I live in the Niagara Peninsula (aka the Niagara Fruit Belt) in southern Ontario, Canada. It’s a fruit growing, wine producing area covering more than 700 square miles. Although called a peninsula, it’s really an isthmus, a narrow strip of land between two lakes, in this case the Great Lakes Erie and Ontario. An escarpment (a steep rock face) divides the land horizontally into an upper plain and a lower plain. The famous Niagara Falls flows over this escarpment. My home is the small town of Niagara-on-The-Lake on the lower plain (upper right corner of the map). Lake Ontario forms its northern border and the Niagara River is on the eastern border. This river is also the border between two countries, with New York State on the other side.
An Inland Sea
Hundreds of millions of years ago this area was a tropical, shallow inland sea in where crustaceans, snails, starfish, coral, lamp shells, and nautilus called home. It was much closer to the equator than it is now. As coral reefs died, they sent lime dust to the sea floor. Earthquakes shook, raising mountains and draining away the sea. This place literally and gradually moved north over millions of years and the basins for the Great Lakes were formed. Sediments from the sea formed the shale, sandstone, and limestone rocks that exist today.
These major events led to the emergence of the first reptiles 250 million years ago. Forests grew and the first warm-blooded animals emerged, eventually leading to the era of the dinosaur. We all know what happened next. Sometime around 65 million years ago, the dinosaurs were wiped out. Every last one of them. This allowed rodents to have their heyday. The first humans appeared around 15 million years ago. Then came the ice.
The Glacial Effect
Twenty thousand years ago, my place was covered in a mountain of ice more than two kilometres thick. There were a series of ice ages, with the last, the Wisconsin glaciation, ending ten thousand years ago. As water melted and the ice moved north, the basins of what are now the Great Lakes filled with water. The Niagara Escarpment became exposed about six thousand years ago and Lake Erie spilled over the escarpment to Lake Iroquois (now Lake Ontario) below. That means my place was under water once again.
As the ice continued to move away, the waters slowly retreated away from the Escarpment to create the Iroquois Plain, where I live today. The Niagara River became the main water outlet over the escarpment about twelve thousand years ago and Niagara Falls was only 35 feet in length. Since that time, the Falls have eroded 7.1 miles, creating a great gorge running along both sides of the river. The Falls are now more than 200 feet in length, one of the wonders of the world. Some of the water from the Falls is diverted to hydroelectric generating plants to supply electricity to our homes and businesses, which has slowed erosion.
The exposed rocks at the base of the escarpment are of the Ordovician age (480-450 mya), while the major part is of early to middle Silurian age (444-419 mya). To be able to see and touch these rocks is pretty amazing and I always feel as if I’m touching history.
The Niagara Escarpment has been designated a World Biosphere Reserve, meaning it’s deserving of the highest levels of protection. In my next post, I’ll share a hike through the Niagara gorge, where ancient rock is exposed and fossils from millions of years ago can be seen.
Recent History
One thousand years ago, Niagara’s lakes, landforms, unique soils, and climate were similar to today. There is evidence of corn and tobacco growing, as well as beans, squash and sunflowers. The Iroquois Indians, Glen Meyer Culture, occupied the land and there was little trade or outside contact. Primeval forests of oaks, maples and other hardwoods were punctuated by grasslands as high as ten feet. There were a huge variety of plant and animal species, both on the land and in the water.
Today, only 18% of the land is forested and wetland areas have also decreased due to urban development. Atmospheric carbon dioxide has increased thirty percent, affecting warming and climate change. In my opinion, the three major environmental impacts in this region are: the increase in atmospheric carbon dioxide, pollution and the introduction of invasive species, such as zebra mussels, to the Great Lakes, and urban development, which has resulted in loss of forests, wetlands, and tender fruit lands. Good news is the designation of a green belt, where agricultural lands are protected from development. The designation of the Niagara Escarpment as a World Biosphere Reserve has provided protection that has allowed the grape and wine industry to rapidly grow, because lands that might have succumbed to development were rediscovered as grape areas.I share this information because this month in the PLACE workshop we’re each exploring the deep-time, geologic stories of our places. The past is literally embedded in the present through the rocks that remain. The history gives clues as to how to move forward. I hope this inspires you to learn more about your place.
Resources Lewis, J.C., Guide to the Natural History of the Niagara Region. Welland, Ontario. Cam Lewis Enterprises, 1991 Tammemagi, Hans and Allyson, Exploring Niagara, Fitzhenry & Whiteside 2007 Ontario’s Biodiversity Strategy, http://ontariobiodiversitycouncil.ca/ontarios-strategy/ Niagara Parks Species at Risk, https://www.niagaraparks.com/?mdocs-file=17477 Niagara Region Smart Growth, https://www.niagararegion.ca/living/icp/pdf/2015/Chapter-4-Managing-Growth.pdf Niagara Agricultural Profile, https://www.niagararegion.ca/living/ap/pdf/niagara-agricultural-profile.pdf The Preservation of Agricultural Lands Society, “About Niagara Fruit Lands,” http://people.becon.org/~pals/niagara.html Origins of Niagara, “A Geological History,” http://www.niagarafrontier.com/origins.html Niagara Escarpment Commission, Geological Timeline, https://www.escarpment.org/NiagaraEscarpment/Environment/Geology/GeologicalTimeline
I’ve found reading about all the Places that have been chosen for this workshop absolutely fascinating!! Niagra-On-The-Lake is a beautiful place with a rich geographical history. Thanks for sharing your research here. I’m looking forward to your next post!
I totally agree, Cathy. Thanks for reading.