All dogs will need to be on leashes around Grafton Lake and any trail in the Art Rennison Nature Park going forward.
Concerns were raised by the public in recent months about the behaviour of off-leash dogs at the island’s mid-island lake. These included conflicts between dogs and other trail users, and dogs disrupting sensitive wildlife at Grafton Lake including ground-nesting birds.
“There is scientific evidence to support the negative impacts that dogs can have on wildlife and on water quality as well, and some evidence to support that those impacts can be reduced by keeping dogs on-leash,” said manager of environment and parks planning Carla Skuce during the Jan. 22 council meeting.
“For Grafton Lake it seemed like a pretty obvious area that would benefit from those protections (dogs on-leash) given that it’s drinking water and there are wetlands and riparian areas that are sensitive to disturbance. They provide really important wildlife habitat, and the proximity of the trails to those areas is quite close,” said Skuce.
Both the Environment and Climate Action Committee and Parks, Trails and Greenways Advisory Committee expressed their desire for the Grafton Lake trails, and the entire Art Rennison Nature Park (which will eventually be 230 acres and includes all of Grafton Lake and its trails) to become an on-leash area. Council agreed, voting unanimously to establish the lands as an on-leash area.
The new rules will be enforced via the Use of Public Spaces Bylaw section about observing signs. Once signs are posted around the lake – in this case informing people of the need to leash their dogs – there can be a $200 fine for anyone ignoring the bylaw by having an off-leash dog.
Grafton Lake will join Snug Cove and the majority of Crippen Park as Bowen’s on-leash areas for dogs. Other island parks are expected to be looked at on a case-by-case basis to determine if similar leash laws are necessary. Headwaters and Quarry Parks were recommended as two places where trails should remain off-leash given they have good accessibility and the makeup of the trails keep users out of sensitive areas.
“We do understand that many community members enjoy walking their dogs off-leash, so we weren’t prepared to recommend that all nature parks be immediately switched to on-leash areas. I think that needs to be looked at closer with the parks and trails committee to make sure we’re providing equitable recreational opportunities across the island for people of different abilities,” said Skuce.
