In The News
Community-minded residents from all walks of life took much-deserved bows at Thursday night's Civic Recognition Awards.
Jeremy Heatley was recognized as Burlington's Citizen of the Year. Other top honours presented at the Burlington Convention Centre included Junior Citizen of the Year, Arts Person of the Year, the Community Service Award and the Environmental Award.
Environment Award - The Field and Stream Rescue Team was honoured with this inaugural award for its work, which includes cleanup days, replanting of more than 3,000 new trees and environmental education efforts.
The group works with various local organizations and provides Web site and printed information resources. It also sponsors the annual rubber duck race at Hidden Valley Park.
Field and Stream president Dave Vyse and vice-president Mark Wiedener were presented with the award by Peter Thoem. The honour included an original pastel by Rosemary Simpson.
[The Burlington Post]
Look for the Field and Stream Rescue Team to really 'clean up' next year. The environmental group, best known for organizing volunteer cleanups of local creeks, has received a few boosts recently.
The group hired a full time employee after receiving a grant of $72,300 over three years from the Ontario Trillium Foundation.
The funding enabled the group to hire a previous volunteer as its project manager. "I.'ve taken over things done by the board of directors and am accomplishing more stuff on a daily basis," said Jessica Trzoch. "We expanded the organization 10 times over the period of a month."
So far, 12 projects are being planned for next year, she said.
"There will be a lot of one-day events where volunteers come out and help with tree planting," said Trzoch” There'll be cleanups of stream corridors where we remove debris to make the creeks flow well."
There'll be cleanups of Tuck, Shoreacres and Sheldon creeks, plus the annual fundraising Duck Race down Grindstone Creek, she said. There's a $1000 prize for the donor who has the fastest plastic duck.
"It's fun for the family and especially the kids," said Trzoch. "It's away for us to be out in public with our 'board of directors and volunteers”
People can get- questions answered and; it's a way to expand the organization, she added.
The Field and Stream group also plans to do community monitoring with Conservation Halton. Trzoch said the program is intended to involve schools, community groups and organizations like Girl Guides Scouts.
"They’ll be coming down the streams. We'll provide equipment so they can get results of the condition of the streams," she said. "They’ll get. the data and give results in."
The data will be collected for future comparisons, said Trzoch.
The organization has also received a van donated by Greenflow Environmental Services of Burlington, a photo-chemical, waste management company.
The project manager was hired for the post two months ago after serving as a Field and Stream group volunteer.
"As I got more and more involved, it. seemed it was a good fit," said Trzoch. "They were looking at having someone who was a volunteer to filll the position”
She has lived m Burlington for a year after completing studies at Sir Sandford Fleming College in Lindsay,Ont.
Trzoch, graduated from the three year, terrain and water technologist program, at the college's School of Environmental and Natural Resource Sciences.
[The Burlington Post]
Now armed with a big box trailer, the Field and Stream Rescue. Team is continuing to battle for healthy waterways.
The group has an army of volunteers and a busy slate of activities planned for its fourth season.
"We're going strong. We're growing ten-fold every year and we have 300-400 volunteers; said Dave Vyse, the group's president "Obviously our streams are in a state of distress. Everyone realizes this is our drinking water and it's not the cleanest"
The rescue team has purchased a four-metre long (12 ft.) and two-metre high (6-foot) trailer for its stream cleanup and rehabilitation activities. "It holds the debris and garbage and it gives us a way to transport trees and shrubs for plantings;' said Vyse. "We keep shovels and wheelbarrows in it and it serves as a rolling billboard for us.”
He said the group consists of people who have decided to do hands-on rehabilitation work. “We hold about 10 projects per year”
The rescue team cleans up streams, does plantings and participates in other communities, such as the Arbor Day held recently.
Vyse said funds donated by TD Friends of the Environment are used to purchase the native shribs for rehabilitation projects. The group’s next event is scheduled for tomorrow (Saturday) from 9am – noon at Shoreacres Creek. Volunteers will meet at nearby Nelson Park.
Rescue Team members plan to clean up debris and garbage from the creek. Then they will plant a buffer strip to separate Nelson High School fields from the creek. “This is a great way for students to put in their volunteer hours”, noted Vyse. Overall, the group’s main focus involves four creeks, Shoreacres, Tuck, Sheldon, and Appleby. But the group often works with Halton Region Conservation Authority and often ventures further afield.
A big event for the rescue team will be its fundraising duck race, slated for May 29 at noon along Grindstone Creek in Hidden Valley Park.
Supporters can purchase toy ducks for $5, with the owners of the first three ducks receiving prizes of $1,000, $250, and $100 respectively.
The race will be part of the Aldershot Garden Festival, which will run that day from 10am-5pm.
Festival events will also include an open house held from 10am – 4pm by the Burlington Model Railroad Club.
For tickets or to help with the duck race email info@streamrescue.com
[The Burlington Post]
The environment got some much-needed help Wednesday night from Field and Stream Rescue Team members Dave Vyse, Phil James and Mark Wiedener. The crew was at Shoreacres Creek collecting an assortment of debris, such as the bulky item picked up by Wiedener, above. The group works hand-in-hand with the City of Burlington and Conservation Halton in an effort to keep local creeks cleaned and maintained. To learn more about the team visit www.streamrescue.com
[The Burlington Post]
The Field and Stream Rescue Team will be at it again today (Sunday). More than 200 volunteers will hold a cleanup and tree-planting session at Tuck Creek from 11am-2pm.
The meeting place will be Rexway Drive at Tuck Creek, west of Walker's Line. The group will be removing debris and planting dogwoods and shrubs for erosion control.
[The Burlington Post]
The Field and Stream Rescue Team organized a Mother's Day clean up of Tuck Creek at Lansdown Park. The creek starts on the Niagara Escarpment and flows through Burlington to Lake Ontario. During the clean up, Mark Wiedener of the Field and Stream Rescue Team hauls out a recliner chair he found.
[The Burlington Post]
The informal enviornmental group is hosting a cleanup of Tuck Creek on Sunday (Earth Day) from 11am-2pm.
The group meets at 11am in the parking lot at Lansdown Park on Palmer Drive, just west of Walker's Line. Gloves and garbage bags will be supplied.
"We hope to try to restore original habitats and bring back original species and wildlife," said David Vyse, who is organizing the cleanup with Mark Wiedener.
Trout once swam in Tuck Creek, noted Vyse, who added neighbourhoods can benefit if wildlife corridors are restored.
"If you improve the wildlife habitat, it will keep fox and raccoons more into the stream bank than neighbourhoods," he said. "If there are lots of fish in there, raccoons and foxes don't have to eat our garbage or the fish in our ponds."
Sunday's event will kick off the team's efforts to clean up small creeks throughout Burlington.
Vyse said old oil drums and furnace liners are among the junk to be pulled out of Tuck Creek.
The group, which includes volunteers with environmental experience, also hopes to plant dogwoods and promote erosion control.
