KAWARTHA LAKES-The Kawartha Lakes Environmental Advisory Committee (KLEAC) has announced the 2021 Environmental Heroes.
This year KLEAC recognized a variety of individuals, businesses and youth living in Kawartha Lakes committed to improving the wellness of the environment with three award categories: Environmental Hero, Environmental Business Hero and Environmental Youth Hero.
Environmental Hero
- Kawartha Trans Canada Trail Association: Marnie Callaghan, Sherry Sutton and Elayne Windsor created a pollinator garden in a local Reaboro park through the Kawartha Trans Canada Trail. The garden supports a wide diversity of life and provides a spot of interest along the trail.
- Plant A Forest: Richard and Sadie Gauder, started the organization Plant A Forest to work with landowners, farmers and conservation areas to plant indigenous plants and help create biodiversity. Using plantings from local businesses, they plant twice a year, once in the spring and once in the fall.
- Canopy Project: John Ireland is the founder of the non-profit organization Canopy Project Kawartha Lakes (CPKL), a volunteer-led community group whose goal is to increase the urban canopy in the community. The project has led to hundreds of trees being planted across the municipality.
Environmental Business Hero
- Unwrapped: Owners of Unwrapped in downtown Lindsay, Jenny Connell and Jessica Moynes provide hundreds of environmentally friendly products that has saved thousands of tonnes of plastic waste from going to the landfill.
- Country Cupboard: Julia Taylor from the Country Cupboard in Fenelon Falls is one of the most environmentally aware people in Kawartha Lakes. Her store has taught people to stop using plastic bags, provides recyclable vessels for bulk items, replaces plastics with environmentally products and gives trees away annually.
- Potash Creek Farms: A cut-your-own Christmas Tree operation on a 99 acre property north-east of Omemee run by Dan Vanderzwet. Each December the Potash Creek Farms opens up for customers to cut their own spruce, pine, and fir trees. Each April, the Vanderzwets also plant two to three year seedlings to balance the trees.
- Three Forks Farm: A family operated farm on 98 acres just south of Bobcaygeon. Owners Elecia and Jarod Chinnick work hard to implement and rejuvenate sustainable farming practices and grow local food at Three Forks Farm.
- Field Sparrow Farms: Another family run farm in Bobcaygeon, led by Henry and Sarah Bakker. Field Sparrow Farms believes in responsible and innovative farming strategies that benefit customers, producers and the community. They produce premium meats in ecological and sustainable ways.
Environmental Youth Hero
- 6th Lindsay Brownies: This group of Brownies are out there learning about the local beekeepers and pollinators, doing seed workshops and out on the trails furthering environmental education and doing more for the community.
“Thank you to everyone on behalf of KLEAC and Council, for being such incredible environmental stewards in Kawartha Lakes,” commented Tracy Richardson, Deputy Mayor and KLEAC Council Member, and Pat Warren, Chair of KLEAC. “You’ve really raised the benchmark and we appreciate everything you’re doing to show others in the community of what we all can do to protect the environment.”
The full award presentation is now available to watch on the City of Kawartha Lakes YouTube. For more details on the contest and other programming, visit kawarthalakes.ca/environment.
