Climate action: Transforming research into climate solutions
Cultivating better bylaws to support biodiversity
In Our Community
Cultivating better bylaws to support biodiversity
Photo credit: Sabrina Careri, Lab Manager at the Ecological Design Lab
One of the easiest ways for someone to take climate action at home is by supporting biodiversity through naturalized yards or habitat gardens. However, those who want to swap their traditional lawn for a garden filled with native plants may find one of the biggest challenges is local municipal bylaws and enforcement.
The United Nations has identified biodiversity, or maintaining the complex web of living things on Earth, as the strongest natural defence against climate change. “It’s the machinery and magic of life itself,” said Toronto Metropolitan University (TMU) professor Nina-Marie Lister, a School of Urban and Regional Planning researcher who founded and directs the Ecological Design Lab.
With strong public awareness of climate change and biodiversity loss, many individuals are looking for ways to take meaningful action. “You can do something about the biodiversity crisis right at home,” she said. Naturalized yards and habitat gardens offer a wide range of benefits, from shading and cooling to supporting pollinators to stormwater management to the mental health benefits of time spent in nature. Sometimes, these naturalized yards can face bylaw infractions based on complaints about long grass, weeds or more.
Growing legal support protects naturalized yards
In 2020, professor Lister received notice of a City of Toronto bylaw infraction for her naturalized garden under the City’s “Long Grass and Weeds” Bylaw. The ecological design and landscape planning expert challenged the infraction successfully with the City.
This personal experience led to the development of the Bylaws for Biodiversity project. Through this project, professor Lister and her team have developed resources and partnerships to assist municipalities in reforming their bylaws, helping to drive change as subject matter experts in communities across Canada such as Toronto, Thunder Bay, Lunenburg in Nova Scotia and many more.
This work spans direct consultation with municipal staff who seek advice and resources, advising community members, assisting third-party groups and presenting to municipal councils. These efforts have contributed to advancing support for biodiversity at private residences in several communities, from revised bylaws being passed by municipal councils, like the City of Toronto, the Town of Smith’s Falls and Prince Edward County, to others that are on the cusp of bylaw updates such as Lunenburg, the City of London, Kingston and more.
An example of a naturalized and diverse backyard garden.
Biodiversity resources
The Bylaws for Biodiversity project has seen the development of two “prongs” of resources. One prong is materials for municipal officials, such as toolkits and educational resources for both planners and enforcement officers. Professor Lister notes one of the biggest challenges for individuals developing these diverse habitats is the threat of enforcement after neighbourhood complaints. The municipal toolkit is tailored for officials, providing both resources for improved understanding of naturalized gardens by enforcement officers and policy development resources.
The second prong includes resources for general community members interested in cultivating a natural garden, such as a guide on planting and garden signs that educate the community about naturalized yards available through the Bylaw for Biodiversity webpage.
Professor Lister and the Ecological Design Lab have established collaborations with the Canadian Society of Landscape Architects, the Canadian Wildlife Federation, the David Suzuki Foundation and environmental advocate Lorraine Johnson as part of the Bylaws for Biodiversity project. Together, they released an open letter to municipalities to advocate for bylaw reform, created a call to action to gather public support and continued to work together to support biodiversity.
You can do something about the biodiversity crisis right at home.
