The last significant coastal wetland in our region is under threat – and we need your help to stop it.

Lake of the Clouds in Castle Glen is the source of Silver Creek which flows down the Escarpment, through forest and field before coming to rest in the Silver Creek Wetland and then entering Georgian Bay. Despite being designated by the province as “Provincially Significant,” this wetland, along with Silver Creek and its floodplain, may be lost forever.

If, at the top of the Escarpment, the Castle Glen development proceeds, there will be irreversible damage to the Silver Creek Wetland. Compounding this problem are the Huntingwood Trails and Bridgewater developments at the bottom of the Escarpment destroying forever this Provincially Significant Wetland.

Why is Silver Creek under a particular threat?

As South Georgian Bay’s last remaining intact coastal wetland, any development in its proximity will prove destructive to its very fragile ecosystem and already endangered wildlife. Eventually this will have a negative impact on the water quality of Georgian Bay. Without the wetland to provide a carbon sink to cleanse the water and runoff, the Bay will accept unknown amounts of toxins that will have long lasting and devastating effects on the health of the water and the wildlife that populates it.

In cooperation with the Escarpment Corridor Alliance, Friends of Silver Creek are fighting to protect the creek from top to bottom by working together to force the Ontario government to recognize, respect and enforce environmental protections – and preserve the wetlands they themselves have designated as “significant.” We must curtail development to ensure the lasting beauty and natural heritage that attracts millions of visitors each year to our beloved Escarpment.

Time is of the essence and the impacts are very real.

These developments threaten to destroy endangered wildlife habitat and migration corridors, heighten risks from severe flooding, and will mean the permanent loss of our natural heritage from the Lake of the Clouds, down the Silver Creek to the wetland, and ultimately into Georgian Bay. This area needs immediate protection – it simply cannot wait.

Imagine in the near future if signs along the shores of South Georgian Bay are posted saying “Unsafe Beach” or “No Swimming due to Unsafe Pollution Levels.” Imagine dead trout full of micro-plastics along Silver Creek and no salmon returning to spawn as creek beds have been disturbed. Imagine losing our wild spaces along the Escarpment, replaced by homes with a “view for the monied few.”

We’re determined in our fight to make change happen and preserve this area.

This is your chance to think globally and act locally on climate change. Sign and share both the ECA petition and the Silver Creek petition to help build public awareness of these issues.

We need your help – and so does the environment we all rely on and the nature we all love to enjoy.

By Sunny Wiles, Friends of Silver Creek. The Friends of Silver Creek is an aligned organization with the ECA whose mission is to preserve the Silver Creek Wetlands, the last significant coastal wetlands in the Collingwood/The Blue Mountains region and to stop development, within reasonable proximity, to ensure its environmental protection and natural beauty.