The WWF wants more done to protect atrisk species
The World Wildlife Fund is calling on the Canadian government to do more to protect at-risk species including those in Windsor-Essex.
New research from the WWF includes areas of Windsor-Essex where more conservation measures are needed, according to Vice President of Science and Research James Snider.
The new assessment looks at the gaps in Canada's protected natural-area network, and identifies the need to bridge those gaps so species can migrate if they need to.
"Whether it be a wetland, a grassland or in some cases forest land, that we're actually ensuring that those places aren't converted over to other human uses," says Snider.
He told AM800's The Afternoon News that southwestern Ontario is one of the most heavily settled regions in Canada.
After years of isolating natural areas, the government needs to start building bridges.
"A huge degree of human use and that leads to conversion of those important habitats and the fragmentation ... it also means that they've become increasingly impacted or degraded," he says.
Snider says the reality of climate change is settling in and species are already begging to migrate.
"We know that species are moving and are having to as temperatures change. We need to build that connectivity. We need to be able to allow those species to move northward in response to a changing climate and building that connectivity in southern-Ontario is so important," he says.
Snider says WWF is calling on all levels of government to protect natural areas across Canada.