Conservation Authority receives South Glengarry land donation from McKay family
The Raisin Region Conservation Authority’s managed lands portfolio grew in June thanks to an 89-acre land donation by the McKay family in South Glengarry. The property, in the Williamstown area, “features a diverse range of landscapes, including old forests and significant wetlands, and is home to a variety of wildlife and several species-at-risk,” notes the RRCA announcement.
Bryan McGillis, chair of the RRCA board of directors, noted, “This land has been in the care and possession of the McKay family for decades. It is a privilege and an honour for the RRCA to now be entrusted with the perpetual preservation and maintenance of this environmentally significant land.”
The McKay property is adjacent to publicly-owned land, and together, these lands help “form a forest block identified as a Regional Core and Corridor in the 2021 Natural Heritage System for Prescott-Russell and Stormont, Dundas, and Glengarry.”
“We thank the McKays for their foresight to ensure the property keeps providing its wide range of ecological services for years to come through this donation to the RRCA,” stated South Glengarry mayor and RRCA board member Lachlan McDonald. “We also thank them for their many years stewarding this beautiful land and crucial habitat to a long list of animal and plant species.”
The McKay property comes to the RRCA via Canada’s Ecological Gifts Program, “which helps provide a way for Canadians with ecologically sensitive land to protect nature and leave a legacy for future generations by donating land to a qualified recipient, such as the RRCA, to ensure the land’s biodiversity and environmental heritage are conserved in perpetuity.”
“Our family holds so many wonderful memories of time spent connecting with nature on this land, and so it brings us great comfort to know it will now be permanently protected by the RRCA,” reflected property donor Don McKay. “We would certainly encourage other owners of environmentally significant property to consider leaving a natural legacy through a land donation to the RRCA.”
Additional family members involved in the property donation were Kitty Lewis, Rob McKay, and Ian McKay.
Under its land management program, the RRCA currently “owns, manages, and protects 1,985 acres of land to strengthen the region’s forest cover, enhance resilience to natural hazards such as flooding and erosion, preserve sensitive habitat, and provide recreation and eco-tourism opportunities.”
The Ecological Gifts Program is administered by Environment and Climate Change Canada with the involvement of numerous partners, including other federal departments, provincial and municipal governments, and environmental organizations.
~ adapted from RRCA news release