// Corridor Project
Facing an imminent environmental threat
In Canada and around the world, animal populations and the habitats they depend on are disappearing at an alarming rate. Southern Ontario has lost 70% of its forests and 80% of its wetlands, and more continue to be destroyed each year. As development moves north, the Georgian Bay region is facing a generational threat.
WHAT WE’RE DOING
The Georgian Bay Land Trust’s Corridor Project is an ambitious plan to preserve Georgian Bay's ecological integrity by establishing a 62,900-acre protected habitat corridor along the eastern shore. The proposed Georgian Bay Corridor will join existing protected areas to form a new unfragmented wilderness area and establish a permanent migratory haven for 50 species at risk. It will preserve public access to nature by ensuring that these lands remain available for all people to access in their natural state.
WHY CORRIDORS ARE SO IMPORTANT
Nature needs space and connectivity to survive. When habitat is fragmented into smaller parcels, animals can’t move freely. This loss of habitat and the impacts of climate change mean animals need to travel longer distances to access suitable habitats.
Protecting a corridor along the coast provides habitat for over native plant and animal species and gives wildlife the space it needs to adapt and survive. It will allow our forests to grow older and richer, and preserve our network of 14,700 inland wetlands, known as the “kidneys of the landscape” for their role in filtering out pollutants from our water. All of this translates into a cleaner, healthier, richer, and more resilient landscape.
Inland wetland connectivity is critical to prevent extinction events during climate change.
Public access to nature is protected by the Georgian Bay Corridor Project
Large connected Protected Areas create resilience to climate change effects
Coastal corridors are even more important because their climates are moderated by water and remain more humid in the face of extended drought.
The Southern Corridor:
Protecting 32,900 acres of wilderness
We are thrilled to have achieved the first major milestone in protecting the Georgian Bay Corridor. In 2024, the Georgian Bay Land Trust and the Township of Georgian Bay signed an agreement to conserve a network of land stretching from Honey Harbour to Twelve Mile Bay, directly conserving 553 acres of municipal land and providing additional protection to 32,900 acres of crown forests and wetlands.
We need your help to make this corridor possible!
If you are interested in learning more about funding the next phase of the Corridor, please contact Janet Brough at (416) 440-1519 x104 or janet.brough@gblt.org to schedule a meeting.
All donations to the Georgian Bay Land Trust support our work on this project and others – you can make a donation now!
