Go GREEN with the Environmental Stewardship Team
The Environmental Stewardship Division of the Community Services Department works with communities, groups and individuals to promote sustainable living, environmental protection and education throughout the municipality. We work to develop community programs and initiatives to increase environmental awareness, engage the community in environmental projects and establish new partnerships. Township staff offers assistance with project development and coordination, fundraising and marketing.
Ongoing Projects
- Increasing pollinator habitats throughout the Township
- Delivering community education programs and workshops in partnership with various organizations
- Subsidizing compostable food service products to community groups
- Tall Grass Prairie Restoration initiative
- Reducing mowing by increasing naturalization through tree, shrub and wildflower plantings
- Terrestrial invasive species monitoring and mapping throughout King Township
- Increasing educational signage throughout the municipality
- Enhancing existing and creating new habitats for pollinators in parks, gardens and naturalized areas to support our Bee City Certification & Mayors Monarch Pledge
- Identify new environmental funding opportunities
To learn more about the Township's Greening Initiatives or to find out how you can help contact 905-833-6555 or email environmentalstewardship@king.ca.
Greening Initiatives
Event & Program Cancellations
Due to the current public health climate, the following environmental events have been cancelled or postponed:
- King Clean Up Day - POSTPONED
- Youth Week Tree Planting - POSTPONED
- King City Repair Cafe - CANCELLED
- Electronic Waste & Appliance Recycling - CANCELLED
In an effort to divert textiles currently going to the landfill in Township of King, we are proud to launch a textile diversion program in partnership with Diabetes Canada. The Township of King textile donation bins are conveniently located at community facilities providing secure, 24/7 access for the donations of all used textiles. Since March 2017, King has diverted 198, 941 lbs of textiles from landfill sites.
2020 Community Textile Diversion Impacts
297.824 T/ CO2E abated
49.30 kl water saved
13,678.97 trees planted
64.74 cars removed
Donate your textiles at one of the following locations:
- Dr. William Laceby Nobleton Community Centre & Arena - 15 Old King Road, Nobleton
- King City Lions Arena - 25 Doctors Lane, King City
- King Township Municipal Centre - 2585 King Road, King City
- Trisan Centre - 25 Dillane Drive, Schomberg
Take advantage of the Township's free battery recycling program!All batteries are sorted by type (alkaline, lithium, etc.) and recycled for their respective elements (metal, zinc, manganese, etc.). All standard single-use batteries are accepted, including AA, D, 9V, button cell, etc. Rechargeable batteries are not currently accepted.
Batteries contain heavy metals and other toxic chemicals, which mean they have traditionally been handled as toxic waste. Recycling these materials allows them to be reused or disposed of properly, which keeps them out of landfill. The Township's new battery recycling bins allow you to conveniently dispose of your used batteries, while doing your part to help protect our environment.
For safety purposes, please place leaking batteries in a sealed plastic bag, and cover the terminals of lithium batteries with tape before dropping them off in the bins.
Locations:
- Dr. William Laceby Nobleton Community Centre & Arena - 15 Old King Road, Nobleton
- King Township Municipal Centre - 2585 King Road, King City
- Trisan Centre - 25 Dillane Drive, Schomberg
Attention all Community Groups! Make your next event environmentally friendly by using compostable food service items that you can purchase through the Township of King at a 25% discount.
To place an order, fill out the Green Shift Order Form below and submit to kmclellan@king.ca
King Township is the Ninth Bee City in Canada!
The goal of the Bee City Canada certification is to provide and promote healthy, sustainable habitats for bees and other pollinator species. Bees and other pollinators around the globe have experienced declines due to a combination of environmental factors that have serious implications for the future health of flora and fauna. Bee City Canada encourages municipalities and their residents to support bees and other pollinators on both public and private land by fostering environmental awareness around this issue.
The Township of King is commitment to helping pollinators! King Township is enhancing existing and creating new habitats for pollinators in parks, gardens and naturalized areas. Designating the Township of King as a Bee City will demonstrate the Township's commitment towards increasing pollinator awareness, protection and conservation. Becoming recognized as a Bee City will further contribute to the Integrated Community Sustainability Plan. Bee City Certification will reinforce the goals of the King's Integrated Community Sustainability Plan by fostering community engagement and education and supporting healthy ecosystems and food sources.
Bee City Resolution Bee City Application
Visit Bee City Canada for more information on our accreditation and to see what other municipalities are doing to support bees!
September 2018, King took the Mayors' Monarch Pledge and committed to creating habitat for the monarch butterfly and pollinators, and to educate citizens about how they can make a difference at home and in their community. Through the Mayors’ Monarch Pledge, more than 300 communities have committed to create monarch habitat and engage their residents in educational and conservation projects. Participating municipalities are required to complete a minimum of three actions annually from the National Wildlife Federations list of 24 actions for municipalities.
The Township has committed to implement or continue to implement the following 11 initiatives:
- Issue a Resolution to raise awareness about the decline of the monarch butterfly and the species’ need for habitat
- Launch a public communication effort to encourage citizens to plant monarch gardens at their homes or in their neighbourhoods
- Communicate with community garden groups and urge them to plant native milkweeds and nectar-producing plants
- Host or support a native plant sale or milkweed seed giveaway event
- Facilitate or support milkweed seed collection and propagation efforts
- Plant a monarch-friendly demonstration garden at the Municipal Office or another prominent location
- Initiate or support citizen-science efforts that help monitor monarch migration and health
- Add milkweed and nectar producing plants in community gardens
- Change weed or mowing ordinances to allow for native prairie and plant habitats
- Increase the percentage of native plants, shrubs and trees that must be used in city landscaping ordinances and encourage the use of milkweed where appropriate
- Integrate monarch butterfly conservation into the Township’s Sustainability Plan
Mayors' Monarch Pledge Resolution
Mayors' Monarch Pledge Report to Council
To learn more about the Mayors' Monarch Pledge visit The National Wildlife Federation.
The purpose of the program is to take inventory of terrestrial invasive plants growing within King Township using King mapping software. The objective of the program is to identify which invasive species are growing throughout King and the severity of the infestation. The program is focused on educating the community while providing an opportunity for the public to get involved and participate in the mapping of invasive species. Mapping the distribution of invasive species will help Township staff monitor and mitigate the spread of invasive plants throughout the municipality. The program will allow us to identify what plants are present within King, the location of the species, the presence of certain plant communities, control methods and the severity of the infestation and public health concerns.
Mapping Tool
To search for the address you are interested in, please type in the full address into the Find address or place search bar. As you type addresses matching the address on the map will populate the drop down. Click on the address and the map will zoom to the location. To zoom on the map please use the + zoom in and – zoom out. The compass symbol takes you to your location and the house symbol takes you to the home frame for the map. When you zoom to the location the search result bar will appear, if you click on the X it will be removed. There is a scale bar on the bottom left corner for reference.
Edit
With this map you can add invasive species using the Edit tool. Use the edit tool edit.PNG, under the search bar, to add new information. Click the edit icon. Zoom to the location of the invasive species on the map. Then click New Feature. To add the information on the map, click on the desired location on the map and a box will appear. Add all of the information in the box. When complete, scroll down to save and close. The location has been added. If the information is incorrect or location is incorrect you can click the dot and then you can delete it. When you have completed adding information click the grey arrow left of the Add Features.
Track the Spread of Invasive Plants
Easy Steps to Save Seeds
Once your plants are mature, save the seeds! Return the seeds you save to the seed library where you will fill out a donation form with all the necessary information about the seeds. Once we have collected a variety of seeds our goal is to launch a Community Seed Library. By borrowing, growing, and returning seeds, you're helping to ensure that our community has access to an affordable, diverse seed collection.
Gather Seeds
- If you are collecting and saving seeds from your own plants, spread the seeds on newspaper and air-dry them for roughly a week
- Write seed names on the newspaper so that there's no mix up as to what the seeds are
- Once the seeds are all dried, pack them into small paper packets or envelopes and label them with the plant name, the date and location of harvest! (Most seeds last for three years)
Keep Seeds Dry
- To help keep the seeds dry, place rice grains inside the storage container with the seed packets
- You can also add a packet of silica gel in with the seeds. Replace every six months
Where & How to Store
- Keep seed packets in plastic food storage bags, plastic film canisters, mason jars with tight lids or paper envelopes
- Once you have gotten your storing container, think dry and cool no matter where you store the seeds
- Because humidity and warmth shorten a seed's shelf life, the refrigerator is generally the best place to store seeds, but make sure to keep the seed-storage containers well away from the freezer section of the refrigerator
Ready to Go
- When you're ready to plant, remove seed containers from the refrigerator and keep them closed until the seeds warm to room temperature. Otherwise, moisture in the air will condense on the seeds, causing them to clump and stick together
- It is important to remember that even if you are very organized and careful about storing seeds, accept the fact the some will not germinate the following year
Seed Donation Locations
Return the seeds you save to the seed library where you will fill out a donation form with all the necessary information about the seeds.
- Schomberg Library (77 Main Street, Schomberg, ON L0G1T0)
- King Township Municipal Centre (2585 King Road, King City, ON L7B 1A1) ask to speak with Environmental Stewardship Coordinator
Additional Resources
