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Baxter Outdoor and Environmental Education Programs

Baxter Conservation Area offers outdoor and environmental education programs for students and community groups from preschool to grade 12 and beyond. Join us in our outdoor classroom and give your students the opportunity to explore and connect with nature. Our education programs provide students and visitors with interactive, hands-on, curriculum-based experiences where they will learn about the natural world and their relationship with it. We also offer outdoor education programs where students will learn navigation and outdoor survival skills as well.  

Baxter can accommodate up to 60 students per day. All equipment is included in our programs and each program runs approximately 1.5 hours in length. Below please find descriptions of each of the programs we offer. Descriptions are offered as general guidelines — if there are specific objectives that you would like to accomplish, please let us know. Although grade levels are recommended for each program, these are also only guidelines. Please select any desired fields to narrow your search.

Half Day Program $200 / group * maximum 30 students, 90 minutes with an RVCA instructor
Full Day Program $275 / group * maximum 30 students, two 90 minutes with an RVCA instructor
Self-directed $2.50/person * Interested in just visiting the conservation area with your class but not booking a program? The cost is $2.50/person. This does not include the use of buildings other than access to public washrooms. To reserve facilities, contact staff. Staff must still be contacted to book a self-directed visit.
Overnight Tent Camping (accommodations only) 1-15 people - $75/night *
16-30 people - $150/night *
30+ people - contact for pricing *
Additional buildings also available for rent (link to facility rentals) 
Take you class on an overnight adventure to our group camping area! Plan your own activities or book our education staff to provide programming during your stay (see above for pricing).

* plus applicable taxes

Baxter’s Cancellation Policy: A minimum of fifteen (15) business days notice is required to cancel education programs at Baxter Conservation Area.
This policy gives schools/groups on our waiting list sufficient time to try and fill the program opening. If Baxter Conservation Area is notified of a cancellation less than 15 business days in advance of your scheduled visit, a cancellation fee of $50.00 will be charged.

In the event of severe weather conditions (i.e. thunderstorms, snowstorms, etc.), Baxter staff will make contact with your school/group by 7:00 AM the morning of your trip if we need to re-schedule or cancel the program on that day. There will be no charge for a cancellation made due to school bus cancellations or severe weather conditions on the day of your trip.

Baxter Education Program Descriptions

Displaying items by tag: stormwater

IMG 7416Township of Rideau Lakes drainage manager Dan Chant joined RVCA intern Caitlin Sommer in Portland this July to paint yellow fish on several storm drains. These fish will remind residents that stormwater goes directly to the lake.The Township of Rideau Lakes has generously funded a pilot partnership with Big Rideau Lake Association, Cataraqui Region Conservation Authority and Rideau Valley Conservation Authority to work co-operatively on a sustainable drainage pilot project in the village of Portland and the surrounding rural catchment area.

As climate change contributes to more frequent and extreme rain events, excess nutrients, sediments, harmful chemicals and pollutants are increasingly washed into Big Rideau Lake through our storm drainage systems. This contributes to increased aquatic weed growth, more toxic algae blooms and an overall decline in lake health and enjoyment. 

In summer 2022, staff from RVCA as well as volunteers from the Big Rideau Lake Association conducted a sampling and monitoring program, targeting an urban drain in the village as well as a rural drain (non-agricultural) outside the village. Research was conducted to find and recommend sustainable drainage practices that are best suited to protect water quality and lake health. 

Read the Monitoring Report/Summary.

Read the final Recommendations Report.

Read the Literature Review.

Resources:

Reducing your runoff can also begin at home – and can be as easy as installing a rain barrel. To learn more about how you can reduce stormwater runoff on your own property, check out the resources below.

VIDEO: Learn how to build a low-cost, low-maintenance rain garden on your property: https://youtu.be/dvgJXlul9Bk

VIDEO: Learn how the RVCA’s Shoreline Naturalization Program offers technical and financial support for waterfront owners to naturally reduce their runoff: https://youtu.be/j2WEnMfRZTo

BLOG: Learn all the simple, cost-effective ways you can reduce runoff on your own property: https://www.rvca.ca/view-all-blog-posts/soak-up-the-summer-storms-reducing-your-runoff-in-the-big-city

BLOG: Learn more about the RVCA’s Clean Water Grants program that supports sustainable drainage and other projects for rural residents: https://www.rvca.ca/view-all-blog-posts/grant-program-makes-clean-water-projects-affordable

INTERACTIVE: Scroll over the pins to learn how you can keep contaminants out of your storm drain: https://www.rvca.ca/view-all-blog-posts/reducing-runoff-which-side-are-you-on

INTERACTIVE: Check out this interactive graphic for sustainable drainage practices on waterfront properties: https://www.rvca.ca/view-all-blog-posts/waterfront-living-which-side-are-you-on

WEBPAGE: Learn more about how to naturalize your shoreline (whether it’s a ditch, stream, river or lake!): https://www.rvca.ca/stewardship-grants/shoreline-naturalization/how-to-naturalize-your-shoreline

Benefits of sustainable drainage:

  • Reduced algae blooms and excessive weed growth in our lakes and rivers
  • Improved water quality for local ecosystems
  • Better water quality for local tourist industries including recreational fishing and seasonal rentals
  • Safer drinking water for residents with surface water intakes
  • Improved knowledge of sustainable drainage best practices can be applied across the watershed 

More Information:

Michael Yee
Planner, RVCA 

613-692-3571 ext. 1176 

Haley Matschke
Acting Surface Water Quality Co-ordinator

613-692-3571 ext 1156

Contact Us

Address:
Rideau Valley Conservation Authority
3889 Rideau Valley Drive
Manotick, Ontario K4M 1A5

Phone:
613-692-3571, 1-800-267-3504

Email:

Hours:

Regular Hours: Monday to Friday, 8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.

Member of: conservation ontario