Montreal Gazette

Move to extend protected natural spaces in West Island applauded

- BRENDA O’FARRELL ofarrell@montrealga­zette.com

The city of Montreal is spending $6 million to expand the Boisde-l’Île-Bizard Nature Park. It’s an investment that will protect an additional 4 million square feet of land. It’s also a move West Islanders should applaud.

The nature park is one of the largest natural spaces in the Montreal region. At the moment, it includes 201 hectares in the east sector of the island of ÎleBizard. The size of that territory is roughly equivalent to 21.6 million square feet, which means the expansion would see the territory of the park expand by just under a fifth of its size. No matter how you calculate it, it’s a significan­t addition.

Among the many features the park can boast, is some of the most varied natural terrain that is reachable by public transit. It also has a meandering boardwalk that allows visitors to travel through expanses of wetlands. The park is quite spectacula­r. It even includes a small waterfront section. It is an unquestion­able gem. And it is right in our backyard. And it’s not the only one. The West Island is also home to the Bois-de-Liesse nature park, Cap St-Jacques, the Anse-àl’Orme nature park — all along the north shore — Terra Cotta in Pointe-Claire, Morgan Arboretum in Ste-Anne-de-Bellevue and Angell Woods in Beaconsfie­ld, which has recently been expanded as well. These are all protected green spaces, not merely undevelope­d areas. The West Island has the lion share of all protected areas when compared with other regions of the island.

And it is safe to say we can expect this green asset to grow.

The Montreal agglomerat­ion has a plan. It aims to protect an area equivalent to 10 per cent of its territory as green space. With the addition announced last week in Île-Bizard, the goal has still not been reached. Protected land is pegged at about six per cent.

Already, it has been announced that the agglomerat­ion has its eye on the remaining privately held tracts of land that fall within the Angell Woods conservati­on zone. They could very likely be added to the holdings. It’s all green and it’s all in the West Island.

Residents here pay a lot of money in taxes to the regional body. It’s nice to see some of it invested in preservati­on.

Of course, we still need better public transit. But for now, let’s celebrate the latest improvemen­t.

 ?? PETER MCCABE/MONTREAL GAZETTE FILES ?? Bois-de-Liesse is a protected natural green space in Pierrefond­s.
PETER MCCABE/MONTREAL GAZETTE FILES Bois-de-Liesse is a protected natural green space in Pierrefond­s.
 ??  ??

Newspapers in English

Newspapers from Canada