To: TWHCA Board of Directors
From: Peter Wilson
Date: September 6, 2011
Re: Nature Sanctuary Summary Report for 2011

Background

At the start of 2010, the Nature Sanctuary Committee, in conjunction with Robin Tapley, provided Alliance with some ideas for a five year plan for the Sanctuary. Alliance had requested this in order to assist them in moving ahead with work on the Sanctuary. The ideas given included trail maintenance, completion of the trail system and, ultimately, transfer of the ownership of the Sanctuary to TWHCA or another entity representing the property owners in Woodland Heights. Last fall, thanks to a financial contribution from Alliance (to which some funding from TWHCA was added) and the availability of Roy van Douzen, important steps were taken towards completing the trail system. The status of the various initiatives is now as follows:

Maintenance

A volunteer group, largely comprising members of the Sanctuary Committee has been doing periodic maintenance on the trail - essentially removing blow downs and other debris in order to keep the trails passable. A further clean-up should be scheduled for this fall to remove a few blow downs that have occurred during the last couple of months.

Completion of the Trail System

A new bridge and two new boardwalks on the orange trail were constructed last fall. In addition an excavator was used to clear a better route around the yellow trail in an effort to improve its overall accessibility. Earlier in the summer the volunteer group conducted a clean-up of the trails and installed 8 interpretative signs which had been designed for the trail with assistance from Ducks Unlimited. These provide information on the nature and importance of the wetland topography found in the Sanctuary as well as the wildlife which inhabits the area. At the same time a number of "sight lines" were cleared along the trail to provide better viewing opportunities, especially around the main pond.

It is hoped that Alliance will provide some further funding and availability of Roy van Douzen's time this fall which would permit work on some outstanding projects including an alternative trail alignment bypassing the hilly section of the orange trail, better surfacing for the yellow trail and its ramp from the parking lot and some replacement bridges. Further details, if available, will be presented at the AGM

Ownership

The Sanctuary remains the property of Alliance. While transfer to the WH property owners is envisaged at some point in the future, this will depend upon the negotiation of mutually acceptable conditions (eg ownership structure, trail system completion, funding etc).