Clarington: New protected areas added in Ganaraska Forest as trails get upgrades

The Ganaraska Region Conservation Authority (GRCA) says new areas of the West and East Ganaraska Forest will now be managed as Environmentally Significant Areas, the authority announced in a release dated November 11, 2026.

The designations follow annual inventories of different forest compartments carried out under the authority's Forest Management Plan. The GRCA says the inventory data guides forest management decisions, including which areas receive additional protective measures.

Forest users are prohibited from entering the newly designated Environmentally Significant Areas, and the authority says additional considerations will apply to those areas when timber harvesting takes place.

To keep trail connections in place, trails around the new protected areas will be improved through funding and support from the Greenbelt Foundation, according to the release. Once the work is complete, the updated boundaries will be shown on the Ganaraska Forest Trails Map and on signage, and forest users are required to follow the map and posted signs.

The Ganaraska Forest spans Northumberland, Peterborough, Kawartha Lakes and Durham Region, and its West Forest lies in Clarington. More information is available from the GRCA at 905-885-8173 or grca.on.ca.