Turtle signs won't be added locally until more information is provided
Those who want to help protect turtles from ending up as roadkill in Grey Highlands will have to come back before council to propose specific locations for crossing signs.
Local turtle advocate Dave Meslin of Eugenia delegated to council in March about turtles, most species of which are endangered, and asked for some municipal help.
There were several specific requests including not just signs but protection of nests in right of ways and turtle “crossing guards”.
The answer from Grey Highlands staff was while it’s important to protect turtles, it’s not staff’s area of expertise. For example, the report asked how to distinguish where more dense populations are.
Coun. Joel Loughead asked how best to go forward in that case, saying residents were wanting to act on the issue.
“I would just hate to see this shelved here – received for information and forgotten.”
CAO Karen Govan said that it makes more sense for the delegates to work with other agencies like Conservation Authorities.
“The consensus from staff is that this isn’t a municipal mandate,” she said. Turtle crossing signs are “a whole different thing that isn’t in our lane”, she said.
Coun. Loughead asked about any specific requests that would come forward from the group, which has said it’s willing to fund the signs.
The CAO said that the municipality would have to approve any signage.
Coun. Nadia Dubyk said that the group is well on its way, reaching out to experts on turtles. She clarified that Conservation Authorities do not have a mandate for wildlife.
She said that the biggest item that the group was hoping for was help so that any signs would follow municipal standards. Members were willing to fund and supply signs, and would identify the hot spots for crossing.
The CAO said that municipal staff needed to be involved in anything on municipal property. Ms Govan added that the municipality would have to look at issues like “sign pollution, sight lines” and others.
She said the group would have to come back to council with its recommendations, and then council would give direction.
There are turtle crossings in many other jurisdictions, and these include some on provincial highways.
The delegation had asked for a working group that could be a partner on the project with the Grey Highlands Municipal League, of which Mr. Meslin is a founder.
Municipal staff had many concerns with having screened boxes placed over turtle nests in the right of way to keep predators from eating eggs. There are many maintenance jobs in the right of way such as ditching, grass cutting and road and culvert work. Liability risks from private citizens directing traffic was not supported without additional insurance.
“It may be more effective for the Municipality to share information on social media and on the website,” the report said, and refer residents to Nature Conservancy of Canada, the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre or other agencies.
Southern Ontario has the greatest variety of Canadian turtles. As many males as females are found crossing roads, but their movement patterns tend to be spread out while females are most frequently observed in June. Says the Ontario Turtle Conservation Centre.
Turtles can often travel many kilometers and in populous Southern Ontario often encounter roads in their travels.
M.T. Fernandes, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, The Flesherton Advance
