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Page - - Mississauga News, Nov. 21/97 A word from the salamanders
Cawthra woods stressed out Calling all salamander experts! City councillors have endorsed a recommendation from their Urban Forest Management Advisory Committee (UFMAC) to have a special guest speaker come out to a public meeting to provide information about the rare salamanders found living at the Cawthra Bush. UFMAC asked staff to arrange for an expert speaker, and Councillors agreed. Ward I Councillor Carmen Corbasson suggested caution in choosing a speaker, however. She said she'd seen differing "expert" opinions on the value of the Jefferson and blue-spotted salamanders discovered this summer at the woodlot through the efforts of a citizen group called Friends of Cawthra Bush. The City is also inviting residents to come out to a public meeting Wednesday Dec. 10 at the Mississauga, Seniors' Centre to discuss future management plans for the mature woodlot. Residents will be able to review the City's proposed management plan for the Cawthra woodlot from 5-7 p.m. with a public meeting to follow. One of the issues the management plan will attempt to address is how to preserve the special environment for the salamanders that live under the ground most of the year. The management plan does not include any proposals for additional tree-cutting in the bush. When several hundred trees were chopped down several years ago, there was a public outcry that led to the formation of Friends of the Bush. The City says the Cawthra woodland is suffering from some urban and ecological stress. "The proposed steps in the management plan will help ensure that Cawthra Woodland will be maintained as a viable and healthy site," says Diego Fabris, the City's supervisor of urban forestry. UFMAC is a group of citizens with environmental expertise who are making a series of recommendations to City council on how it can best preserve Mississauga's existing woodlots.
[COMMENTS BY DON B. - ]
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