In partnership with the Fondation Hydro-Québec pour l'environnement and Nature-Action Québec, the City continues to develop Terra-Cotta Park

POINTE-CLAIRE, QC, Aug. 25, 2016 /CNW Telbec/ - Pointe-Claire Mayor Morris Trudeau is pleased to announce that the development of Terra-Cotta Natural Park and the awareness activities will continue thanks to support from the Fondation Hydro-Québec pour l'environnement (FHQE) and Nature-Action Québec. "Our park is an exceptional woodland," says the mayor. "It's part of our natural heritage, and, together with our partners, we are taking action to protect this natural environment and make sure our residents have access to a 39-hectare green space."

The project is made possible through the City of Pointe-Claire's $70,000 investment and a $93,000 contribution from the FHQE. "Initiatives for developing the park will be carried out with a view to maintaining and enhancing biodiversity, and with full respect for the park's ecological integrity," says FHQE Executive Director Carlo Gagliardi. "This is completely in line with the goals of our organization."

Wildlife management initiatives are planned, including creating hibernation places for garter snakes, setting up nesting boxes, and preserving standing dead trees that can serve as habitats or sources of food for certain species.

"To preserve this urban forest, nearly three kilometres of informal trails will be closed off," explains Jean-François Dallaire of Nature-Action Québec. "These trails were created over the years by visitors going through the park. Over 1,000 plants will be planted to return the site to its natural state. Official trails will be marked and information boards will be put up at the entrances. There will also be interpretation boards, some of which will be interactive, and a map of the park and trails."

Awareness activities will occasionally be organized, particularly with children from Pointe-Claire's primary schools, and there will be community planting days open to everyone.

"The purpose of these improvements is to preserve a woodland with high ecological value," concludes Mayor Trudeau. "We want to provide increasingly safer access to the trails and clearly mark out the various uses so that we can protect the varied wildlife and plants of our natural park."

Nature-Action Québec is a non-profit organization that advocates environmental best practices. It works in cooperation with municipalities, businesses, community organizations and citizens to carry out collective sustainable development projects.

The Fondation Hydro-Québec pour l'environnement supports organizations that take concrete action to protect, restore and develop natural environments and that strive to educate local communities about environmental issues specific to their living environment. Between 2001 and 2015, the Fondation awarded $13.1 million to 238 projects implemented in all of Québec's administrative regions. The overall value of those projects is estimated at nearly $42 million. For more information about the various projects that it has contributed to, visit www.hydroquebec.com/fondation-environnement/en/.

SOURCE Fondation Hydro-Québec pour l'environnement

City of Pointe-Claire, 514 630-1200, [email protected], www.pointe-claire.ca ; Nature-Action Québec, 450 536-0422, ext. 243, [email protected], www.nature-action.qc.ca ; Fondation Hydro-Québec pour l'environnement, 514 289-5384, [email protected]