Posted By PATRICK BRENNAN TIMES-JOURNAL


A small army of service club members and students from East Elgin Secondary School will descend on Catfish Creek in the fall hoping to make improvements.
The Catfish Creek Restoration Project was announced Friday by Elgin-Middlesex-London Conservative MP Joe Preston, with federal funding of $43,000 under Environment Canada's EcoAction Community Funding program.

Preston described the program as more support for biodiversity.

Preston said the program reflects the fact a lot of economic and community activity depends on the environment.

"Your actions, large or small, will help to protect the abundance and variety of life that is part of our natural heritage," he told a gathering at Rotary Park, a small passive public use area along the banks of Catfish Creek in Aylmer.

The area is known for flooding almost every year during spring run off. It has been managed by the Catfish Creek Conservation Authority as a natural area. Conservation efforts so far have consisted of allowing natural vegetation to flourish and erecting bat and birdhouses.
The program will involve the Rotary Club of Aylmer working with CCCA and East Elgin Secondary School students working through the school's environmental leadership program.

Work will involve creek bank stabilization, planting natural vegetation and fish species restoration.

Ric Wellwood, a spokesperson for CCCA, said the authority, which will provide guidance and technical expertise, takes its role seriously.
"We walk the walk," he said. "We're going to make good use of that (grant) money."

As far back as the time Elgin county was settled by Col. Thomas Talbot, what is now Catfish Creek was a wild river, Wellwood said.
But even though it has been tamed, it's home to 68 fish species.

"Aside from the odd flood in Port Bruce, we've had a good time coming to terms with it," Wellwood said.
Barbara Warnock, president of the Aylmer Rotary Club, said the club has worked to maintain Rotary Park as a natural habitat with projects like planting Carolinian trees.

"It is an Audubon Society certified park," she said. "It's only one of two parks in Canada to receive Audubon certification."
Kim Smale, general manager of the Catfish Creek Conservation Authority said preliminary work was done by a consultant on plans for improving the creek.
"That was spearheaded by Don Durkee," Smale said.

Other southwestern Ontario projects announced by Preston to receive funding under the EcoAction program were: $30,000 for the Benishek and Rankin Prairie restoration to plant six hectares of tall grass in Orford township and Kent county; $18,000 for the Oxbow watershed community forestry project in Middlesex County to enhance wildlife habitat and improve water quality; $8,500 for the Grand River Tall grass Prairie project in Brant county to cover 4.8 hectares with tall grass.