Species At Risk found on Lester Road, (more documentation here)
posted Dec 3, 2006
Patrick Dare, The Ottawa Citizen

The city's beleaguered light-rail project has a new obstacle -- the Blanding's turtle.

The turtle, a species at risk, has been discovered by a community environmental group in marshland near Ottawa Airport, right where the city wants to build the controversial $880-million commuter train.

One of the reptiles, distinguished by its bright yellow chin and throat and non-aggressive demeanour, was spotted early in June by a member of the Save Our Greenspace group. That was followed this month by a scientist's confirmation that a turtle killed on Lester Road was a Blanding's. The species is classified as "threatened" in Canada.

As a result of the discovery, federal officials now say the issue needs to be examined before the rail project proceeds.

The city is proposing to build a 30-kilometre, mostly double-track rail corridor from Barrhaven town centre to downtown and the University of Ottawa. To build it, the city will have to widen an existing, little-used single train track that runs through National Capital Commission Greenbelt lands near Ottawa International Airport.

Cheryl Doran, a citizen who is concerned about the animal life along the proposed north-south light-rail line, said she began asking the city questions about what wildlife they had found. She didn't believe the city had done a thorough investigation, especially of the turtle population. So she got some advice from biologists about how to find turtles. She showed up early on the morning of June 2 and found a large mature female Blanding's, swimming with a mallard duck at 5:15 a.m.

The Blanding's, a large turtle that has a shell often likened in shape to a German military helmet, take 18 to 22 years to reach sexual maturity and can live to 70 years of age.

Ms. Doran and others collected a number of turtles killed by cars and trucks along Lester Road and sent them to scientist Frederick Schueler, of the Bishops Mills Natural History Centre near Oxford Mills. He confirmed that one of the turtles was a juvenile Blanding's.

Yesterday, Mr. Schueler said the age of the turtle suggests there's a reproductive population of the species in the woods, swamps and ponds of that part of the Greenbelt. He said these turtles are hard to find, though there is some evidence of population growth in parts of Ontario.

Touring the Greenbelt site this week, Ms. Doran said her group believes many turtles are hibernating for the winter in a pond north of Lester Road, near the Airport Parkway.

The Save Our Greenspace group is upset the city has been marking up the marshland with spray paint in preparation for construction, even though council has not given final approval for the project. City council must decide the project's fate by Dec. 15.

The city says it's just doing preparatory work and that, if council approves the rail service, construction will be carried out without destroying the turtles' habitat.

Planning director Dennis Jacobs said the city had suspected there might be Blanding's turtles in the area and that its consultants found egg shell evidence of the animals. Mr. Jacobs said the turtles aren't crossing the existing track, so the city believes it can preserve, and even improve, nesting areas and the turtles can continue living there. Meanwhile, the federal government plays a key role in the process since the Greenbelt, where the turtles were found, is under federal control and natural conservation is a key mission of the National Capital Commission.

NCC spokeswoman Lucie Caron said yesterday the environmental assessment of the rail project found the need for more study of the area, and that's what the NCC is expecting, before the federal government gives final approval. She said the commission is watching the issue "very closely."

The idea that federal officials could block construction to save the turtles is one of many factors council will have to weigh as it decides the fate of the rail line. The project is already controversial, with Bob Chiarelli losing the election after making the line his key campaign theme.

Yesterday, Michele Brenning, director-general of the Canadian Wildlife Service, said the service will look into the issue. The Blanding's was designated a threatened species by the federal government in August.

Ms. Doran said that it was nonsense that the City of Ottawa could build a commuter-rail corridor through the marshy Lester Road area without destroying turtle habitat. She said the city should look at building a rail service along a road, such as the Airport Parkway. She said that, in addition to the turtles, there are also herons and foxes that live in the marshland that need to be protected.

She said the discovery of Blanding's turtles shouldn't be viewed as a setback for government, but as good news: A fairly rare species can be found within a 15-minute drive of Parliament Hill.

"I get a lot of 'It's only a turtle.' But it's important to our biodiversity," said Ms. Doran.

Dan Brunton, a biologist with extensive knowledge of Ottawa's natural environment, said yesterday the discovery of Blanding's turtles in the Lester Road area is significant, though there are pockets elsewhere in Ottawa, such as Britannia. Mr. Brunton said the city will have to figure out how to protect the turtle's wetland habitat, and somehow fence the area in so that the turtles don't lumber onto roadways. He said car and truck traffic from newly built-up areas is the biggest threat to turtles.

Mr. Schueler, who confirmed the turtle's presence, said it is possible to take measures to protect turtle populations, by creating curbs and nesting areas. But he said the area is quite small and building a much bigger rail corridor will necessarily mean a reduction in the habitat left for animals. It's possible that the habitat could be preserved and the turtles saved, but "You don't know," he said.

� The Ottawa Citizen 2006
Published: Thursday, November 30, 2006

So far, that approval has not been signed by the NCC, though the federal land in question is not near the turtle habitat at Lester Road. As well, Ottawa's new city council must endorse the rail plan by Dec. 15 for the federal government to release the $200 million it has committed to the project. City council is to debate the rail issue next week.
� The Ottawa Citizen 2006