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CH continues with major cleanup of its parks by Tina Depko-Denver Metroland West Media 3 | Wednesday, January 8, 2014 | OAKVILLE BEAVER | www.insideHALTON.com Conservation Halton (CH) staff estimates it could be several months before cleanup is complete in its network of 5,400 acres of parks. Late December's ice storm ravaged hundreds of trees, creating unsafe conditions for park users -- as of Tuesday most of the parks remain closed. Milton's Glen Eden ski and snowboard centre is open, while the south portion of Mountsberg opened late last week. "There is extensive tree damage to all of our parks and extensive tree damage surrounding our trail system," said Gene Matthews, CH's conservation lands services director. Matthews said forestry crews and trained parks staff have been working since Dec. 22 to clear tree debris from the 85 kilometres of trails that wind through the parks. At Hilton Falls, there was infrastructure and facility damage involving four downed hydro poles and three transformers. It could be three weeks before hydro crews can get there to do repairs, so the park remains closed. A Bruce Trail Conservancy crew of volunteers did a trail assessment at Mount Nemo last weekend. It is difficult to estimate when the parks will reopen, according to a CH spokesperson. "Our staff are making progress in clearing the trails, however based on the cold weather conditions and the amount of storm damage still to be cleared up, we cannot say at this point when more parks will be open," said Norm Miller, CH communications advisor. Glen Eden ski and snowboard area did reopen parks, which will help in the recovery of the tree closed." canopy, Matthews said. It will be decided whethUpdates on which parks are open can be Visually, to the common user of our er to plant more trees in the coming months as found on Conservation Halton's website at parks, you might not notice we even damage is further surveyed. http://conservationhalton.ca or on its Facebook had an ice storm once the cleanup is "Visually, to the common user of our parks, page at https://www.facebook.com/Conservaover. Overwhelmingly, our visitors have you might not notice we even had an ice storm tionHalton. once the cleanup is over," he said. Bronte Creek Provincial Park, which is opbeen very supportive of us during this More than 800,000 people visit CH parks an- erated by the province, was also hit hard by time. We ask they continue to avoid nually. the storm and has been closed since Dec. 22. the parks that are closed. It remains closed as the cleanup continues. Matthews said he thanks visitors for their paVisitors are asked to obey the closure for safety tience and understanding. Gene Matthews "Overwhelmingly, our visitors have been very reasons. For updates on Bronte Creek ProvinConservation Halton, conservation lands services director supportive of us during this time," he said. "We cial Park, call 905-827-6911 or follow its Twitter . Dec. 26. Chair lifts were closed, with only surface ask they continue to avoid the parks that are feed @BronteCreekPP lifts continuing to operate, when the storm hit the evening of Dec. 21. The ski hill lost power overnight, but hydro was restored Christmas Day. There was no infrastructure damage, little tree damage and ski conditions were better than staff had expected. "Glen Eden was impacted far less than our other parks," Matthews said. "We do consider ourselves quite lucky that our main revenue generator for this time, which is Glen Eden ski and snowboard area, was impacted the least in terms of infrastructure and tree damage in the immediate ski area." Matthews said there was a financial impact Voted Number 1 Financial Planner 10 Years to Glen Eden's closure, but the venue has insurance. "Christmas is the busiest time of the year for our ski and snowboard area, so the revenue lost over that period is significant," Matthews said. "...But we will be able to manage and recover from it. We do have business interruption insurance and we've had initial conversations with our insurance provider about that." Thousands of trees are planted annually at CH Helping You Make Smart Decisions About Your Money inside today's Editorial Sports Beaver www.insideHALTON.com Listen Up Canada Inderjit Grewal/Swaraj Pa Real Estate West of the City Home Depot XS Cargo Peter Watson MBA, CFP, R.F.P., CIM, FCSI Certified Financial Planner SINCE 1991 6 11 Artscene Classified 9 13 *All flyers not necessarily delivered to all homes For home delivery & customer service call 905-631-6095, 5300 Harvester Rd., Burlington New subscriptions call 905-631-6095 or subscribe online @ www.oakvillebeaver.com 220 Randall Street · Downtown Oakville Phone: 905.842.2100 www.peterwatsoninvestments.com Don't Compromise on Driver Training UPCOMING COURSES · 20 hours in class · 10 hours online · 10 hours in car (automatic) OR · 12 hours in car (manual) · MTO Approved Beginner Driver Education Program Provider Jan. 30, 31, Feb. 1, 2 4 Days 9:30am to 3:30pm Semester Turnaround February 8, 9, 22, 23 February 4 2 Weekends Tuesday/Thursday Evenings 9:30am to 3:30pm 4 Weeks (Skips Family Day Weekend) 6:00pm to 8:45pm www.drivewiseoakville.com 905-845-7200