The Municipal Heritage Committee met recently and although the meeting was mostly to decide on the chairpersons and talk of governance, a remark was made that the committee will be looking to start the process to give heritage status to certain trees in the city, similar to the status of heritage properties.
Virginia McLeod, Manager, Recreation and Culture for the City mentioned that in the Cultural Plan adopted by the City in 2019, one of its goals was to look at giving certain trees in the city heritage status.
“Heritage trees—those trees with rare or historical value—should be protected under similar provisions, policies, and guidelines to those of other heritage properties in the city,” as it states in the policy.
The cultural plan has as one if its goals: to recognize and protect Sault Ste. Marie’s natural and built heritage. Sault Ste. Marie’s trails and waterways (the St. Marys River and the waterfront in particular), natural landforms and unique flora and fauna are the City’s most significant and cherished assets with historic and inextricable ties to the Anishinaabe and Métis people—the first inhabitants of the area.
In the cultural plan, the cost of this measure was estimated to be no more than $5,000.
Groups like the Ontario Urban Forest Council have also developed methodology to help understand what would be considered a heritage tree.
Check out Forests Ontario Heritage Tree Program https://forestsontario.ca/en/program/heritage-tree
The City of Toronto passed BY-LAW No. 248-2013 which provides protection to all heritage trees recognised in the City under this Forest Ontario Heritage Tree Program. Pass a similar By-law and use the skills of Forests Ontario to make this program work!
Comments are closed.