Don Mouth Naturalization Project

It's taken a few years to get fired up but it has finally started. This will be the biggest public works project to impact the lower Don in the next ten years. Basically it will decide how the mouth of the Don will empty into the harbour. Right now the river empties into the Keating Channel, turns 90 degrees west and enters the harbour at Cherry Street.

If you go east from Cherry to the Don Roadway and north to the railway embankment this property is informally called 480 Lakeshore. This area has been reserved for any future work that may include a naturalized marsh and a new channel for the river.

This project requires a full environmental assessment or EA in the vernacular. As part of the process the TRCA is organizing a series of public meetings to create terms of reference for the public. While all these meetings are a bit tedious, they are an important part of the process and it is essential that the Task Force and its supporters attend so we can push our position. That being a naturalized channel and an accompanying marsh. To see a picture of our vision you can view it at http://www.toronto.ca/don/vision.htm.

The next public meeting is on Tuesday Aug. 23 at the Ralph Thornton Community Centre, 765 Queen St East. If you can make it to the meeting, we (the Task Force that is) would appreciate it. All the information you might require about the project can be viewed on the TRCA website.