County Closeup

It's been three years since Dysart et Al's Resources Committee asked the County of Haliburton to explore the creation and installation of wayfinding signs and identity. Now all four municipalities in the county have been presented the Wayfinding Strategy and have given their feedback.

The program, led by pl.ural, a professional landscape architecture, planning and design firm focuses on identifying and creating uniform signage that helps people locate the cultural, historical, civic and recreational destinations within Haliburton County and its four municipalities and is expected to cost $500K, paid for in part by the recently imposed Municipal Accommodation Tax on short term rental hosts in the county.

CanoeFM spoke with Scott Ovell, Director of Economic Development for The County of Haliburton to find out the current status of the Wayfinding Strategy and its next steps.

For 30 years, Haliburton County residents have been acting as volunteer scientists, taking water samples as part of the Lake Partner Program. Every spring and fall, they collect samples from 600 lakes and more than 900 sites that are then mailed to the Ministry of Environment, Conservation and Parks' lab in Dorset where they are analyzed for a number of water quality factors.

But now, that program's future is in question, since the MECP funding agreement that expired in March hasn't been renewed. Local resident Ron Parkinson and his organization Highlands East Lake Properties has launched an email writing campaign to Ontario Premier Doug Ford, the MECP and local members of parliament and provincial parliament to reinstate the program for the next five-year period.

The valuable data collected from county lakes is used by a variety of users, including municipalities, planners, scientists and researchers.

Vision 2025 — The Future of Pride held recently at Haliburton's Pinestone Inn was an opportunity for members of the 2SLGBTQIA+ community, allies and local government officials to gather to celebrate the last nine years of progress made by Minden Pride and to chart a course for the future.

The event featured hands-on group think sessions on a number of topics including supporting 2S LGBTQIA+ business owners, promoting and hosting events throughout the year, rather than just in June's Pride month and finding more opportunities for public education and engagement.

CanoeFM attended the event and spoke with a number of attendees who were pleased to have their voices heard on the future of Pride in the Highlands.

For the women who make up Minden's Knitting for Warmth group, everything starts with an 8 X 8 inch square. For 23 years, this group of friends have gathered each week to sew those squares into gorgeous blankets that are then donated to organizations where the need for them is great.

Mary Trepanier is Project Manager of Knitting for Warmth and says she never expected her simple idea of gathering to knit each week would turn into the popular mission it is today. Fueled by pots of tea and goodies, the women share stories and laughs while they produce blankets of all different sizes, to be used by those in wheelchairs, new mothers and the unhoused.

CanoeFM visited the group recently to learn more about Knitting for Warmth and the priceless service the group provides.

The Friends of Ecological and Environmental Learning, (FEEL) is offering a weekend filled with workshops, displays and practical, hands-on learning through the first annual Sustainable Shores & Garden Event.

Held at Abbey Gardens May 17 and 18, the focus of the event is on experiential education, specially selected native plants, and other practices meant to support biodiversity and conservation. The event combines hands-on activities, resource sharing, and workshops, with collaboration from local environmental groups.

The event expands on the native plant sale FEEL hosts each spring and builds on the success of their annual Haliburton-Muskoka-Kawartha Children's Water Festival.

Every bill comes due, and now the price of the recent devastating ice storm that caused downed power lines and snapped trees like twigs across Ontario and Quebec is becoming clear. According to the Insurance Bureau of Canada, the estimated cost of property damage the March ice storm caused is $342M.

In Haliburton County, Minden, Kinmount and Gooderham were particularly hard hit and insurance claims are mounting as adjusters scramble to keep up.

Glenn Hall and Serena Wooder are experiencing a rise in claims for homes and vehicles damaged by falling trees or branches. They say in their time, there’s never been an ice storm like the one that struck in March and they advise all owners to get the process started if you haven’t already.

CanoeFM spoke with Hall and Wooder to hear more about the insurance claims in our region.

The type of outdoor lighting we choose as homeowners has a direct impact on the behavior of insects, bats and other species. That was the finding of a recent U-Links community research project conducted late last summer.

Ella Honey and Angus McBride, both Masters Candidates in Trent University’s Environment and Life Sciences department conducted studies in the wee hours of the night to discover the affect of different light temperatures and their positioning on the food web around Paudash Lake in Haliburton County.

The researchers presented their findings to a virtual audience for U-Links Celebration of Research which included environmental groups, interested local residents and members of the media. They later presented their findings to Environment Haliburton.

CanoeFM spoke with Honey and McBride to learn more about how our use of outdoor lighting can be changed to have fewer negative impacts on a variety of insects and other species.

Found at the bottom of the world’s oceans and even on the top of Mount Everest, microplastics are everywhere. A recent research project conducted and presented as part of the recent ULINKs Celebration of Research has found microplastics in Haliburton Lakes.

Trent University’s Environment and Life Sciences Masters Candidate Jacob Wyonch presented his findings to a virtual audience recently, which included environmental groups, interested local residents and members of the media. Local residents requested a study be conducted by the ULINKS Centre for Community-Based Research.

Water sampling began with a previous researcher studying samples from Stocking, Kennisis, Potash, Spruce and Wenona lakes. Wyonch continued the study this past summer, aided by members of several area Lake Associations, who helped collect surface water samples two times per year, in the spring and the fall.

CanoeFM recently spoke with Wyonch to discuss his findings and their significance.

For decades, Canadians have been good neighbors to the US, but now, thanks to the heavy-handed rhetoric of President Donald Trump, that relationship has soured.

Since the announcement of tariffs impacting Canadian businesses and the 51rst State threats, the ‘buy Canadian’ and ‘elbows up’ movements have prompted many to reconsider where and how they spend their time and disposable income. Thousands of Canadians are now selling their US winter escape properties and refusing to travel there.

The impact is being felt in places like Florida and Arizona, as Canadian snowbirds have chosen not to support the economy of the country now threatening our own. Record numbers of US real estate listings by Canadian owners and the steady decline of Canadian travelers to the US are proof that there is a limit to our collective tolerance for the bluster and bullying of our southern neighbor.

CanoeFM recently spoke to a Haliburton couple who’ve had enough of the poor exchange rate, frequent hurricanes and the antagonizing threats by President Trump. They’re selling their beloved winter escape in Florida and refusing to travel there for the foreseeable future.

Get on your bikes and ride! The Haliburton Community Cycling Hub is now open and ready to help get more people on bicycles enjoying the beauty of the many trails here. Thanks to a $30 thousand dollar seed grant from the Ontario Trillium Foundation, support from Dysart et Al, and the Rotary Club of Haliburton, the cycling hub – the brainchild of the Friends of the Rail Trail (or FoRT) will provide free public programming to help more people of all ages enjoy cycling with greater confidence and safety.

CanoeFM attended the recent official ribbon cutting ceremony that featured dignitaries and cycling enthusiasts alike. Pamela Marsales, Project Coordinator, is thrilled to see how an idea that brings Haliburton’s historic CN Rail caboose out of retirement for the greater good of cycling enthusiasts.