The Bay Area Restoration Council (BARC) is a community not-for-profit group that assesses and promotes clean-up projects in Hamilton Harbour and its watershed.

BARC delivers school programs, community events, resource materials and newsletters, and coordinates popular community planting events.

BARC works with all levels of government and the private sector to keep Harbour restoration issues at the forefront of community discussions and decision-making.

Classroom Mini Marsh program

The Bay Area Restoration Council (BARC) and Royal Botanical Gardens (RBG) have been offering Mini Marsh kits to local schools.

Kits include instructions, different types of rooted marsh plants, a bowl, gravel and a snail.

Participating classes plant the shoots in the gravel, maintain the water level in the bowl, and watch their Mini Marshes grow.

Students can also book a program at the RBG and plants the Mini Marshes themselves - Approximately 300 classes participate in this program each year.

Classroom Mini Marsh Curriculum Guides:

Kindergarten • Science and Technology

Grade 1 • Needs and Characteristics of Living
Grade 2 • Growth and Changes in Animals; Air and Water in the Environment
Grade 3 • Growth and Changes in Plants
Grade 4 • Habitats and Communities; People and Environments
Grade 6 • Biodiversity
Grade 7 • Interactions in the Environment
Grade 8 • Water Systems

Contact details-

Bay Area Restoration Council B130F –
Life Sciences Building
1280 Main Street West Hamilton,
ON L8S 4K1
(905) 527-7111