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Cedar Bog Lake

Rattray Marsh

Rattray

Rattray Marsh is a Credit Valley Conservation (CVC) owned and managed Conservation Area consisting of 94 acres of lakeshore, marsh wetland, field and woodland habitats. Located on the Lake Ontario Shoreline in Mississauga, Rattray Marsh is a designated Natural Area, a Provincially Significant Wetland, and an Area of Natural and Scientific Interest. Rattray Marsh is one of the last remaining baymouth bar coastal wetland in the western end of Lake Ontario.

Rattray Marsh serves as an important protected environment for a significant number of wildlife species as well as being an important recreational and educational landmark in the community. 428 species of plants, 227 bird species, 26 species of mammals, 18 reptile and amphibian species and 11 fish species call Rattray Home. Rattray Marsh also plays a critical role in protecting human health as it acts as a water quality 'filter' for Lake Ontario and the Region of Peel's drinking water supply (1.2 Million people).

Unfortunately, Rattray Marsh has experienced significant ecological degradation as a result of urbanization, changes in water flow, water quality soil erosion and the presence of exotic species including common carp.

Our goal is to restore Rattray Marsh to a healthy, dynamically stable ecosystem of appropriate indigenous species. It is expected that restoring the marsh will include improvements in water quality, flood control, shoreline protection, trapping sediment, and in immobilizing contaminants and nutrients.

How Our Project Helps the Environment

Southern Ontario has already lost up to 75% of its original wetlands and losses of coastal wetalnds along western Lake Ontario have been even greater. Wetlands are an important part of Ontario's biodiversity. They provide a wide variety of ecological, economic and social benefits for both humans and wildlife.

This restoration of Rattray Marsh benefits not only the flora and fauna in the area but also has a far reaching influence on the Lake Ontario shoreline, the water we drink and the air we breathe. Its influence will be felt beyond the borders of the City of Mississauga. Rattray Marsh is a popular destination for the general public to come and enjoy a unique natural area in the middle of a large city.

A healthy Rattray Marsh will

Site monitoring and sampling will be continued for years to follow. Long term monitoring will include existing CVC protocols including turtle trapping, carp control & enumeration, monumneted photos and observations of rates of sedimentation. Additional and current data collected will enable the evaluation of the success/failure or the restoration plan against the vision of a healty, dynamically stable ecosystem fo diverse and appropriate indigenous species.