Long Point Causeway Improvement Project

LPCIP News

Causeway upgrade moves forward

By Daniel Pearce, Simcoe Reformer, July 8, 2010 The first step in a controversial proposal to upgrade the causeway to Long Point is about to begin after municipal officials voted last night to move to the design stage. Norfolk County will now look at how to run three culverts under the narrow two-lane roadway to create a safe passageway — from the marsh on the west side of the causeway to the inner bay on the east — for both water and reptiles. As well, an environmental assessment and a hydrological study will be conducted to make sure the project[…]

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Long Point Causeway Road Kill Numbers Way Down

Monday, April 19 2010 Efforts to reduce road kill of turtles and snakes, including species at risk, on the Long Point Causeway are having a notable impact according to monitoring studies conducted by the Long Point Causeway Improvement Project (LPCIP) Committee over the past two years. The annual road kill count of turtles dropped from highs of 202 in 1979 and 190 in 1993 to only 85 in 2009. The studies also noted significant declines in the numbers of amphibians (frogs and toads) and small mammals killed on the 3.6 kilometer-long roadway. The LPCIP Committee has installed about 4,000 metres[…]

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Volunteers repair fencing to protect wildlife

Monday, April 19, 2010 With the early warm weather, turtles, snakes and frogs are starting to move across the Long Point Causeway where they risk being hit by passing vehicles. On April 17, a dozen volunteers, including Scott Gillingwater and Crystal Robertson (in photo), helped repair and reinstall the temporary barrier fencing that keeps these reptiles off the roadway. Norfolk County has also set up turtle crossing signs and the electronic message sign altering drivers to watch for wildlife on the Causeway. The Long Point Causeway Improvement Project Committee is encouraging drivers to watch out for animals on the road[…]

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Curriculum featuring Long Point Causeway

Thursday, March 25, 2010 Reptiles at Risk on the Road has produced classroom resources for grades 1-8, based on the 2009 Ontario science curriculum, developed through funding from the Ministry of Natural Resources Species at Risk Stewardship Fund. These activities are intended to accompany the educational efforts of the Reptiles at Risk on the Road project, but they may be used by anyone with an interest in Ontario’s reptiles! The Grade 8 curriculum unit features the road mortality issues related to the Long Point Causeway and proposed efforts to reduce the annual road kill of turtles, snakes and amphibians, including[…]

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Report on 2009 LPCIP activities

The Long Point Causeway Improvement Project (LPCIP) was hard at work throughout 2009 thanks to $69,000 in funding received from Environment Canada and the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources which regard this as a very worthwhile, scientifically-validated project and have confidence in the LPCIP’s ability to deliver on its commitments. To date, the LPCIP has raised more than $198,000 much of which has been spent in and created employment in Norfolk County. Working with students on the Norfolk Environmental Stewardship Team (NEST), we repaired existing 2,500 of fencing damaged by wind and weather and installed 2,800 metres of new fencing[…]

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Trees will stay

By ASHLEY HOUSE, Simcoe Reformer The willow and cottonwood trees along the causeway out to Long Point will not be cut down, says the latest policy statement from the Long Point Causeway Improvement Project steering committee. Rick Levick, co-ordinator of the project, said the committee wants to be “loud and clear” on the subject. The initial project did call for the cutting down of some of the picturesque trees to allot for a wider roadway and other safety improvements to the 3.5 km of road. But the group has responded to the public’s concerns. “The (LPCIP) is committed to working[…]

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Causeway trees to Long Point saved

The London Free Press August 14, 2009 SIMCOE — The willow and cottonwood trees along the causeway to Long Point will not be cut down, says the latest policy statement from the Long Point Causeway Improvement Project committee. Co-ordinator Rick Levick said the committee wants to be “loud and clear.” The initial project called for cutting down some of the trees for a wider roadway and other safety improvements to the 3.5-kilometre road. But the group has responded to public concern about the plan. “The (committee) is committed to working with the community and Norfolk County to define a vision[…]

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LPCIP Announces Policy on Causeway Trees

Port Rowan, August 10, 2009 — The Steering Committee of the Long Point Causeway Improvement Project (LPCIP) today announced a policy statement on preserving the Causeway’s existing willow and cottonwood trees and developing a comprehensive long term landscape plan that would include planting Carolinian species of trees, shrubs and plants along the 3.6 kilometre roadway. The statement was issued in response to inaccurate information that the proposed Improvement Plan required the removal of all trees along the Causeway. However, the plan did recognize that some dead or damaged trees might have to be removed for public safety reasons or to[…]

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Long Point Causeway Improvement Project receives $69,000 in funding

June 30, 2009 — Efforts to protect wildlife by reducing the annual road kill of endangered turtles and snakes along the Long Point Causeway got a $69,000 boost thanks to funding from both the federal and Ontario governments. The Long Point Causeway Improvement Project (LPCIP) will receive $48,000 from Environment Canada’s Habitat Stewardship Program and $21,250 from the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources’ Species at Risk Stewardship Fund to carry on with barrier fencing, turtle nest mounds, signage, and monitoring activities along the 3.6 kilometre roadway, ranked the fifth deadliest in the world for turtle mortality. The HSP funding will[…]

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