Wetlands project in Grimsby, Ont., part of effort to 'bring southern Ontarians back to the waterfront': prof

From the top of an observation tower along the waterfront trail in Grimsby, Ont., an expanse of trees, grasses and six wetlands can be seen all around.

This stretch of approximately 12 hectares on Lake Ontario's South Shore didn't always look like this. Twenty-five years ago, Niagara Region used the popular hiking and bird-watching spot to store sewage as part of its wastewater treatment process and for a century before that, it was agricultural land. 

It's just one example in the area of human-made wetlands being created and maintained in a region where that natural feature is disappearing. 

Having access to green space like this, especially along the waterfront where such space is rare, "adds tremendously for quality of life," said Bruce Mackenzie, the Hamilton Naturalists' Club's (HNC) project manager for the Grimsby Wetlands. "I can't go into the property and not find someone enjoying the solitude or the nature."

Wetlands — areas of land covered by or saturated with water — provide homes for wildlife, prevent flooding, improve water quality, and present recreational opportunities for people.

A 2021 Ontario government report states that while Ontario has six per cent of the world's wetlands, most are found in the north, with the southern part of the province having lost two thirds of its wetlands to other uses such as agriculture and development.

And in fall 2023, the Hamilton Naturalists Club was honoured for its years of work revitalizing the wetlands in Grimsby.

According to Mackenzie, the club got involved there in 2002, and has worked with partners including the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority and the Town of Grimsby for more than 15 years on tasks including creating bodies of water, removing invasive plants and designing the walking trail.

The wetlands are within a 170-hectare swath of green space that was well-known among birders when the HNC got involved, Mackenzie said. Two of the original sewage lagoons remain, with four new bodies of water created.

Mackenzie previously said that without the HNC's intervention, the wetlands may have been lost since the land's owners, the Department of National Defence, and Niagara Region, had been planning to remove the sewage lagoons and turn the land to fields. 

In November, the Brownie Awards, which spotlight development on former industrial lands (or brownfields), recognized the naturalists' club with an award for financing, partnerships and risk management. 

"Often we don't think of sewage lagoons as destination places," but that's what's happened in Grimsby, Toronto Metropolitan University professor Christopher De Sousa researches brownfield development, said. 

De Sousa sat on the jury that reviewed the HNC for its award. He said industrial land on the waterfront can sometimes harbour productive natural spaces that flourish with the right care.

He said projects like the Grimsby one are part of an ongoing effort to "bring southern Ontarians back to the waterfront, and bring nature back," too.