Pelham’s plan to protect natural systems & save taxpayers millions
(Natural Assets Initiative)

Pelham’s plan to protect natural systems & save taxpayers millions


The GTA’s watersheds are in crisis. 

Despite saving residents from flooding, providing clean drinking water and sustaining remaining critical habitat for hundreds of species, urban growth is pushing them to the point of collapse. 

A report from Environmental Defence released late last year showed how further pressure on three watersheds surrounding Toronto and Peel are on the brink of “ecological breakdown”

Poor water quality; forest and agricultural land paved over for homes and shopping malls, which bring with them air pollution and contamination; and years of municipalities and the Ontario government prioritizing rapid growth over environmental preservation have irrevocably damaged the region’s major watercourses. 

The Greenbelt and the healthy headwaters that have mostly been spared from development are now also under threat, under a PC government bent on building Highway 413 to open the door for future growth.

Southern Ontario’s Greenbelt is the largest piece of protected greenspace, farmland, forests, wetlands and watersheds in the world. It’s an invaluable 2 million acres of ecologically rich land that plays a critical role in supporting diverse habitats and providing essential ecosystem services to millions of Canadians in the Golden Horseshoe. The health of the Greenbelt directly affects the drinking water quality for over 7 million Canadians.

Despite ongoing pressures from PC policies, one municipality has recognized the value of protecting this ecological treasure. It has published a study that makes an incredible case for protecting it.

With support from the Greenbelt Foundation, the Town of Pelham has teamed up with the Natural Assets Initiative (NAI) on the Pelham Greenbelt Natural Asset Management Project to identify, measure, value and manage the town’s natural assets, particularly those within Ontario’s Greenbelt, and ensure these natural resources continue to provide essential services and a wide range of co-benefits to the community. The study considers “natural assets” like trees, healthy soil, wetlands and watersheds in the same vein as physical assets like roads, stormwater systems and sewer systems. Both provide value to the municipality, but the town did not have to pay to install natural assets or finance their upkeep; they provide value—in the tens of millions of dollars—simply by being left alone. 

This new study integrates nature as part of Pelham’s overall core infrastructure, ensuring the continued provision of resilient and cost-effective services. The report offers detailed recommendations for other communities interested in advancing their service delivery through natural infrastructure.

“Pelham is proud to be a leader in including natural infrastructure as part of our asset management plan,” said Mayor Marvin Junkin. “With the success of this project, we hope that other municipalities will follow our example and find ways to preserve and protect natural infrastructure assets within their boundaries.”

The report outlines that the natural assets in Pelham are valued at more than $585 million in stormwater management and flooding services (the equivalent cost of replacing these services with traditional infrastructure).  

But the benefits of Pelham’s natural assets go beyond just stormwater management. 

The town’s natural areas also provide a range of other essential ecosystem services including carbon sequestration, which helps to mitigate the impacts of climate change by removing greenhouse gases from the atmosphere; recreation opportunities, which enhance residents’ quality of life; and freshwater supply, which supports the local drinking water system.

Taken together, the annual value of these combined ecosystem services ranges from $22.1 million to $24.7 million. 

 

(Natural Assets Initiative)



 

The need to prioritize natural asset management is especially pressing in urban and peri-urban areas since around 80 percent of Canadians live in regions where natural spaces intersect with urban development—areas where nature is vital but also highly vulnerable.

“Effective stewardship of natural assets helps these entities deliver more resilient services in a changing climate, reduce associated costs, and provides an alternative to “building their way out” of infrastructure challenges,” the report mentions.

As reported by The Pointer, municipalities like Mississauga are already bearing the brunt of climate change, facing increased frequency of storms that previously only occurred at such intense levels only once every 100 years—the city got hit by two in a single month last summer—and are causing millions of dollars in damages. With growing demands for stormwater infrastructure and funding still falling short of the billions required, the need for sustainable solutions has never been more urgent.

 

11 years, 2 destructive floods, millions in damages: why hasn’t Mississauga moved quicker to protect residents?

Mississauga saw two 100-year storms in the space of one month this past summer due to large swaths of impervious surfaces.

(Mississauga Fire and Emergency Services/X)
 

The report identifies 4,428 individual natural assets across 10,458 hectares, with the majority being agricultural land, followed by swamps and forests. 

Overall, the vast majority of natural assets that provide surfaces to Pelham are listed as in good to very good condition. It’s a stark contrast to the watersheds on the northern side of Lake Ontario which have seen plummeting quality for forest cover, surface water and groundwater for years. This creates a significant opportunity for Pelham and Niagara Region to avoid the destructive path followed by the GTA municipalities surrounding Toronto. 

 

 

The majority of natural assets surrounding Pelham are listed in good to very good condition.

(Natural Assets Initiative)

 

The scope of the project extends beyond the Town of Pelham, encompassing significant natural lands within the Ontario Greenbelt, specifically defined by the ecological boundary of the Upper Twelve Mile Creek subwatershed which is a largely untouched ecosystem home to diverse flora and fauna, unique geological features, a self-sustaining population of Brook Trout, and is critical as it mitigates erosion and controls floods.

 

 

The Twelve Mile Creek headwaters form the only coldwater ecosystem in Niagara, capable of sustaining breeding populations of Brook Trout.

(Steve Noakes/Coalition for the West Credit River)

 

Currently, over 20 percent of the Upper Twelve Mile Creek subwatershed is covered by built areas, and further development could degrade water quality and undermine the ability of these natural assets to act as a buffer against climate change, the report states. 

The Niagara Region is preparing for a population surge, with a target of 694,000 by 2051, including 28,830 in Pelham alone as per the region’s official plan from 2024. This rapid growth will inevitably drive more development, with Pelham expected to contribute 1,030 new residential units, as part of the Region’s goal to meet 60 percent of its residential intensification targets by 2051. This growth might come at a cost: increased impervious surfaces that could strain the area's natural infrastructure. 

The findings from the Pelham-Greenbelt Natural Asset Management Project, the result of a two-year effort, are therefore increasingly crucial in emphasizing the need to protect natural land as the challenges posed by paved and developed areas intensify.

In 2022, town staff identified natural asset management as a crucial strategy for environmental preservation and climate change adaptation. This approach was quickly adopted by Pelham Town Council as a key priority in its strategic plan. In July 2023, the town secured $67,377 in funding from the Greenbelt Foundation to develop a Municipal Natural Asset Management Plan. 

In an interview with The Pointer, Shannon Larocque, Manager of Planning for the Town of Pelham, described the plan as "a really good tool" for setting strategic priorities in environmental sustainability, climate adaptation, and mitigation, and for effectively achieving those goals.

To bring this plan to life, the town partnered with the Natural Assets Initiative (NAI), a Canadian non-governmental organization. Together, they produced a technical report released in June, which outlined 11 recommended actions for Pelham to better protect and proactively manage its natural assets. 

Larocque says the strategy is generating significant interest, with calls and inquiries coming from both near and far, even reaching across the country. She shared with excitement that the City of Winnipeg had reached out for advice and assistance as they look to adopt a similar approach.

“It’s really exciting,” she said. “We’re a small town, and to have larger municipalities like Winnipeg—and even Toronto—seeking our advice is incredible. We may be small in numbers compared to those big players, but it’s flattering that they’re looking to us for insights and guidance.”

 

 


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