Vaugun is in Ontario, just above Buffalo New York. It is getting its big chance to learn about beavers but it’d not sure it wants to.
From habitat to hazard: Vaughan says ‘no dam way’ to Barrhill Pond beaver blockage
The beaver came in spring.
He worked the outlet at Barrhill Pond, piece by piece, pulling branches from the shore and weaving them into a wall.
Water pooled behind it. The air filled with the smell of wet wood. People walking the path at Barrhill and Rutherford saw the dam grow each week.
“It’s been lovely to see,” said Susan Llewellyn, who walks the pond daily. “It felt like the wildlife here was finally coming back.”
Then in July, the dam was gone. Bulldozed. The water ran low and quiet again.
The City of Vaughan says the dam had to be removed. Barrhill Pond is part of the city’s stormwater management system. It is designed to protect neighbourhoods from floods and clean runoff from the subdivision.
The dam blocked the outlet and raised water levels beyond design limits. In heavy rain, city staff say, homes could flood.
Yeah yeah yeah, it’s always the same song with a few variations. Homes could flood. Mosquitoes. Beaver Fever. Fish too warm or can’t jump. Talk to the hand. We heard it all it before buddy.
“Beavers are a valued part of Canadian wildlife, but we can’t risk flooding in a residential area,” said the city.
Biologists say there are other ways, including:
void building in floodplains.
“Trapping and relocation is cruel,” said Aileen Barclay of the Oak Ridges Moraine Land Trust. “They’re here. We have to deal with them, not just kill or move them constantly.”
Under Ontario rules, a live beaver can be moved only one kilometre, so often, it comes back or another beaver takes its place.
The city says the dam will not be allowed to return. Staff will keep the outlet clear, as they do at more than 150 stormwater ponds across Vaughan.dding-left: Llewellyn still walks the pond and remembers the wall of sticks and the steady work of the beaver.
The beaver of Vaughan deserves to be protected,” she said.
I am starting to love Ms. Llewellyn. Any woman who walks regularly to see beavers and wants them to be appreciated and protected is a kindred spirit in my book,
