Tue, 9 Jan 2024
Tags: Acquisition / Habitat Acquisition / News

Collaborative Conservation on Galiano Island

Quadra Hill Cedar Grove - Photo by Galiano Conservancy Association

Saving Rare Habitats on Galiano Island – Two Major Wins for Environmental Conservation

The Galiano Conservancy Association (GCA), an environmental charity founded in 1989 as one of BC’s first community-based land trusts, works to protect, steward and restore Galiano Island ecosystems by creating a network of natural areas where a healthy environment, learning and a love of nature flourish. The recent protection of Quadra Hill, an ecologically significant property on Galiano Island, marks a milestone in the region’s conservation efforts. Key partnerships developed over several years were vital in completing this acquisition.

Quadra Hill: Bridging Protected Areas for Enhanced Biodiversity
Quadra Hill is a 47-ha parcel of coastal Douglas-fir forest long identified as a ‘missing piece’ in the corridor of protected habitats connecting Trincomali Channel to Georgia Strait on Galiano Island known as the Mid-Island Protected Areas Network . The ecologically diverse property was listed for sale by a motivated seller in late 2021, and has been owned for the past two years by the Aqueduct Foundation, one of the largest grantmakers in Canada, which agreed to step in as an interim owner at the GCA’s request, in order to provide temporary protection until adequate funds could be raised to purchase the land for conservation purposes. This project was undertaken with the financial support of the Government of Canada through the federal Department of Environment and Climate Change, and an initial opportunity grant from the Islands Trust Conservancy. Generous contributions from Sitka Foundation, the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation and private donors enabled GCA to complete this important land acquisition.

The ecological value of Quadra Hill is hard to overstate. It is home to rare and varied ecosystems, is part of the upper catchment area for the Great Beaver Swamp Nature Reserve and is important for groundwater recharge. Because it is surrounded by existing conservation areas and a common-property forest, the protection of Quadra Hill enhances habitat connectivity and supports a diversity of plant and animal communities across three watersheds.

The Quadra Hill property also plays an important role in climate action, storing an estimated 40,000 tons of carbon dioxide equivalents, and is expected to sequester an additional 8,000 tons over the next 30 years.

Quadra Hill in the Spring – Photo by James LaBountry

Mt Sutil Extension: Preserving Imperiled Garry Oak Ecosystems
The GCA also recently partnered with the BC Parks Foundation (BCPF), Sitka Foundation and an anonymous donor to protect 4.2 ha of coastal Douglas-fir forest and sensitive Garry Oak bluff habitat neighbouring the existing Mt. Sutil Nature Sanctuary (GCA’s first land acquisition). Garry oak and associated ecosystems are home to over 100 provincially-listed species at risk. The remote and relatively undisturbed meadows and bluffs of Mount Sutil have been identified as a priority site for conserving these rare habitats, and are a testament to the ecological richness of Galiano Island.

A New Chapter in Island Conservation
These two landmark acquisitions enhance biodiversity, increase habitat connectivity, support climate action, and protect several provincially-listed species at risk. They also mark a first in GCA history, as the valuable partnerships involved allowed the GCA to protect these lands without a public fundraising campaign, highlighting the power of collaborative conservation.

As we celebrate the protection of Quadra Hill and the Mount Sutil Extension, the GCA recognizes and respects the enduring relationship Penelakut, Hwlitsum, Tsawwassen, Lelum Sar Augh Ta Naogh and other Coast Salish peoples have to these lands as part of their traditional territories. As stewards of these new conservation areas, the Galiano Conservancy is committed to honouring and learning from the rich cultural heritage and ecological wisdom of the First Nations whose ancestral connections to these lands continue to this day.

About the Galiano Conservancy Association
The Galiano Conservancy Association is committed to preserving the ecological balance and unique natural heritage of BC’s Southern Gulf Islands. This is accomplished through environmental education, land stewardship, ecological restoration, biodiversity monitoring & conservation, and demonstrating sustainable living practices within the Galiano community and beyond.

For more information, please contact:
info@galianoconservancy.ca
Phone: 250-539-2424

Wed, 6 Sep 2023
Tags: Habitat Acquisition / News

Morrison Creek Headwaters acquisition ensures protection of rare fish species

A lily pond in the Morrison Creek Headwaters - photo from Comox Valley Land Trust

The Comox Valley Land Trust (CVLT), in collaboration with the BC Parks Foundation, recently announced the acquisition of 275ha of land to create the Morrison Headwaters conservation area on Vancouver Island.

Located near the Village of Cumberland in the Comox Valley Regional District and within the traditional territory of the K’ómoks First Nation, this project acquired nearly all the unprotected land in the headwaters of the watershed.

A Morrison Creek Lamprey – photo from Comox Valley Land Trust

The streams of the creek provide spawning and rearing habitat for an abundant run of Coho salmon, occasional spawning of Pink and Chum salmon, and habitat for several trout species such as Rainbow, Cutthroat, and Dolly Varden. Perhaps most notable though is that Morrison Creek and its tributary streams are Critical Habitat for the Morrison Creek Lamprey, a rare form of Western Brook Lamprey. The Morrison Creek Lamprey is listed as Endangered on the Species-At-Risk schedule 1 as it exists only in Morrison Creek, and the headwaters area now protects the vast majority of its habitat.

“The acquisition of the Morrison Creek headwaters by the Comox Valley Land Trust (CVLT) and BC Parks Foundation (BCPF) with the support of HCTF is a remarkable achievement that significantly advances conservation in regionally and globally significant ways. At 680-acres, the headwaters of Morrison Creek includes a complex of riparian areas, streams, springs and wetlands along with associated upland forests,” says Tim Ennis, Executive Director of the CVLT.

Morrison Creek – photo from Comox Valley Land Trust

“The somewhat overlooked area nestled between the City of Courtenay and Village of Cumberland is an important refugium for wildlife of all kinds, from bears and cougar to deer, birds, butterflies, bats, amphibians and reptiles. The land is now protected forever as a conservation area.”

Since 1981, HCTF has helped secure valuable habitat in British Columbia through conservation land acquisitions. With incredible biological diversity, B.C. is home to more vertebrates than any other province in Canada and over 600 ecosystem types; acquisition of conservation lands like the Morrison Headwaters is an effective, though difficult, means of protecting fish, wildlife, and their habitats.

The Comox Valley Land Trust formed in 1999 to promote, protect, conserve, and restore the land, waters, and habitat of the Comox Valley. It now protects approximately 600 hectares of ecological significance.

This project was made possible through the partnership of the Comox Valley Land Trust and BC Parks Foundation, with funding from Environment and Climate Change Canada, Sitka Foundation, the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation, the Pacific Salmon Foundation, the Courtenay Fish and Game Protective Association, B.C. Hydro’s Fish & wildlife Compensation Program, and over $500,000 from other individuals and organizations through a fundraiser.

 

 

 

Wed, 22 Feb 2023
Tags: Habitat Acquisition

2023 Habitat Acquisition Grant Applications Now Open!

Perserverance Creek by Sara Kepner

The Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation (HCTF) is now accepting applications for the Habitat Acquisition Grant. Applications must be submitted through HCTF’s online application system by 4:30pm on Monday, April 17, 2023 (PST).

Each year, the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation provides approximately $500,000 in Habitat Acquisition grants to help fund acquisition projects that secure and manage conservation properties in British Columbia. One such project is Project Perseverance a 90.5-hectare (224 acre) watershed and habitat protection project near the Village of Cumberland on Vancouver Island. This property was secured in 2020 via the purchase of privately owned forest lands and now protects an ecologically rich habitat corridor that is home to a host of species including Western toads, Little Brown bats, and Roosevelt elk. The waterways support Coho salmon as well as Rainbow and Cutthroat Trout. Project Perseverance is now part of the Cumberland Community Forest Park, a 225-hectare park which includes three other areas purchased and protected by the Cumberland Community Forest Society since 2006. These areas are all protected through a Section 219 Conservation Covenant. To find out more visit www.cumberlandforest.com.

For 2023, HCTF will continue to prioritize acquisition applications that seek to increase conservation outcomes for fish, wildlife, and their habitats, provide access for a variety of uses such as hunting, fishing, and non-motorized recreation and fit one or more of the following criteria:

  • Contribute to the conservation of wetland or grassland habitats.
  • Increase connectivity to adjacent protected lands or important habitats to further build complexes of intact habitat.
  • Contribute to the conservation of habitats near urban settings to increase opportunities to connect people to nature.
  • Demonstrate resiliency to climate change and/or address stressors linked to climate change impacts.

Apply Here

Learn More

Please visit our FAQ Page to find useful tips and guidance for the online Survey Apply system. Please note that HCTF cannot accept applications submitted by email.

For questions related to the Habitat Acquisition Grant, please contact Barb von Sacken at bvonsacken@hctf.ca or 250-940-3013.

 

Tue, 5 Apr 2022
Tags: Habitat Acquisition

Biodiversity and Bighorn Sheep saved through habitat purchase in South Okanagan

Hillside Grassland on Skaha Lakea (photo by Graham Osborne)

Today, The Nature Trust of British Columbia, one of the province’s leading non-profit land conservation organizations announced that 29.2 hectares (72 acres) of ecologically important land has been purchased for conservation in the South Okanagan.

The property expands The Nature Trust’s Skaha Lake Eastside conservation complex, south of Penticton. This new property is adjacent to the McTaggart-Cowan/nsək’łniw’t Wildlife Management Area and provides valuable habitat for several species at risk.

The Skaha Lake Eastside conservation complex adds important habitat for Bighorn Sheep for foraging, lambing, and escaping predators. Due to its ecologically rare and important ecosystems including grasslands, open forests, and rocky terrains, Bighorn Sheep can have all their needs met on this property and the surrounding area including birthing lambs in the spring.

Open and native grassland covers less than 1% of BC’s land base and provides habitat for more than 30% of BC’s species at risk. Grasslands support more threatened and endangered plants and animals than any other habitat type in the province. With the South Okanagan irreversibly losing native grasslands due to human development and cultivation, it is crucial we protect the undisturbed grasslands that remain.


Bighorn Sheep are a species of provincial concern in British Columbia. They depend on mixed habitat to survive including cliffs, grasslands, and escape terrain. Human pressures on their habitat have reduced their distribution in the Okanagan. Their grassland habitat has experienced degradation, fragmentation, and outright loss. Increased human activity has disrupted their movements, decreased population size, and increased their susceptibility to disease.

The mixture of diverse and sensitive ecosystems on the property will also protect habitat for a variety of species listed under Canada’s Species at Risk Act (SARA), including, Pallid Bat (threatened) American Badger (endangered), Lewis’s Woodpecker (threatened), Western Screech Owl (threatened), Desert Nightsnake (endangered), Western Rattlesnake (threatened), and Great Basin Gophersnake (threatened).

Each species has a role to play in ensuring the persistence of biodiversity and a healthy ecosystem. Protected areas are the best way to ensure biodiversity can flourish undisturbed in perpetuity.


This project was made possible by the Government of Canada through the Natural Heritage Conservation Program, part of Canada’s Nature Fund, Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation, Wild Sheep Foundation (including Midwest and Eastern Chapters), Wild Sheep Society of BC, and many other individual supporters.

“The Nature Trust of BC has been purchasing land for conservation in the south Okanagansince 1975. Protecting properties like Skaha Lake Eastside, with complex and sensitive ecosystems that support many at-risk species, is one of our top conservation priorities. When we save habitat for Bighorn Sheep, we also protect numerous other species at risk.
— Jasper Lament, CEO, The Nature Trust of BC

“By securing this latest piece of ecologically significant land, NTBC continues contributing to a growing assembly of conserved lands that provide important habitat for many wildlife species such as Bighorn sheep. Large landscapes with protected intact grasslands, forests and wetland habitats become more resilient to the impacts of climatic change and provide more connected linkages for wildlife. The Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation is excited to partner with NTBC and the other funding partners on the Skaha Lake Eastside conservation complex to conserve these habitats for wildlife into the future.”
— Dan Buffett, Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation, CEO

“The twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss are two sides of the same coin, and we must tackle them together. By working with partners such as The Nature Trust of British Columbia, we are helping to protect the natural environment in British Columbia and across the country. Programs like the Canada Nature Fund’s Natural Heritage Conservation Program are helping us progress toward conserving a quarter of lands and oceans in Canada by 2025.”
— The Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change

Tue, 22 Feb 2022

Now Accepting Habitat Acquisition Grant Applications

Ryan River Misty Morning by Fernando Lessa

The Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation (HCTF) is now accepting applications for the Habitat Acquisition Grant. Applications must be submitted through HCTF’s online application system by 4:30pm on April 15, 2022 (PST).

Each year, the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation provides approximately $500,000 in Land Acquisition grants to help fund acquisition projects that secure and manage conservation properties in British Columbia. One such project was the Nature Conservancy of Canada’s Ryan River Conservation Area. This 87 hectare (214 acres) property in the Pemberton Valley was secured in 2020 and protects an ecologically important river system. The recent flooding activity across the province has demonstrated the importance of maintaining naturalized riverbanks that improve ecological resilience in these vital habitats. By conserving wetlands and forest vegetation along a 2 kilometer stretch of the Ryan River this conservation effort will help to maintain the stability of the riverbank while providing vital food and habitat for both fish and wildlife species. For proponents interested to apply for a Habitat Acquisition grant, please refer to HCTF’s updated Priority statement.

For 2022, HCTF will prioritize acquisition applications that seek to increase conservation outcomes for fish, wildlife, and their habitats, provide access for a variety of uses such as hunting, fishing, and non-motorized recreation and fit one or more of the following criteria:

  • Contribute to the conservation of wetland or grassland habitats.
  • Increase connectivity to adjacent protected lands or important habitats to further build complexes of intact habitat.
  • Contribute to the conservation of habitats near urban settings to increase opportunities to connect people to nature.
  • Demonstrate resiliency to climate change and/or address stressors linked to climate change impacts.

Apply Here

Please visit our FAQ Page to find useful tips and guidance for the online Survey Apply system. Please note that HCTF cannot accept applications submitted by email.

For questions related to the Habitat Acquisition Grant, please contact Barb von Sacken at bvonsacken@hctf.ca or 250-940-3013.

 

Wed, 15 Dec 2021
Tags: Habitat Acquisition

Pickles Waterfall Wetland Purchased for Conservation

Pickles Waterfall Wetland - photo provided by the Denman Conservancy Association

Denman Conservancy Association (DCA) is delighted to announce that it has purchased two adjacent lots of maturing Coastal Douglas-fir forest ecosystems and valuable wetlands on Denman Island. The properties, traditionally occupied by various Coast Salish peoples, and unceded, were most recently held by Raven Forest Products Ltd. of Campbell River BC. Together they total 32.02 hectares (~80 acres).

The “Pickles Waterfall Wetland” properties are contiguous with Denman Island Provincial Park land and are across Pickles Road from the Inner Island Nature Reserve, held by Islands Trust Conservancy. The land also has a common boundary with DCA’s Settlement Lands. This new conservation area is home to the SARA listed Red-legged frog (Rana aurora) and contains habitat for many other species at risk recorded in adjacent conservation areas.

Securing this Conservation land rounds out a series of conservation campaigns and land acquisitions that spans the entire 30-year life of Denman Conservancy Association. Contiguous conservation lands now extend from DCA’s Central Park northward to Chickadee Lake and the main bulk of Denman Island Provincial Park.

“This is splendid news,” said Des Kennedy, a founding director of DCA who has been active in conservation initiatives since the 1970s. “The current DCA Board of Directors is to be applauded for stellar work in significantly expanding the Pickles preserved area through this most recent acquisition,” Kennedy said.

This project was made possible by the Government of Canada through the Natural Heritage Conservation Program, part of Canada’s Nature Fund, and the Provincial Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation’s Acquisition Grant, as well as DCA’s Acquisition Fund, a grant from Islands Trust Conservancy’s Opportunity Fund, in-kind support from Nature Conservancy of Canada and funds generously provided by DCA members and supporters including Denman Island Chocolate and the Denman Climate Action Network. The purchase was completed on September 29th 2021.

“By working with partners like the Denman Conservancy Association, we are protecting nature in British Columbia and across the country. Protecting and conserving more nature across the country is an important part of our plan to address the twin crises of climate change and biodiversity loss. Through programs like the Natural Heritage Conservation Program, we are making progress towards our goal of conserving a quarter of Canada’s lands and a quarter of its oceans by 2025, working towards 30% by 2030.” – The Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change

Denman Conservancy Association is a community-based volunteer organization and a registered charity formed to preserve, protect and enhance the quality of the human and natural environment of Denman Island. It is supported by about 240 members, most of whom are residents of the Island.

80 Acres of Precious Biodiverse Ecosystems Protected!

The newly protected Pickles Waterfall Wetland area features coastal Douglas-fir forest stands averaging from 30 to 50 years with select remnant old-growth Douglas-fir trees, and the majority of a 3.94 hectare wetland and its outflow which drains to Pickles Marsh and the Beadnell Creek salmon-bearing watershed. The property includes the crest of an east facing slope which makes up the northeastern boundary. Along the entirety of this slope down toward Pickles Marsh, adjacent to the newly purchased land is approximately 4 hectares of old growth Coastal Douglas-fir forest with significant stands of Western redcedar including a stand of culturally modified trees just 3m outside the northeast boundary of the land, in Denman Island Provincial Park. Denman Conservancy has been interested in the securement of these lands since at least 2004, but the funding has not been available to acquire them until now.

 

Further information:

DCA Land Manager Erika Bland

250-702-7773 email: dcalandmanager@gmail.com

DD Fuchs, DCA Director

250-335-1413 email: tdfuchs@telus.net

www.denman-conservancy.org