'This is sacred land': People camp outside privately owned Winnipeg forest to protest tree removal
City prepared to negotiate with Lemay Forest owner to preserve land, councillors say
People camped outside Lemay Forest in the St. Norbert neighbourhood say they're there in protest of the continued removal of acres of a forest on private property.
Cat Gauthier, a member of a coalition advocating for the protection of the land, said at least six people have been camping out in a stretch of public space since Friday.
She says the group lit up a sacred fire that will continue burning "until there is intervention by the city to stop the tree removal."
"This is sacred land. We are tired of having to fight to protect sacred land and the natural environment," Gauthier said.
The roughly 18 acres of forest land are part of a private property — located south of the Perimeter Highway between Lemay Avenue and the Red River — owned by the Tochal Development Group.
John Wintrup, planner and representative of the developer, said the removal of trees has been going on and off in the property since the spring. The city initially gave the developer a cease and desist order for cutting down trees until it received a permit to remove vegetation in October.
Workers resumed cutting trees in the forest last week, and Wintrup said that one acre has been cleared so far.
"A lot of the surrounding neighbours have been trying to steal his land and think it's a private park for their use … they've been doing everything they can to stop them from enjoying his property," he said.
However, Gauthier said the forest is part of the history and culture for First Nations, who have been on the land for generations and have more recently practiced sweat lodges over the last 30 years.
"We feel that this was very vindictive," she said. "It was an attack on nature, culture and the history of the land."
Justin Lamoureux, who has lived in the area for the last 11 years, says the forest was a big reason his family, including two children, moved to St. Norbert.
"They've adventured in those forests, they've made forts, they've had amazing walks," Lamoureux said.
"My daughter, when she heard the chainsaws, she was like, 'I hope they're not cutting down my tree. That's the tree I like to climb and read in.'"
When Lamoureux investigated, he was saddened by what he found.
"It's devastating. It's not nice to see," Lamoureux said of the felled trees.
Wintrup said people have repeatedly trespassed into the property and claimed ownership because trees are on it — so the owner has chosen to remove them.
"In a free and democratic society, private property owners have rights and just because tree advocates or some neighbour like your trees doesn't give you or the government the right to enter the land," he said.
"I'm really concerned of the outcome here, of what people are acting on a lot of misinformation."
Winnipeg police say they are aware of the situation and continue to monitor it. No threats or assaults have been reported and there have been no arrests.
'This has to stop': Wyatt
Coun. Russ Wyatt (Transcona) said the city can't afford to lose Lemay Forest, calling it a historic area for Indigenous communities that residents in the St. Norbert neighbourhood have enjoyed for decades.
"For a city to be healthy and successful, you need to have green spaces," he said. "This has to stop."
Wyatt said it is "high time" for the city to preserve existing forest lands. But it is also part of the city's mandate, he argued, after Winnipeg signed into the Montreal Pledge, a climate agreement to protect urban biodiversity.
The city, however, doesn't have the legal power to prevent an owner from cutting trees on their own property after a permit has been issued.
But Wyatt said he would look into repealing the permit granted by the city to allow Tochal Development Group to transport heavy machinery, including the tree removal equipment, across Winnipeg.
A report proposing a bylaw to guide tree protection on private property is also anticipated to be tabled later this year. A spokesperson for the city said such a bylaw would set out guidelines for how and when trees could be removed from private property.
Wyatt, who was part of the committee moving forward with the motion for the report more than a year ago, said there are downsides to the enforcement of a possible bylaw and issues on its timeline.
"Either you do that bylaw fast, and you get it implemented," he said, or it can further incentivize property owners to accelerate the deforestation before the rules come into effect.
"That's why I'm making this appeal to the individual who owns the land … cease his activity," Wyatt said, mentioning city council could be prepared to sit down and negotiate an agreement to preserve and save the forest land.
Following recent meetings with the provincial and federal governments as well as the Manitoba Metis Federation on the matter, Coun. Markus Chambers (St. Norbert-Seine River) joined advocates of the forest Monday.
The forest has important historic value, he says, since it's where Louis Riel set up hs provisional government, which led to Manitoba joining Confederation in 1870.
"It's great to see the Indigenous community out here supporting as well, knowing the value and connection to the land," Chambers said.
From the city's perspective, he says, nothing has been approved for development on the lands.
"Very, very disappointed in the fact that trees are being cut and decimated," Chambers said. "Seems very spiteful."
In an emailed statement to CBC on Monday, Deputy Mayor Janice Lukes said the city's charter is being reviewed, in consultation with the province, to develop a bylaw that would enhance tree protection on private property.
However, plans are underway to continue removing the rest of the trees on the private property in the coming months, depending on the weather and scheduling.
But operations are pausing Monday, Wintrup said, as a group of community residents and First Nations gathered for a sunrise ceremony at the campsite.
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With files from Mike Arsenault