To protect the many, many healthy trees on the Fort Garry campus, City of Winnipeg Urban Forestry crews will be working to remove trees with Dutch elm disease this winter. These necessary removals will help prevent the spread of the devastating fungi, which easily infects non-resistant elm trees, ultimately killing them.

What is Dutch elm disease?

Caused by a type of sac fungi, Dutch elm disease is an affliction affecting primarily elm trees. In order to block the spread of the fungus within its limbs, a diseased tree will plug its own xylem tissue with gum and bladder-like extensions of the xylem cell wall called tylos

Since the xylem is what delivers water and nutrients to the rest of the tree, these plugs prevent them from travelling throughout the plant, starving and killing it.

Where are the diseased trees?

Most of the diseased elms are on the Point Lands, but there are a few on the main Fort Garry campus. If left untreated, Dutch elm disease would jeopardize the entire UM canopy.

The removal work will take place over the winter.

If you have any questions about the tree removals, please reach out to Operations and Maintenance at PPWOD@umanitoba.ca or by phone at 204-474-6281.

To watch this news story, please follow the link to City News Winnipeg.

On Dec. 20, the majority of offices and services on University of Manitoba campuses will close beginning at 4:30 p.m. until business hours on Jan. 2, 2025.

Exams will take place at the Fort Garry campus until Dec. 20, and buildings will remain open and monitored until completion, but no services will be available if after closure hours.

From IST and computer labs to Dining Services, Libraries and recreation facilities, everything you need to know about the holiday closure can be found on the Operations and Maintenance web page.

Have a safe and happy Winter Break!

Many geese stay in and around Winnipeg because of their protected status in urban environments and the availability of water, food, nesting sites and safety from predators.

Please be cautious! These unique campus community members are interesting and fun to watch — but be sure to do so from afar. Geese can be aggressive when they feel threatened. However, with some consideration, geese and humans can share our campus without incident.

Operations and Maintenance will be covering planters to deter nesting in areas with high human traffic; geese that nest on rooftops will be provided access ramps for their goslings upon hatching. As the geese begin to nest, signs will be posted in nesting areas to warn people of their presence. Geese don’t like to be surprised and can be protective of their area.

This story is part of the U of M’s “Respect the Goose” education and awareness campaign regarding the goose population on the Fort Garry campus with input from internal and external experts and other stakeholders.

For concerns with wildlife on our campuses, please contact the Customer Service Desk at ppwod@umanitoba.ca.

You can learn more by reading the Respect the Goose series.

You can also learn more about Operations and Maintenance’s wildlife management plan on the goose education web page.

What is Dutch elm disease?

Caused by a type of sac fungi, Dutch elm disease is an affliction affecting primarily elm trees. In order to block the spread of the fungus within its limbs, a diseased tree will plug its own xylem tissue with gum and bladder-like extensions of the xylem cell wall called tyloses.

Since the xylem is what delivers water and nutrients to the rest of the tree, these plugs prevent them from travelling throughout the plant, starving and killing it.

Where are the diseased trees on campus?

The diseased trees are spread throughout Fort Garry campus and into the Southwood area, which makes removal all the more important. If left untreated, Dutch elm disease would jeopardize the entire UM canopy.

Below are several maps showing the locations of diseased trees, highlighted with orange circles.

The removal work will take place during Winter Break and will continue into January.

If you have any questions about the tree removals, please reach out to Operations and Maintenance at PPWOD@umanitoba.ca or by phone at 204-474-6281.

As a result, the following administrative and research support units have been impacted:
• Human Resources in the Administration and Education Buildings
• Financial Services in the Administration Building
• IST in B Lot Trailers and Engineering Building
• Legal Office in Engineering Building
• Research Services Office in Machray Hall

As of September 12, 2022, temporary space in Smartpark as well as in the Crop Technology Building has been secured for staff in these units to attend to in-person activities, otherwise they will continue to work remotely.

These space challenges have presented an opportunity for the University to assess how these types of work arrangements may meet the diverse needs of our campus community in new and different ways. Human Resources, IST, Financial Services and the Legal Office remote work site will be at 100 Innovation Drive. Research Services remote site will be in the Crop Technology Building, 194 Dafoe Road.

We expect this will last for the next 10-12 months and during this time, we will be monitoring and assessing the impacts of continued remote work arrangements on service delivery, staff satisfaction and engagement, and space utilization.

We are committed to meeting the needs of the University and providing continued seamless support to the community.

The Cashier’s Office will maintain in-person service in University Center 1st floor, the IST Service Desk will maintain in-person service in 123 Fletcher Argue and Human Resources will maintain an office in 109 Administration Building to support in-person inquiries.

For all general inquiries please email or call:
HR: HRIS@umanitoba.ca or 204-474-9552
Payroll: payroll@umanitoba.ca
Purchasing: purchasi@umanitoba.ca
Supplier Services: supplsup@umanitoba.ca
Invoice/payment forms submissions: spsinvoices@umanitoba.ca

Mailing addresses:
• 3rd floor 100 Innovation Drive, Winnipeg, MB R3T 6G2
• Crop Technology Center 208-194 Dafoe Road, Winnipeg, MB

Otherwise please continue to reach out to staff in these areas directly by email or phone.

The University’s district heating steam system works to efficiently heat and cool our buildings, but many of the older buildings are unable to provide simultaneous heating and cooling. Therefore, a warm spell during the fall period could result in spaces that are warmer than desirable.

We will do our best to manage the internal conditions with the changing external temperatures. We thank the campus community for your patience and understanding during the shoulder season.

Please contact the Physical Plant Customer Service Desk at 204-474-6281 or ppwod@umanitoba.ca if you have any concerns with the conditions in your building.

Phone service has now been fully restored to the Fort Garry and Bannatyne campuses. This includes all Nortel and Cisco phones, fax machines and the emergency phones located in elevators and throughout both campuses.

Update – 2:15 p.m. – Power Restored

Power has been restored to all affected buildings on Fort Garry campus.

This cleaning process could cause the water to appear cloudy during, and shortly after the process, if the water is not clear, turn off the tap, wait 30 minutes and try again.  Do not use discolored water for any purposes that require clean water, such as preparing food and beverages or laundry. 

Additional FAQs are available on the City of Winnipeg’s website https://winnipeg.ca/waterandwaste/water/discolouredFAQ.stm.

If you have concerns, please contact Physical Plant at 204-474-6281.

Geese that feel defensive or threatened will honk and hiss … and you should get the message. Don’t get too close!

Management plan created

“We recognize human-geese interactions can be problematic, which is one reason we have an active management plan that is ongoing during the nesting season,” he says about the Goose Management Plan created as part of the university’s wider Wildlife Management Plan.

“We are protecting people by limiting human-geese interaction–and wherever possible, discouraging geese nesting in high traffic or problematic areas, such as planters, or cordoning off nests.

“People’s safety is the priority,” he underlines.

Operations and maintenance has been preparing the Fort Garry campus over the past month or more according to that plan–and several areas have been fenced with signage to identify nesting geese and to encourage avoidance of the area, which is one of the measures under the plan.

Geese are a protected species

It’s important to know that geese are protected under the Canadian law by the Migratory Birds Convention Act, 1994, and can only be disturbed under permit from the Canadian Wildlife Service if migratory birds are causing or are about to cause serious damage or danger.

The U of M engaged a consultant last year to help develop the Wildlife Management Plan, including the Goose Management Plan, which are guiding actions and measures on campus. Measures are reviewed annually by a group that includes staff, faculty and consultants.

To increase people’s awareness, a Goose Education and Awareness program has been established, with informational resources such as a website, nesting locations, and relevant articles in UM Today, accompanied by a social media campaign.

A goose hotline has been set up for concerns: 204-474-6281 or email: goose [at] umanitoba [dot] ca. Physical Plant will coordinate appropriate services.

What if you encounter a goose? Tips from our experts

The Canada Goose is a large wild goose with a black head and neck, white cheeks and chin and a brown body.

Take a detour.

Geese are territorial, particularly when they are nesting. Avoid the geese pairs and their territory if at all possible, says James Shapiro, director of the Avian Behaviour Laboratory in the department of psychology, Faculty of Arts.

Go the long way around. Don’t enter the space or disturb a goose seeking a nesting place; the gander, the male of the pair, will be protective and defensive.

Make noise.

Warn the geese of your presence by making plenty of noise in advance to avoid startling them.

Getting too close could make the animal feel threatened and act to defend itself. If a goose flies toward you, you can be bruised or lacerated by its claws, says Kevin Fraser, head of the biology’s Avian Behaviour and Conservation Lab in the Faculty of Science.

Back away.

If a goose starts hissing and moves towards you aggressively, back away slowly and remain calm. Don’t escalate. Disengage. Avoid turning your back and running away as the goose will likely chase you.

As a last resort, Fraser suggests spreading your arms to make yourself look bigger and charge the goose. It will turn and run away, he says, because it will perceive you as a larger goose.

To report a problematic encounter with a goose, contact Physical Plant at 204-474-6281 or email: goose [at] umanitoba [dot] ca

See the fowl-lowing for more on geese motivation and behaviour and what to do in the case of an encounter, and tips for co-habitation.