Toronto’s City Council has unanimously adopted the Toronto Ravine Strategy implementation plan to clean up and protect the city’s more than 300-kilometres ravine system.
“Healthy ravines are the roots of Toronto’s environmental sustainability,” said Mayor John Tory. “While climate change is a global phenomenon, the work that needs to be done is local and that is why this expanded long-term investment in our ravines is so important.”
“This Ravine Strategy will make sure we do better and that we are much more aggressive when it comes to investing in our ravines, cleaning them up, and making sure we are protecting them now and into the future,” Tory added.
The implementation plan for the Ravine Strategy includes:
- Additional funding ($2.7 million annually) for new and enhanced services to increase ravine litter collection and invasive species control.
- Additional funding ($104.9 million) to focus efforts in the first 10 priority investment areas in the ravine system.
- Launching a coordinated, multi-faceted, philanthropic ravine campaign.
- Convening an external multi-stakeholder Ravine Campaign Leadership Table.
- Requesting funding from other orders of government for implementing the Ravine Strategy.
- The creation of a ravine unit within the Parks, Forestry, and Recreation division to provide:
- Leadership and capacity to advance the interdivisional work of implementing the Ravine Strategy.
- A one-stop shop for Council and the public in relation to ravine issues.
The strategy’s vision for Toronto’s ravine system is a natural, connected sanctuary that essential for the health and well-being of the city. Toronto’s ravine system, one of the largest in the world, covers 17 per cent of the city’s land area. It contains 87 per cent of Toronto’s wetlands, forests, and environmentally significant areas.
More information about the City of Toronto’s Ravine Strategy is available here.
