RIDEAU VALLEY, April 28, 2022 – Nurturing new life and dreaming of a brighter future: your mother did this for you, and now you can return the favour.

Thanks to the Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation’s special occasions tree planting program, you can honour your mom and Mother Earth at the same time this Mother’s Day by planting a native tree seedling on her behalf, right here in Eastern Ontario. 

With help from the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority (RVCA), special occasion trees are planted across the Rideau Valley watershed, from Frontenac to Smiths Falls to downtown Ottawa. As the seedlings grow they help fight erosion, manage floods and keep contaminants out of our rivers and lakes – not to mention pulling carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere. 

Staff tend to the new trees, helping them grow into maturity so they can thrive for decades to come – much like your mother did for you.

A single tree costs $25, while a grove of five is only $100. Ten trees cost $150 and a family grove of 25 costs $250 – just $10 a tree. The program plants a combination of white cedar, white pine, red oak and sugar maple.

Online ordering makes it easy and fast. Under the program page, simply choose your donation amount and enter your information, and you’ll receive a charitable tax receipt to your inbox right away. You can even send your mom an e-card right from the donation site – perfect for last minute purchases or long-distance giving.

The Foundation is a registered charity that supports conservation work across more than 4,000 km² in Eastern Ontario.

Our partner the RVCA is responsible for monitoring water quality, flood risks and other hazards to keep people, property and the environment safe. Planting trees is an important part of the authority’s efforts to promote biodiversity, protect our drinking water and reduce the risk of flooding.

For more information visit www.rvcf.ca or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

-30-

RIDEAU VALLEY, June 7, 2021 – It’s been a hard year for students and teachers alike, but still your teachers have helped you grow and thrive. Now's your chance to return the favour!

The Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation offers a range of commemorative programs that support a healthy and sustainable local environment for the future. Instead of trinkets and gift cards, consider planting the seeds of a thriving future, just as they have planted within you. 

Tree Planting: Each year the Foundation plants a combination of white cedar, white pine, red oak and sugar maple across the Rideau Valley watershed to clean our air, fight climate change and create beautiful natural spaces to unwind and reconnect. A single tree costs $25, while a grove of five costs $100. Ten trees cost $150 and a family grove of 25 costs $250 – just $10 a tree. More here: https://www.rvcf.ca/ways-to-give/special-occasion-tree-planting

Adopt an Acre: When you adopt an acre for $25, you protect land right here at home in the Rideau Valley. Your symbolic gift will protect more than 6,765 acres of wetlands, shorelines and forests and the many plants and animals they support. These crucial habitats are hard at work reducing our risk of floods, cleaning our water, stopping erosion and storing vast amounts of carbon to keep our communities healthy and resilient in the face of climate change. More here: https://www.rvcf.ca/ways-to-give/adopt-an-acre

Nature For All: Access to the great outdoors and its many health benefits is crucial for people of all ages and abilities. Our Nature For All campaign is fundraising to build new boardwalks and bridges at Baxter Conservation Area to the gold standard of accessibility. If this cause is close to your teacher’s heart, consider donating on their behalf to transform Baxter into Eastern Ontario’s most accessible wilderness haven. More here:https://www.rvcf.ca/nature-for-all

Online ordering makes gift-giving easy and fast. To purchase your gifts, visit www.canadahelps.org, choose your donation category and enter your information. You’ll receive a charitable tax receipt to your inbox right away. You can even send your teacher a personalized e-card in English or French.

The Foundation is a registered charity that supports the work of the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority, which monitors more than 4,000 km² of waterways across 18 municipalities in Eastern Ontario.

The authority is responsible for monitoring water quality, flood risks and other hazards to keep people, property and the environment safe. Planting trees is an important part of the authority’s efforts to promote biodiversity, protect our drinking water and reduce the risk of flooding.

For more information visit www.rvcf.ca or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

- 30 -

RIDEAU VALLEY, June 1, 2021 – What do the dusty exercise bike in your basement and the abandoned dress in your closet have in common? They can now both become cash donations to Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation!

The RVCF is thrilled to become the first environmental charity partnering with GiveShop, an Ottawa-based online community marketplace.

Like other buy-and-sell platforms, GiveShop users can post new and gently used items for sale on the app or website. But in an innovative twist, sale proceeds are donated directly to the seller’s charity of choice and the seller gets a charitable tax receipt for the full amount. 

This is an exciting new donation option for RVCF supporters, and offers huge benefits for everyone involved: 

• the seller clears out their space and gets a charitable tax receipt;
• the buyer gets a great deal; 
• the item is spared from landfill;
• users support an innovative local business;
• and the Foundation receives much-needed funds to continue supporting critical environmental programs such as tree planting, water quality research and outdoor education. 

“GiveShop expands donation options for our supporters while contributing to a more sustainable future,” said Diane Downey, RVCF’s executive director. “Partnering with this local start-up dovetails perfectly with what we are trying to accomplish in the Rideau Valley watershed.”

The Foundation is a registered environmental charity working to help protect and conserve the lands and waters of the Rideau Valley watershed in Eastern Ontario. The Foundation complements and supports the work of the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority by raising funds and in-kind gifts for three major areas of conservation work: land care through tree planting, trail maintenance, and picnic tables, benches, boardwalks; river care through water quality monitoring, biodiversity monitoring, wetland inventories, invasive species removal and clean water projects; and conservation education through outdoor learning experiences, accessible programs and public events. 

How to support RVCF on GiveShop: 

1. Using www.GiveShop.ca or the GiveShop app, create an account and choose Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation as your preferred charity. Verify your account through your email.

2. To sell an item, click “Give” and choose RVCF as your charity. Post photos and a description and wait for buyers to bid or buy outright. Once an item has been sold, the funds are sent directly to the Foundation – you don’t handle the cash! You can then arrange a pick-up time with the buyer. Watch for your charitable receipt in your inbox. 

3. To buy an item, visit the Foundation's marketplace page or click “Shop” and choose RVCF as your charity. Buy an item you love and enjoy it knowing it supports a more sustainable future for you and your community!

In light of COVID-19 public health guidance, we ask that all GiveShop users follow social distancing policies when meeting up to exchange items. Sellers should thoroughly sanitize items before pick-up and leave items by the door or follow a "curb-side" model when handing off the item to the buyer.

Happy shopping! For more information contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

-30-

-30-

RIDEAU VALLEY, May 4, 2021 – Your mother gave you the gift of life, and now you can return the favour.

Thanks to the Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation’s special occasions tree planting program, you can skip the grocery store bouquet and plant an environmental legacy in your mom’s honour, instead.

The native tree species are planted across the Rideau Valley watershed, from Frontenac to Smiths Falls to downtown Ottawa, helping to fight erosion, manage floods and keep contaminants out of our rivers and lakes. Staff tend to the new trees, helping them grow into maturity so they can thrive for decades – much like your mother did for you.

A single tree costs $25, while a grove of five is only $100. Ten trees cost $150 and a family grove of 25 costs $250 – just $10 a tree.

Online ordering makes it easy and fast. Under the RVCF’s Special Occasion Trees program, simply enter your donation amount and your information, and you’ll receive a charitable tax receipt to your inbox right away. You can even send your mom an e-card right from the foundation site.

The foundation is a registered charity that supports the work of the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority, which monitors more than 4,000 km² of waterways across 18 municipalities in Eastern Ontario.

The authority is responsible for monitoring water quality, flood risks and other hazards to keep people, property and the environment safe. Planting trees is an important part of the authority’s efforts to promote biodiversity, protect our drinking water and reduce the risk of flooding.

The RVCF plants a combination of white cedar, white pine, red oak and sugar maple.

To order your Mother’s Day trees, visit www.canadahelps.org and choose “Special Occasion Trees” from the drop-down list. Watch for your charitable receipt in your inbox!

For more information visit www.rvcf.ca or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.. 

-30-

RIDEAU VALLEY, April 22, 2021 – Just in time for Earth Day, Rideau Valley residents can count on cleaner water, healthier shorelines and more climate-resilient communities thanks to a groundbreaking agreement between the Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation (RVCF) and Modern Niagara.

The national mechanical, electrical, integrated building technology and building services corporation will provide $300,000 to the Foundation over five years to help acquire 375 more acres of local wetlands, shorelines and forests for perpetual protection.

This is the first deal of its kind for the RVCF and will provide it with much more flexibility to acquire sensitive natural areas across the watershed.

The agreement also kickstarts Modern Niagara’s journey to carbon neutrality by protecting lands that naturally absorb and store carbon dioxide. The company is working on other strategies to reduce its carbon footprint, as well. 

The land deal safeguards vital environmental services for nearby communities. 

“This agreement is a huge win for the watershed’s residents, who rely on robust wetland and forest cover to provide flood, drought and erosion control and to keep our air and water clean,” said Diane Downey, executive director of the RVCF. “Protecting pristine natural areas is our first and best defence against the impacts of climate change.”

The RVCF currently owns, manages or supports more than 6,765 acres of unique, healthy ecosystems across the Rideau Valley. But these lands cost money to acquire and maintain; surveys, appraisals, legal fees, property taxes and public safety measures are all expenses the Foundation accepts when it acquires a property. 

The Foundation’s Steve Simmering Conservation Lands Endowment Fund is used to cover these costs, with the principal invested year after year to create a steady flow of cash. But until this agreement, the endowment required more principal to offset all of the annual and acquisition costs.

Today, thanks to Modern Niagara, the Foundation won’t have to say no to future land donations. The agreement gives the Foundation the flexibility and financial security to accept new lands, by covering the many land transfer costs that can add up. 

“Modern Niagara is proud to preserve our most sensitive natural areas while also doing our part to slow the impacts of climate change,” said Erin Oliver, Modern Niagara’s VP of Health, Safety and Sustainability. “Green and sustainable technology is at the core of what we do, and you can’t find a greener technology than allowing nature to do its work.”

Oliver said the Modern Niagara team is thrilled to be protecting local lands that have a direct impact on the health and sustainability of their communities.

“We are so excited for this partnership and can’t wait to see what beautiful parcels of local land will be protected because of it,” Oliver said. 

Want to get on board?

The RVCF welcomes corporations and organizations of all sizes to become a local environmental champion like Modern Niagara and our other legacy partners by sponsoring a property, supporting local tree planting, helping to upgrade our nature trails, supporting outdoor education opportunities or through their own visionary idea. 

Whatever your budget, we can work with you to find a level and method of support that suits your vision while keeping our watershed clean and healthy for generations to come.

Contact Diane Downey at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. to get started. 

-30-

We are so excited to welcome you to the RVCF and RVCA conservation family!

Enjoying and appreciating nature is the first step to caring for our environment. We invite you to visit our local conservation areas and experience the great outdoors in safe and beautiful spaces.

Visit us!

Family fun starts at our 11 natural sites featuring trails, beaches, boat launches and more. Not from the Ottawa area? Conservation authorities across Ontario offer hundreds of public sites for your enjoyment. Find one near you: https://ontarioconservationareas.ca

 Enjoy nature to the max!

Check out these awesome activities and experiments to get kids and adults of all ages excited about the natural world. 

We hope you have a great time. Visit again soon!

Your conservation partners:

OTTAWA, Feb. 8, 2021 – Rural Ottawa landowners can access an additional 40,000 trees thanks to a generous donation from One Tree Planted. 

RVCA’s tree planting program helps private landowners turn farm fields and other marginal land into thriving forests of the future.

This is the second year of support from One Tree Planted, which will transform 20 hectares of idle land into functioning green infrastructure. Forests protect soil from erosion, improve nearby water quality, reduce flooding risks, capture carbon, improve wildlife habitat and increase biodiversity. Environment Canada recommends 30% forest cover in any community to sustain biodiversity and enjoy all the environmental services that forests provide. 

“We're thrilled to help make a positive impact with reforestation alongside the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority and local landowners,” said Diana Chaplin, Canopy Director at One Tree Planted. “It's really a team effort when it comes to environmental restoration."

Our forestry staff plant more than 250,000 trees on private land across the watershed each year – that’s more than 6.6 million since we started in 1983. The cost per seedling should be about $3, but with support from partners like One Tree Planted and the Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation, RVCA can offer landowners highly affordable large-scale planting at just $0.15 per tree. 

This includes a custom planting plan that’s good for the land and landowner, choosing species such as sugar maple, red oak, burr oak, white spruce, white pine and cedar depending on the site’s unique qualities and the landowner’s vision. Our staff then oversee the site’s preparation and tree planting process. We follow up three and five years after the trees are planted to see how they’re growing and replace struggling trees to ensure maximum survival rates.

“Support from partners like One Tree Planted is critical to ensure landowners are motivated to invest in tree planting on their properties,” said Forestry Manager Ian Cochrane. “Tree planting is one of the most practical ways to take care of our watershed and the wider environment.”

If you have land you’d like to reforest, consider planting trees through our program! Contact Ian at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or visit https://www.rvca.ca/stewardship-grants/tree-planting for more information. 

-30-

TAY VALLEY, Feb. 2, 2021 – A beautiful piece of Tay Valley shoreline will be preserved in perpetuity thanks to a generous land donation to the Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation (RVCF). 

The 12-acre swath of forest and wetland is part of a thriving ecosystem and home to countless creatures – some of them currently at risk in Ontario. 

It is classic grey ratsnake territory, supporting an important species at risk in the Frontenac Arch biosphere. The Eastern wood-pewee, a species of special concern in Ontario, has also been spotted nearby. 

The property is mostly mixed hardwood forest, with a small patch of wetland. It’s well known to local residents for its unique rocky outcrop and its distinctive red oaks overlooking the lake. 

Under local zoning bylaws, the undeveloped property could have legally seen more than an acre cleared for buildings, roads and other development, only 30 metres from the shore. But now that will be avoided, preserving important habitat and environmental services on the lake forever.

“These kinds of medium-sized donations are important for conservation because they link to other natural lands and weave a tapestry of habitat and green infrastructure throughout the watershed,” said RVCF Director Diane Downey. “We are honoured to care for this property on behalf of the donor family in perpetuity.”

The Foundation has an active land securement plan and strong track record in managing donated land.

Forests and wetlands filter stormwater to keep our lakes and rivers clean, store water to prevent floods and drought, capture carbon and clean the air.

The RVCF prioritizes waterfront properties when accepting donations and places high value on properties that include wetlands, forest cover, floodplain, steep slopes, unstable soils, species at risk, ecological restoration potential or that link to another public property or natural area.

Depending on the property, donations could be eligible for considerable charitable tax benefits through the Ecological Gifts program. 

If you don’t have property to donate but want to support the conservation land program, donations to the Steve Simmering Conservation Land Endowment Fund are always welcomed to help cover annual property costs like taxes, insurance and on-the-ground maintenance like fencing and signage. 

For more information about land donations, contact This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

-30-

OTTAWA, Nov. 20, 2020 — There’s never been a better time to support conservation programs right here in your backyard, thanks to a generous matching pledge from Enbridge Gas. 

Between Nov. 20, 2020 and Giving Tuesday (Dec. 1, 2020), Enbridge will match up to $5,000 in donations to the Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation’s Steve Simmering Conservation Land Endowment Fund. 

This gift will help the Foundation cover annual maintenance costs for more than 6,570 acres of natural lands across the watershed – costs like property taxes, fencing and signage. It’s mundane work, but it’s crucial to preserving these donated lands in perpetuity, as promised to the families who left them in the Foundation’s care. 

If we’ve learned anything in 2020, it’s that protecting outdoor spaces matters. It matters for our physical and mental health, and for our sense of community. 

But it also matters for our future: natural lands are key to fighting climate change and protecting us from natural disasters like floods and droughts. They provide thousands of dollars’ worth of environmental services, like stormwater management and carbon capture, which taxpayers would have to replace if these lands disappeared. 

The thing is, even undeveloped land costs money to maintain – up to $60,000 per property over time – and interest from the Steve Simmering endowment is meant to cover these annual costs. The principal remains invested to create a steady flow of cash year after year.

But right now we can’t offset our current annual costs, which limits our ability to accept new properties and shield them from development, too. With Enbridge’s help, your donation will do double duty to protect our current lands and give us the resources to accept new ecologically significant properties across the region in the future.

This giving season, let Enbridge double your impact and keep our watershed green forever.

How to donate: 

Step 1: Visit https://www.canadahelps.org/en/dn/11994

Step 2: Choose "Steve Simmering Conservation Land Endowment Fund" from the drop-down list

Step 3: Receive a charitable receipt in your inbox

OTTAWA, Jan. 21, 2021 — A lot can happen in 40 years – just ask Mary Bryden, who retired from the board of the Rideau Valley Conservation Foundation (RVCF) this year after 40 years of conservation volunteer work. 

2020 marked RVCF’s 50^th anniversary, and few people have been involved in the foundation or its partner the Rideau Valley Conservation Authority (RVCA) for as long as Mary. 

She first joined the RVCA board of directors as a Gloucester Township councillor in 1979, taking over for Councillor Mitch Owens. 

She sat on the RVCA board during major infrastructure upgrades and sat on the tribunal that protected much of the Rideau River’s shorelines from development. 

She moved to the Foundation’s board in 1995, becoming chair of the board in 2000. She remained in that position for 10 years.

Now 80, Mary said much has changed since the old days when the Authority was mostly there to restrict floodplain development and the Foundation was largely meant to manage donated land. 

“The people who have joined the board in recent years, they want to do something more in the way of stewardship,” Mary said.

The foundation has also grown in response to current local needs. It now raises funds to support water quality monitoring and research, shoreline rehabilitation projects, tree planting and outdoor education, on top of its flagship role in protecting and managing conservation lands. 

This is a positive evolution, Mary said, especially with climate change looming large in the public conscience. 

“I’d like people to be more conscious of their environment. I lean toward educating people because the more people are aware the less they will act badly,” she said. 

Mary was a trailblazer when she began with the RVCA: a single mother of three, full-time nurse and one of the first women to sit on the RVCA’s board of directors. At her first meeting, when the general manager addressed the board members as “gentlemen,” she added loudly, “and ladies!” 

As a Foundation board member, she helped rewrite the organization’s bylaws to allow for more fundraising – a timely effort, as provincial money for conservation authority programs began to disappear in the mid-1990s. 

“As things got cut and cut and cut, the foundation needed more room to raise money for authority programs,” she said. “We have been quite successful and are pleased with the on-the-ground efforts that our fundraising supports.”

Today, the Foundation has raised more than $5 million for conservation programs in the Rideau Valley watershed.

Mary said many of her achievements at the Foundation and RVCA wouldn’t have been possible without the “wonderful help and support” of staff.

“It’s a great group of people and I’m glad to have spent all those years,” Mary said. “I knew nothing about conservation when I walked through the door, and I learned a lot.”

Happy retirement, Mary!