Lake Huron Coastal Centre youth corps continues stewardship work in Goderich
August 3, 2024
The Lake Huron Coastal Centre’s Coastal Conservation Youth Corps program has wrapped up this year’s session with participants feeling that they’ve made a lasting impact on the Lake Huron shoreline.
In July, the corps took a day trip from Kincardine to continue its stewardship efforts in Goderich, focusing on dune restoration, bluff stabilization and bio-diversity enhancement.
Early removal of invasive species is crucial to prevent them from overshadowing native species and disrupting the delicate balance of the shoreline ecosystem. By removing these invasive species, corps volunteers helped to create habitat for wildlife, as well as preserve the native bio-diversity and stability of the main beach dunes in Goderich.
The corps participants then visited the pollinator garden nearby to add new native plants, such as Wild Lupin. Planting Wild Lupin is important as it is the only food source for the Karner Blue caterpillar which turns into a butterfly currently on the endangered species list as extirpated, which means it no longer lives in the wild in Ontario.
The coastal centre hopes that if it continues to raise awareness around the importance of native plants, it will see more wildlife return to the shoreline.
The corps continued restoration efforts in Sunset Park, with support from the Town of Goderich and the John Hindmarsh Environmental Trust Fund. There, participants addressed the eroding bluff by weeding invasive species, such as Garlic Mustard and Himalayan Balsam. They also planted low-lying, deep-rooting native shrubs, such as Rosa Blanda and Creeping Juniper, to further stabilize the slope and add to the park’s bio-diversity.
One corps participant said that being part of this group “helps us learn more about the environment with topics that we would not have the opportunity to learn about in school. It helps us connect to the environment on a whole new level and even apply the lessons into the future where we can make an even bigger change in our community.”
The coastal centre appreciates the Town of Goderich, the John Hindmarsh Environmental Trust Fund, the Lions Club of Goderich, Enbridge and Howick Mutual Insurance, for their support in this conservation effort. Because of them, the corps continues to empower youth to make a difference in their communities, fostering a life-long commitment to environmental stewardship.
The Lake Huron Coastal Centre is seeking financial support to see this initiative continue in the future. Donations can be made at www.lakehuron.ca/donate.
Learn more about the youth corps program at www.lakehuron.ca/ccyc.
Members of the Lake Huron Coastal Centre’s Coastal Conservation Youth Corps program assist with work in Goderich; in the back, are corps participants Piper Robertson (left), Poppy Finner, Allison Court, Vani Mahajan, and Tian Lew; Clare Day of the John Hindmarsh Environmental Trust Fund, and Sophie Lindstrom and Emily Pokrywka-Kovacs, staff with the Town of Goderich; in front, are Alyssa Bourassa (left) and Kerry Kennedy of the coastal centre, and Sydney Bowins of the youth corps
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