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Boysen is part of a coalition that is pushing the government for more time — at least three to five years. A year’s notice, they say, is not enough for the private sector to come up with an alternative. The fear is that without a plant producing high-quality tree seeds sourced from the same area they’ll be planted in, the urban landscaping industry will turn to seed from U.S. houses. The 50 million tree program – an Ontario government program bent on planting 50 million trees in the province by 2025 – will have to look elsewhere for 40 to 50 per cent of its seed, according to Forests Ontario, which runs the program.

Photo by Tyler Anderson / National Post

The ministry, Boysen said, “is a 747 of biodiversity with no landing gear.”

“They talk a big story and in this case, they’re removing one of the best tools to make it easy for people to do the right thing.”

Ken Durst, the regional manager who oversees the Angus seed plant, was far more confident in the private sector’s ability to fill the gap. It already handles 80 per cent of seed extraction.

“At this point, they’re doing a good job of it,” Durst said. “We’re not a big player in this business.”

With the government no longer in the business of growing seed to meet market demands, it will be freed up to catalogue seed that will help government scientists analyze the effects of climate change, he said.

Photo by Tyler Anderson / National Post

But the government plant was the only one of its kind in Southern Ontario, which has far more tree varieties than the north. So the six (human) staff at the plant are among very few with the expertise needed to process seed from those species, critics said. In some cases, seed collectors even send photos of pine cones to staff at the plant, since they’re the only ones who can tell if the cones are ripe, Boysen said.

Durst said none of the staff will be out of jobs. “We’re working in support of each of our staff as they think about their transition plans going forward,” he said. “At this point in time, there are no layoffs.”

Photo by Tyler Anderson / National Post

As for the cats, their professional mousing is soon over. The ministry will find new homes for Pepper and Sammy, Durst said. It’s unlikely though, that those new homes will be like their last: 10 hectares of old government buildings, trees, mice and what must be a deep, humbling sense of civic duty.