Saint Andrews resident receives Lieutenant- Governor’s Award for Excellence in Land Conservation
Saint Andrews resident receives Lieutenant- Governor’s Award for Excellence in Land Conservation
By Lian Goodall, The Saint Croix Courier
SAINT ANDREWS - If you enjoy any of Nature Trust of New Brunswick's 17 nature preserves in Charlotte County, you may have, in part, St. Andrews resident Jessie Davies to thank. Davies was the 2020 winner of the Lieutenant Governor's Award for Excellence in Land Conservation. Davies and the 2021 winner, the non-profit organization Sentinelles Petitcodiac Riverkeeper, were presented their awards by Lieutenant Governor Brenda Murphy in Fredericton on March 24. The awards began in 2012 in celebration of the 25th anniversary of Nature Trust of New Brunswick, a charitable land conservation organization.
Davies served as Director of Environment and Sustainable Development Research Centre at the University of New Brunswick from 1994 to 2005. She was a board member of the Nature Trust beginning in 1993, president from 1996 to 1999, and named honorary director in 2012.
As co-chair of the Nature Trust of New Brunswick's Campaign for Coastal Lands between 2008 and 2011, Davies helped raise $1.1 million to preserve 152 hectors (375 acres) and 3 kilometers of coastline for recreational enjoyment. The Navy Island and Leigh Williamson nature preserves were secured, and the Caughey- Taylor Nature Preserve was doubled in size.
Davies is also noted for her contribution to conservation initiatives with the Fundy Community Foundation, Huntsman Marine Science Centre, Sunbury Shores Arts and Nature Centre, the International Joint Commission's International St. Croix River Watershed Board, and the Southwest New Brunswick Marine Resources Planning Support Committee.
According to Davies, she has “always been interested in a lot of different environmental issues and when I had a phone call to be on the [Nature Trust] board, I looked into it carefully.” She accepted, she said “because it was exciting, and it was slight departure as usually in environmental work you are opposing something. This was different.”
There are 70 Nature Trust preserves in New Brunswick. Davies said she found helping to create and maintain these spaces satisfying. “Saving a piece of land into perpetuity is rewarding work,” she states. She recalls an experience helping to defeat natural gas terminals on the Maine side of Passamaquoddy Bay. “It's gratifying to be able to stop inappropriate development, but it is negative,” Davies says. Working in land conservation is more positive. She describes it as “a different feeling than when you are opposing something.”
While she speaks of the rewards, Davies is not unaware of the challenges in land conservation.
“Some of the preserves took 10 years to get all the pieces wrapped up with lawyers, surveyors, neighbours and donors.” The important thing,” Davies says, “is to focus on what you want to achieve in the end and to be persistent. Things usually eventually happen.”
Nature Trust of New Brunswick has a process for accepting donations and a criterion. Davies personally sees islands as particularly valuable places where “the impact of people is less. It gives nature a little bit of a breather.” Wetlands are “very, very important”, she says.
The Nature Trust is also interested, Davies explains, “in long pieces of land,” or ones that connect, in order to make available the type of habitat that species such as pine marten need. Davies would also like to see, “Focus on tree species, trees that are rare such as the red cedar.”
The conservationist is particularly keen on preserving coastal areas for people to walk, and remarks that “90 per cent of the Maine coastline is privately owned.” The Nature Trust of New Brunswick is aware of the work to be done in the province as its website states, “Over 95 per cent of New Brunswick lands are unprotected and open to development, ranking us as the second to last province in the country in the amount of conserved land (4.6 per cent).”
The award recipient says she is “pleased” and “delighted” to win. “It's quite heavy. I almost dropped it,” she laughs. “Think of the things that you have done that make an impact for perpetuity. It's rewarding.” Davies also stresses the award “goes to a lot of people. It's one of those things where many people worked together.”
Davies encourages people to find out more about the Nature Trust of New Brunswick by exploring the properties listed at naturetrust.nb.ca or by volunteering. She mentioned beach clean-ups and the maintenance tasks on trails or taking down old cabins on one of the islands.
“It's good to get out and do something with people,” Davies says.
Lian Goodall