'Discover the Seine' in Winter
- Introduction
The Seine River
Prepared by Om Joshi
Introduction
Save our Seine River Environment Inc. (SOS) in partnership with Praire Pathfinders organized 'Discover the Seine' on February 28, 2004. Over 100 people participated in this winter hike event. This 11 km long route started from Windsor Park Centre at King George Park at Fermor Ave. to the Forks Market. It passed through large parks, golf courses, private residential lots and various industrial land-uses. The walkers gathered at the Forks Market at 10 a.m. where they boarded Winnipeg transit shuttle service to travel to the starting point of the northbound hiking trail along the frozen river.
The main purpose of this event was to expose people to the scenic features of the Seine River taking advantage of increased accessibility during winter. Also, there are fewer animals present in the corridor to be disturbed by a group of hikers. The walk's main focus was to appreciate the scenic features of the Seine. However, they could have incorporated the 'environmental education' component to increase awareness of Seine and its historic, cultural and ecological importance to the City of Winnipeg. The environmental education could look at Seine River as an ecological corridor and various aspects related to it.
The impacts of urban development have lead to direct reduction in the amount of natural space. This has decreased habitat diversity (Marsh, 1997). Further, development leads to fragmentation of patches leading to alteration of natural processes.
As an ecological corridor, Seine operates in six basic ways (Labaree, 1992):
- As habitat for plant and animal communities
- As a conduit for plants, animals, water, sediment, and chemicals;
- As a barrier preventing movement (The frozen riverbed does not act as a barrier for movement of species)
- As a filter
- As a source for animals or seeds
- As a sink for trapping sediment, toxins, or nutrients