides, fertilizers, or sedimentthroughout a watershed. The AGNPS model should be amendedas land use change occurs, especially when those changes donot coincide with future land use planning.TIME FRAMEMonthly during ice free season(March-October)YearlyTypically every 3 years (spring and fall)5 Year ReviewContinuous MonitoringContinuous MonitoringACTIONSurface water quality samplingProject Monitoring: photos and notes of restoration projects aretaken to document status of project (i.e., improvements, growth,change)Biological Monitoring and Assessment Program samplingReview of the watershed plan: Investigation of identified issuesand status of recommended actions is completed. Any new issueswill be identified and an updated restoration strategy will becreated.Landowners are given a monitoring journal to document anychanges they observe occurring in the project area.Update Natural Heritage Information Database and GIS layers toreflect Natural Heritage Areas Inventory field surveys and projectfindings.Table 15: Watershed Monitoring Schedule93
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Watershed ObjectivesEach watershed
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Figure 3: TopogRaphy6
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Figure 5: Geology8
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Town of Fort Erie. Some sections of
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Figure 8: Niagara River Area of Con
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WetlandsThe Ontario Wetland Evaluat
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The following descriptions of the r
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The Old Lincoln Street Woodlot is a
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Aquatic HabitatFish Community Studi
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Table 2: FISH SPECIES IN THE SOUTH
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Figure 13: MUNICIPAL DRAINS25
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Figure 14: WATER QUALITY AND POTENT
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Groundwater ResourcesA Groundwater
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Niagara Falls watershed, the roads
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Municipal Drain MaintenanceSeveral
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Water Quality Best Management Pract
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and site alteration shall not be pe
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table 6: provincially rare species
Page 48 and 49: Figure 16: natural heritage system
Page 50 and 51: Figure 18: wetland suitability mapp
Page 52: Grassy Brook Restoration StrategyGr
Page 55 and 56: table 7: Grassy brook subwatershed
Page 57 and 58: Hunters Drain Restoration StrategyH
Page 59 and 60: table 8: hunters drain subwatershed
Page 61 and 62: Tee Creek Restoration StrategyThe m
Page 63 and 64: table 9: tee creek subwatershed res
Page 69 and 70: Lyons Creek Restoration StrategyThe
Page 71 and 72: Table 10: Lyons Creek Subwatershed
Page 79 and 80: Table 11: Usshers Creek Subwatershe
Page 85 and 86: portion of the subwatershed, and a
Page 87 and 88: Table 12: Bayers Creek Subwatershed
Page 89 and 90: Table 12: Bayers Creek Subwatershed
Page 91 and 92: Table 13: Niagara River 9 Subwaters
Page 93 and 94: Table 13: Niagara River 9 Subwaters
Page 95 and 96: WATERSHED PLANOBJECTIVESWATER RESOU
Page 97: WATERSHED PLANOBJECTIVESNATURAL HER
Page 101 and 102: Environment Canada. 2004b. Best Man
Page 103 and 104: GlossaryArea of Concern: An area is
Page 105 and 106: South Niagara FallsAPPENDICES
Page 107 and 108: Land Management Issues and Concerns
Page 109 and 110: BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES AND RESTO
Page 111 and 112: Scoring Descriptions for Stream Vis
Page 113 and 114: APPENDIX bINSECT/INVERTEBRATE HABIT
Page 115 and 116: APPENDIX bSuspected Causes ofObserv
Page 121 and 122: BEST MANAGEMENT PRACTICES MENUAPPEN
Page 127 and 128: APPENDIX DSOUTH NIAGARA FALLS WETLA
Page 129 and 130: APPENDIX ESPECIES REFERENCE LISTSCI
Page 131 and 132: APPENDIX F
Page 133 and 134: APPENDIX FHABITAT: WETLANDCRITERIA:
Page 141: APPENDIX F
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8132 - NPCA SNF Watershed Report.indd - Niagara Peninsula ...

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