This summer, Cataraqui Conservation recognized landowners who have gone above and beyond to ensure the health, stability and long-term viability of their shorelines through good shoreline stewardship.
The first two Natural Shoreline Recognition Awards were handed out to property owners who have done just that, with each one receiving a sign that they can proudly display on their property to not only commemorate their excellent work and to possibly encourage their neighbours to do likewise.
The initial idea for the award came from Cataraqui Conservation’s Coordinator of Watershed Planning, Holly Evans.
“It came up from the idea that we spend a lot of time focusing our efforts on people that are doing the wrong things on their shorelines, and we wanted to somehow recognize people who were doing the right things. Rideau Valley Conservation, years ago, had some signs that they put up on their restoration projects. It said, ‘natural shoreline at work.’ I think they put it on properties where they came in and helped landowners do plantings. I thought we could maybe spin it a different way and use it for landowners who are doing it on their own,” she said.
“We’re hoping by awarding these signs and publicly recognizing landowners we, as an organization, will be better able to promote good shoreline practices. It’s also a way to spread the word out into the community a bit and encourage neighbours to speak to each other about this kind of thing,” said Cataraqui Conservation Development Officer, Hailey Esdon, explaining what the concept of a natural shoreline is.
“By natural shoreline, we mean something that mimics conditions that you would find alongside a lake that has been undisturbed by people. So, that means plants along the shore which can include wildflowers, grasses, shrubs and trees. And it refers to a sort of natural sloping shoreline and vegetated area also known as a ‘ribbon of life’ or riparian zone that would allow for turtles or other aquatic animals to move from water to land as they live their daily lives.”
Esdon talked about why it is important to keep shorelines as close to their natural state as possible providing so many practical and ecological benefits.
“We want to promote vegetated shorelines because native vegetation specifically has deep, thick root systems that will retain soil with fluctuating water levels or boat wake and other wave action. It’s a way to create a resilient shoreline that will hold up through many, many years of the typical pressures that we see from the forces of water bodies. We want people to either leave their shoreline as is or work to restore it. Both of those actions have benefits for the watershed. That’s why we think it’s important to recognize people who have made efforts to restore maybe a previously degraded shoreline,” she said.
“Another intent with this program is for us to be able to better educate people on best practices for shorelines. Our permit review team is constantly seeing applications for placing armor stone blocks along shorelines, creating essentially a very vertical, very manicured shoreline area. We want to try to spread the word that there are alternatives to that which are better for all of us. In terms of the criteria for this award, we want to see a shoreline that has a mostly continuous buffer of primarily native or at least non-invasive vegetation. Of course, people can have pathways to get to their dock, get into the water, that kind of thing. And I think with this program, one of our focuses is not making perfect the enemy of the good, right?
“We want to recognize people who have tried to mitigate some of the impacts of recreational use versus natural shorelines. Generally, we’re looking for a buffer of at least five metres wide of vegetation and some natural debris left in the just off shore for things like cover for small fish – or what we call the littoral zone.”
The first winner was Gary who lives on Charleston Lake in Leeds & The Thousand Islands Township. He was selected by Esdon earlier this summer.
“Charleston Lake is a very heavily developed lake in our watershed. It’s one where I would say we’re seeing lots of applications for people wanting to do shoreline alterations, large marine facilities, that kind of thing. Gary is involved in the Charleston Lake Cottagers Association and has a cottage that is built quite close to the shoreline. It’s closer than what would be permitted under today’s legislation. But it’s been there for a long time. He’s planted a strip of native vegetation along the shoreline between his cottage and the water – the rest of the property he’s basically left totally natural,” she said.
For his part, Gary said it’s important for shoreline property owners to understand the perils caused by overdevelopment, and that it’s a responsibility for everyone to do their part to ensure the continued viability of shorelines, not only on Charleton Lake or within the Cataraqui Region, but everywhere.
“Our lake, as with all lakes in southern Ontario, is under pressure from many sources, some of which we can control most of which we can't, at least not directly. Climate change, agricultural runoff, development and re-development of shoreline property, boats, septic systems, lawns, hardened shorelines etc. many people have no idea that they have an impact on the lake because everything is so incremental. Literally it's the ‘death by a thousand cuts’ concept. No one person has much of an impact, yet collectively it all adds up,” he said in an email to Cataraqui Conservation.
“We need to resist the urge to make the lake look like the city with lawns, paved driveways, retaining walls and night lights that never turn off, if we are attracted to the lake for nature, let it be natural. Planting a buffer strip along the shoreline is a very small act that has outsize benefits to keeping the lake healthy.”
Esdon’s colleague, Development Officer Eric Gallaway talks about the second recipient of the Natural Shoreline Recognition Award, who lives in the western end of Cataraqui Conservation’s jurisdiction, on Hay Bay in The Town of Greater Napanee – Marc
“The reason why I wanted to give Marc a big shout out was he has actively sought to preserve the shoreline vegetation on his waterfront property including the establishment of willow trees, many of which are overhanging, creating really good riparian habitat. I came across Marc’s property last fall when he submitted a permit application to complete maintenance to his existing boat launch. The work focused on protecting willow trees at the corner of the boat launch that receives a lot of wave action. His intent was to modify a small portion of his shoreline so the willows adjacent to his boat launch remain established. The boat launch occupies a small percentage of Marcs shoreline, while the remainder is well vegetated and he does his best to protect the vegetation from other threats such as beaver,” he said.
“His main objective of preserving the vegetation along his shorelines is the riparian habitat that the willows create, specifically creating shading and fish habitat. Marc said he really enjoys fishing and enjoys the other ecological benefits and habitat it creates. For example, he often sees ducklings within the willows as it is a good habitat that offers them protection from predators. He also sees many bird species in the trees along his shoreline and appreciates the privacy the vegetation creates. As well as this shoreline work, Marc has also done several other things which provide water quality and ecological benefits in our watershed, including building his new house on the property a good distance from the shoreline (approximately 45 metres). He has also planted a significant number of trees on his property.”
Congratulations to our 2025 recipients Gary and Mark, thank you for your continued efforts to support healthy lakes and shorelines in our region. To nominate a property or learn more about the Natural Shoreline Recognition Award contact us at development@crca.ca.