A clean-up of one of Windsor's most important ecosystems uncovered more than what was expected.
During a clean-up in late June of the Ojibway Prairie Provincial Nature Reserve, more than 230 kg (or 507 lbs) of waste were collected.
Lead Biologist with Wildlife Preservation Canada Jonathan Choquette says 10 illegal camps sites were also found and he admits the volume of garbage was surprising.
"It took two interns about a week to clean up, to bag and to cart out all the material that was in the nature reserve," he says. "Right in the centre of the nature reserve too."
He emphasizes Ojibway is not a garbage dump.
"When we see the park being encroached upon from right in the inside, right in the middle of the park, when we see that kind of negative impact it is quite concerning. We don't have very much habitat left in the Windsor-LaSalle area, it is a very important ecosystem so we definitely need to respect it and take care of it."
Choquette says they had noticed some dumping around the entrance way to the park but never expected to see the volume of garbage right in the middle of it.
The Ojibway Nature Reserve provides habitat for six species of snakes and three of them are species at risk in Ontario.
--With files from AM800's Rob Hindi