On Saturday morning, a group of volunteers gathered at Lakeview Cemetery to plant over 200 trees and shrubs.
The event marked the second phase of a two-day collaborative effort between the City of Thorold and the Niagara Peninsula Conservation Authority (NPCA).
The ball started rolling back in early September when the NPCA offered a large donation of trees and shrubs to the city.
The initial planting session occurred in late September, with support from students from Niagara College’s Ecosystem Restoration program, who collectively planted around 300 trees.
The second planting session took place on Saturday and saw Thorold residents from all walks of life come together for a better environment.
The NPCA’s Community Engagement Coordinator Kerry Royer told ThoroldToday that the project plays into the educative goals of the organization.
“Involving people creates that sense of stewardship,” she said. “They want to take care of things that they’ve been involved with. It’s a learning opportunity and a chance to be involved with something.”
The NPCA tries to work with municipalities all across Niagara for projects like the one in Thorold.
“We are in a time right now where a lot of people are afraid of climate change and a lot of those big scary stories about natural disasters,” Royer said. “This is people being able to participate in something that’s going to do good. It’s a sense of hope that you’re contributing towards a positive environment.”
The project was brought forward to the city by Councillor Tim O’Hare, who also participated in Saturday’s planting, with some help from Councillor Ken Sentance and some City Hall staff members.
“It’s a great turnout,” said Councillor Tim O’Hare. “We had to shut down the volunteer list last week because we already reached our maximum of 50 which is a great thing.”
Among the volunteers were also 20 cadets from the Thorold 128 Flying Dragons Air Cadet Squadron.
“Part of our mandate is environmental stewardship,” Cpt. Teresa Copses-Parker told ThoroldToday. “In that regard we offer our services to the city. Our unit has grown from from 9 cadets [in 2019] to 57 [today]. I believe our youth are really looking for opportunities to be useful."
The newly planted trees and shrubs are located along the north border of the cemetery. They are still very small so it will take some time for them to reach full maturity.
