The project's History
Within the framework of the the World Wildlife Fund’s “Endangered Spaces” program, which aimed to establish a national network of protected areas, the Comité du marais de Kingsbury (MAKI) began, at the end of 1999, a conservation project in southern Quebec: the “Conservation of the rivière au Saumon natural corridor”.
In the fall of 2003 the Société de conservation du corridor naturel de la rivière au Saumon (SCCNRS) was was founded in order to continue the voluntary conservation project began by the Comité du marais de Kingsbury (MAKI) while at the same time filling the need to provide the territory of the rivière au Saumon watershed with a conservation organization reflective of the interests of all landowners.
A Unique Strategy
he SCCNRS’s conservation strategy is integrated into the “transborder” conservation strategy of the Appalachian ecoregion developed by the Appalachian Corridor (ACA). The territory covered by the ACA’s conservation strategy spans the Canada – US border and extends into the Green Mountains of Vermont.
It is based on this conservation strategy, developed for the entire Appalachian ecoregion, that the SCCNRS project operates. This global, landscape-scale conservation strategy, focuses on interlinking protected core habitats and vast natural areas representative of the Appalachian eco-region, using natural corridors created in the framework of voluntary conservation project. This strategy aims to conserve the unique biodiversity of the region and facilitate the displacements of wildlife and dispersal of flora present over the whole territory. Inventories carried out by the SCCNRS, since 2000, have indeed confirmed the incredible ecological value of various parts of the rivière au Saumon watershed.
A Personalized Approach
The SCCNRS takes a global and innovative approach, favoring the individual participation of landowners and concerned communities at the local level.
The global approach is based on two concepts that are becoming increasingly popular in Quebec: the idea of a “natural corridor” and the idea of “watersheds.”
Since both of these concepts call on principles of landscape preservation, sustainable development and the integrated management of resources as well as the fact that the limits of a natural corridor and a watershed are not linked to territorial, political or administrative boundaries, the fusion of the two concepts creates a model reflective of the “ecosystem” dimension of the region.
Significant results
The territory covered by the SCCNRS did not originally have protected areas under the aegis of land trusts or national and regional conservation organizations. Only a portion of Mont-Orford National Park with an area of 19 km2 had status
legal protection. Since 2003, great strides have been made and several sectors of the natural corridor now benefit from protection in perpetuity. The Conservation Society currently owns land totaling almost 178 hectares (438 acres). In addition, it negotiates conservation agreements with certain owners who are involved in the protection of natural environments located on their property.
These results demonstrate the interest of individuals and local communities in protecting the quality of their environment and preserving the beauty of their landscapes.
Five properties are currently owned by the SCCNRS: Four nature reserves and the oak forest of the Township of Cleveland