Environment committee  Yes. The types of funding that we're often involved with in the City of Winnipeg are often related to the youth employment grants, which generally are pretty user-friendly. With regard to the EcoAction grant, I know that can be tough for community groups. It's been a good source

Environment committee  I would say we're pretty fragmented at this point. I'm not really aware of one body that's bringing everything together right now.

Environment committee  In terms of securing funding, we've worked a lot of times with various community partnerships in applying for funding. The partnership types of agreements we have and the groups we work with have been incredible. We couldn't do it if it weren't community-based. We wouldn't be abl

Environment committee  I would start by saying that the concept of habitat banking isn't very well developed at this stage. I think it needs a lot of work. What we're doing right now in the city is really an uncomplicated, low-level form of habitat banking. We're looking at specific quantities being

Environment committee  I think it's something that deserves exploration and consideration. Obviously, what the value should be depends on the situation. Is it only the vegetation, or is it the actual land being removed in one way or another? That is part of the consideration.

Environment committee  Aspects of our ecologically significant natural lands strategy and policy have been incredibly valuable in looking at nature and trying to assess which are the highest-quality areas, which are the ones most in need of being preserved, and trying to plan in relation to that so tha

Environment committee  A lot of times at a local level these no-net-loss guidelines and actually putting a value on natural capital can work. The tree removal guideline is a relatively simple formula. We know what it costs to plant a tree and, depending on the size of the tree that has to be removed,

Environment committee  For a prairie restoration project, we know that the restoration companies that do really high-quality work will work on the project for four to five years. If there were four- to five-year projects, I think that would be a good start.

Environment committee  I think there are a number of reasons they've become involved in it. Part of it could be that even within the development community, there are individuals who have an interest in nature and want to see nature in developments. Another aspect of it is the marketability of it. The l

Environment committee  Well, in the drainage that's coming off the land in Winnipeg, the amount of nutrients coming to Lake Winnipeg will be a relatively minor proportion from land drainage in the city. However, when you have a naturalized wetland, a lot of nutrients are being filtered out at that st

Environment committee  I can't make a recommendation about exactly what we need in the act. What we want to see is a level of federal protection such that if it comes down to a major infrastructure project or something that has the potential to destroy habitat, it is given proper valuation in the proje

Environment committee  Sure.

Environment committee  Potentially it would. In terms of the natural areas we work with, my expertise is specifically in the park spaces and the natural areas and not so much in transportation planning, but I know that having active transportation—bike routes and things like that—through natural areas

Environment committee  I can't say that I'm an expert in that field. We have installed a nature playground at the Living Prairie Museum, and there's one at Assiniboine Park as well. I know from my experience with my own children that it seems like a simpler design, but they can spend just as much time,

Environment committee  One of our big management techniques out there is doing controlled burns or prescribed burns to try to control some of the non-native grasses, the invasive species that are there. We also do a fair bit of manual weed control—removal of thistle, and things like that. We've begun p