To apply for 2016-17 funding for an HCTF enhancement/restoration project you must submit a proposal through HCTF Online. The deadline for proposal submission is Monday, November 2, 2015 at 4:30pm PST. You may submit a proposal anytime between October 2^nd and November 2^nd.

To start your application go to our HCTF Online webpage where you will find instructions, examples and additional information to facilitate the application process. From this webpage you can request a User ID and log onto HCTF Online.

What happens next?

Over the next few months, technical review committees assess each proposal and make recommendations to the HCTF Board. In early March the Board meets to make final funding decisions and shortly thereafter a preliminary list of approved projects will be posted on this website. Proponents will then be notified by email of the status of their proposals in mid-March.

The UVic Environmental Law Centre and Victoria Golden Rods and Reels Society are co-hosting a public forum to provide scientific information on Elk/Beaver Lake water quality problems and potential ways to address them. The forum will be held on Thursday October 29 from 7-9pm at Law Lecture Theatre 159 in the Fraser Building at the University of Victoria.

Attendees are encouraged to use Parking Lot 8 from 6pm onwards (when the evening parking rate of $2.50 starts). Various stakeholders will have informational booths set up from 6pm to 7pm.

At 7pm, the public forum will begin, with the agenda as follows:

7pm to 7:10pm Introductory remarks

7:10pm to 7:30pm Dr. Rick Nordin will outline the problems of the lake

7:30pm to 7:40pm Dr. Nordin will field questions about the problems

7:40pm to 8:15pm Erin Gray, ELC, will outline solutions used elsewhere and Deb Epps, Ministry of Environment, will give a progress report on remediation options available for Elk/Beaver Lake

8:15pm to 9pm Rick, Erin and Deb will serve as a panel to answer questions , particularly those focused on potential remediation measures.

View public forum invitation>>

View UVic parking map>>

You can access a copy of  Dr. Rick Nordin’s June 2015 water quality report here.

HCTF’s list of Available Restricted Funding for 2016-17 has been posted!

Occasionally, HCTF receives funding that is restricted to a specific location, species, or activity. If there are no current approved projects that meet the restriction, HCTF will advertise the funding on our website in an effort to solicit proposals for the upcoming year. The current list of available restricted funding has been posted here. 

The majority of our restricted funding is the result of court awards made to HCTF through creative sentencing. For more information on creative sentencing, click here.

This year there are 7 different restricted court awards that can be applied for, ranging from $2,000 to $70,000. The restricted funding can be the basis for a full project, or form a small component of a larger project.

If you are interested in submitting a proposal for any of the restricted funding, please review the “How to Apply for Restricted Funding” section. Note that all restricted funding applications should be submitted through our regular enhancement grant process, with the deadline of November 2, 2015.

Do you have a project idea for enhancing fish habitat in the Alouette River watershed, or Grizzly habitat in Northern BC? We’d love to hear from you!

The HCTF Board would like to welcome David Tesch as their newest member (bio here). David replaces the recently departed Alec Dale as one of the two government appointees, with Alec stepping down after serving a solid three year stint on the Board. Many thanks to Alec for all his service, advice and support to the Foundation, and welcome aboard Dave!

The North Okanagan Naturalist’s club is looking for volunteers to help them with monitoring Northern Pacific Rattlesnakes as part of a PCAF project taking place in the Campbell Brown Ecological Reserve.

The Northern Pacific Rattlesnake is a subspecies of the Western Rattlesnake, which is designated as threatened in BC. In Canada, its range is limited to the Thompson and Okanagan Valleys and its habitat is increasingly threatened by development. The Campbell Brown Ecological Reserve was set aside partly because it had a long-recognized active rattlesnake den, and a second den has since been discovered. The project will focus on marking the snakes by inserting PIT tags under the snake’s skin which can be read without recapturing the snakes, and recording their biostatics in order facilitate long term research on the growth and conditions of snake and den populations, as well as providing a means of tracking the snakes’ use of the habitat.

Starting September 15th, the Campbell Brown Ecological Reserve Western Rattlesnake Project will require two people to start monitoring for snakes returning to dens on most warm days. Experienced assistants (i.e. people who have some experience in helping to handle snakes) are preferred for this task. The project also needs recorders to help record snake ID and measurements, and assistants and “go fors” to watch for snake activity. Volunteers will always work with another person. All jobs require the ability to walk up to dens (steady up hill on a good path) and have sturdy boots/gum boots. To confirm volunteer requirements or get further information, please contact Linda asap at ardtarig@gmail.com.