In short, this article describes 4 locations on Shellard Lane, 3 areas are at risk of being destroyed due to upcoming land development in the area, the other area has already been clear-cut. The 3 areas at risk are all in close proximity to one another, and are the home of many animals such as birds, red squirrels, rabbits, frogs and even deer. The destruction of these areas would have a large negative impact not only on area itself but in all the surrounding areas, such as negatively impacting the nearby trails and forest lands. Of course the animals living here would also be effected by these negative effects on the environment. The rest of this article describes this in more detail.
Green Areas on Shellard at Risk
Shellard lane and the areas surrounding main roads in ward 1 have been under development for many years. Recently a lot of the green areas have been destroyed for development. This has left the animals that have lived in these areas for decades to no longer have a home. Additionally, numerous trees that were decades or even over a century old have been cut.
There are 4 areas that were/are of concern
Area 1
The first area no longer exists.
This area was quite unique, it had 2 large trees both around 100 years old, one of which had a giant portion broken off which gave it a unique look. The area was home to many small animals such as rabbits and birds. In march of 2021 almost the entire area was clear-cut and flattened, the few remaining trees that were left after this were cut within the following month (by the end of April). While there was a tree inventory report of this area and non of the tree were deemed "worthy" of saving. This area should have been included in the development plans, perhaps by making a park around the area and only cutting/removing trees and items that were dangerous.
The other 3 areas still exist. Areas 2 and 3 are currently at the greatest risk of being completely cut, this is because current development plans/drafts involve the complete destruction of these areas.
The second area, which we will call the Willow Area is also at risk due to development. The Willow Area has a small creek passing through and there are many small animals that call this place home. One of the more unique animals that live here are numerous red squirrels. Red squirrels are similar to the common black or grey squirrels however, they are significantly smaller; almost the size of chipmunks. Numerous trees in the Willow Area had been removed due to previous land preparation for development however, many of the trees still remain. Currently the entirety of the Willow Area is planned for the development of apartment buildings.
Image of the area at ground level for a little bit of a better understanding
The third area, this area is a few meters away from the Willow Area while it does not contain as much wild-life or a creek passing through the area many animals pass through and use this area. Birds, squirrels and even deer cross through and stay in this area for periods of time. Removing this area would not only kill all the trees that have been there for decades but also reduce the amount of space the animals in the area have to live.
The fourth area - The Open-space Wetland. This area has a small wetland area that crosses under the road and comes out at the Willow Area. This area is marked as green space and is to be left as an open space, this is encouraging however, being marked as green space doesn't necessarily mean the area wont be destroyed. There is further explanation as to what happened to an area near a trail marked as green space in the other article called "Trail Trees Cut"
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