Al Martin was a giant in, and huge champion of, B.C.’s conservation community for decades.

For thirty years, he had an influential career with the provincial government in fish and wildlife management and conservation, including roles as Director of the Watershed Restoration Program and Director of the Fish and Wildlife Branch. After his retirement, he continued to be a leader, bringing his wealth of knowledge and passion for conservation as Director of Strategic Initiatives at the BC Wildlife Federation and Board Director-Trustee with HCTF. Al passed away suddenly in 2019.

“Al had tremendous strategic sense. He was able to see opportunities where others didn’t and could anticipate and head off potential issues before they became issues,” said Brian Springinotic, former HCTF CEO, of his time working with Al. “These are critical skills in any leader and HCTF was the beneficiary of Al’s type of leadership during his time on the Board. Like many, I personally benefited from Al’s collaborative nature: in my time at HCTF, I was the beneficiary of regular drop-in visits and calls to exchange information, stay current with evolving events, and kick around ideas to try and improve things for fish and wildlife in this province. Al’s passing left a huge hole in the conservation fabric of B.C.”

Says Harvey Andrusak, HCTF Board Director-Trustee and former President of the BC Wildlife Federation: “Al was THE leader in freshwater fisheries for 35-plus years. His integrity and ability to put high-level issues into context were the reasons he was so respected with the bureaucrats and politicians he worked with. Al understood the big picture better than most of us, and my favourite line to Al was, ‘fill in the blanks for us, please.’ Fish conservation lost a true champion.”

Watch “Al Martin: A Conservation Hero” from BC Wildlife Federation

To honour Al’s legacy of leadership and conservation for future generations, and as part of HCTF’s 40^th anniversary celebrations, HCTF launched a scholarship program in 2021, with the first being the Al Martin Conservation Fellowship (now Al Martin HCTF Conservation Scholarships). HCTF invites graduate students pursuing a master’s or doctoral degree who wish to pursue a career in fish or wildlife management and conservation in B.C. to apply for the program.

Successful applicants include some of the following students:

Kaitlyn Zinn
Kaitlyn was one of the first recipients of the scholarship in 2021 as a PhD student at UBC’s Faculty of Forestry in the Pacific Salmon Ecology and Conservation Laboratory. Scholarship funds supported her research for her thesis “Effects of Recreational Catch and Release on Chinook: From Marine Environments to Spawning Grounds.” Kaitlyn’s long-term goal is to be involved in salmonid conservation, contributing to the conservation of wild salmon stocks in British Columbia.

Siobhan Darlington
2022 recipient Siobhan used the funds to support research for her thesis, “The spatial ecology and foraging dynamics of cougar in the southern interior of British Columbia,” which focused on the effects of forest harvesting, wildfire, and human activity on the distribution, population demographics, and diet of cougars. Siobhan worked on the Southern BC Cougar Project as part of her thesis research; Al had previously provided a letter of support to the project, outlining the importance of the work.

Zachary Sherker
Zachary received an Al Martin scholarship in 2023 for his PhD research on the impacts of floodgates on juvenile Pacific salmon habitat access, focusing on reopening access to critical habitat for at-risk aquatic species in fragmented systems across B.C. to allow native fish populations to rebound and expand into their historic range.

“Al’s love for connected wetlands and disdain for habitat loss led to massive provincial investment in watersheds and wetland restoration, part of which funded the restoration works we are studying today. Without Al’s tireless commitment to the habitat and wildlife of B.C., our research would not be possible. We hope to continue Al’s legacy, to provide science-driven solutions to human-driven problems, and provide irrefutable evidence of the impacts of human development on the species B.C. relies upon. This research can be used to inform more restoration and motivate further investment similar to what Al was able to inspire in his 40+ year career.” – Zachary

Larisa Murdoch
A 2025 recipient, Larisa is a master’s student at Thompson Rivers University. Her research in the Thompson region aims to deepen the understanding of the challenges facing bighorn sheep populations and their impact on survival and reproduction.

With the Al Martin HCTF Conservation Scholarships, HCTF strives to build a cohort of emerging leaders, connecting graduate students who will continue to do important work for B.C.’s fish, wildlife, and their habitats. We believe in nurturing and growing conservation leaders of the future.

Register now for our Community of Practice workshop in Prince George, November 25-27, 2025. In-person attendance is free.

Following a successful launch workshop in 2024, a Community of Practice (CoP) for ecosystem restoration in Northern BC is taking shape, complete with a new coordinator, Mae Whyte. This growing network supports practitioners through collaboration, knowledge sharing, and capacity building.

The Community of Practice Organizing Team is comprised of: Society for Ecosystem Restoration in Northern BC (SERNbc), the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation (HCTF) via the Caribou Habitat Restoration Fund (CHRF), Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program (FWCP), and the BC Wildlife Federation (BCWF).

Register Now!
The Restoration CoP for Northern BC will convene at Uda dune Baiyoh (House of Ancestors) in Lheidli T’enneh territory (Prince George) from November 25th-27th for a hybrid, three-day annual meeting. In-person attendance is free; virtual tickets are $30.

If you can support the event by donating your time or becoming a sponsor, please reach out to Mae: mae.whyte@sernbc.ca.

More Info & Registration

Can’t participate? Fear not! The CoP will have other offerings throughout the year, from webinars to workshops, both hands-on and virtual-only experiences. Click here to stay in the loop.

Our Vision
To build, develop, and strengthen our community of practice through knowledge sharing, communication, and collaboration.

HCTF would like to extend a huge thank you to the B.C. Conservation Officer Service for all their hard work and dedication to environmental prosecutions.

We are pleased to share that through the BCCOS’s efforts to direct funds to HCTF under creative sentencing, HCTF was able to allocate over $289,000 to 20 different conservation projects in 2024-25. This represents 29 different environmental infractions, ranging from $500 to $285,000.

HCTF always allocates court-awarded funding back to the region where the offence occurred. Our next consideration is to find a project match in that region that best fits with the infraction, while balancing the desire to invest funds back into projects quickly and efficiently. For example, if an infraction were related to hunting moose, we would invest funds back into a project benefiting moose or their habitat. If there are no direct matches in a given year, we will consider other wildlife projects in the region that may have secondary benefits to moose, or benefit ecosystems and biodiversity more broadly. This ensures HCTF can direct funds into fish, wildlife, and habitat efficiently and ensure high-value conservation outcomes are achieved.

When there is a restriction set by the courts, HCTF will often advertise the funding opportunity on our website to receive dedicated proposals that meet that need, such as fisheries work in a specific watershed.

Since its inception in 1981, HCTF has received over $6M in court-awarded revenue. We allocate an average of $293,000 to around 21 projects each year, from an average of 29 unique infractions.

Project Spotlights

Fisheries in the Kootenays

A Columbia Lake burbot, project 4-485. Photo by Heather Lamson, Province of B.C.

In January 2023, Teck Metals was ordered to pay $80,000 to HCTF for offences under the Fisheries Act and Environmental Management Act. The offence, which took place near Trail, B.C., involved introducing waste into the environment in and around the Columbia River, which had the potential to negatively impact fish habitat. The funding was restricted for the purposes of conservation or enhancement of fish or fish habitat in the Kootenay River or Columbia River watersheds, with a preference for projects in the lower Columbia region (south of Nelson, B.C.).

In 2024, HCTF directed these funds to two projects: $40,000 to Fisheries O&M in the Kootenays (4-64), which supports two West Kootenay kokanee spawning channels, and $40,000 to East Kootenay Burbot Population Assessments (4-685), which seeks to better understand burbot population limiters in the Upper Kootenay and Upper Columbia watersheds. Understanding current status, spawning locations, migrations, and genetic diversity will inform recovery actions of these declining populations.

Elk Valley

In an earlier sentencing, in 2017 Teck Coal was ordered to pay $285,000 to HCTF for three offences under the Environmental Management Act. The offences took place in 2012 near Sparwood and involved introducing sediment-laden water into the environment and failing to report a spill. While not restricted to a certain species or habitat type, it was preferred the funds go towards projects in the Elk Valley of B.C. Funding from this award, along with multiple other large infractions that were restricted to the Kootenays, was distributed over several years.

In 2024, the final $77,120 was allocated to two projects: $40,000 to Elk Valley West Bighorn Sheep Population Dynamics and Habitat Condition (4-611), which is identifying survival rates and causes of mortality of bighorn sheep to inform management decisions, and $37,120 to Upper Elk Valley Invasive Plant Management (4-618), which successfully reduced the spread of invasive species and enhanced biodiversity through targeted management strategies, ensuring high-quality forage remains for bighorn sheep and other ungulates.

Overhead view of road restoration, project 7-600. Photo by Society for Ecosystem Restoration in Northern BC.

Ungulates in the Northeast

A project in the Omineca-Peace region received funding from three separate court awards:

• In November 2020, an individual hunted a mule deer without a license, out of season, near Dawson Creek. They were ordered to pay $1,750 to HCTF in August 2022.
• In June 2020, an individual hunted wildlife not within season near Mackenzie. They were ordered to pay $8,000 to HCTF in November 2023.
• In August 2021, an individual failed to remove edible portions of a thinhorn sheep carcass while hunting near Muncho Lake. They were ordered to pay $1,900 to HCTF in December 2023.

While none of the court awards were restricted to either a region or for a specific purpose, HCTF felt funds would be best allocated to an ungulate project in northern B.C.

In 2024, these three court awards were allocated to project 7-600, Saik’uz Road Rehabilitation for Moose Habitat Enhancement. Building on previous successful work, this project rehabilitated an additional 14 km of roads in the Prince George area, reducing the road density to better support the moose population.

Fisheries in the Chilcotin

Between September and November 2017, a company diverted streams for agricultural purposes without permission, negatively impacting riparian and aquatic habitats. Charged under the Water Sustainability Act, the company was ordered to pay $49,000, and one of its directors an additional $9,500 to HCTF in January 2023. The funds were restricted to be used in the Chilcotin area of the Cariboo region, for projects involving fish and/or other aquatic assessments or habitat initiatives.

In 2024, the $58,000 funded two projects: Mid Fraser River Sturgeon Assessment (5-196) and Big Bar Slide Sturgeon Assessment (5-332). The former completed a 5-year study focused on filling knowledge gaps of white sturgeon habitat use and behaviour in the mid-Fraser, and the latter is evaluating white sturgeon movement patterns to inform fish passage structure design.

HCTF is honoured to be a trusted partner of the CO Service, working together to conserve BC’s fish, wildlife, and habitat.

The Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation (HCTF) and the Forest Enhancement Society of B.C. (FESBC) are celebrating a remarkable partnership that has helped enhance wildlife habitat throughout British Columbia. Since 2017, the collaborative partnership has supported 117 wildlife habitat enhancement projects, and as the partnership enters its final years of co-funding projects, the impact of the combined efforts will continue to resonate for years to come.

“British Columbia is the most biodiverse province in Canada. Healthy ecosystems and biodiversity are not only essential for our health, but also protect the environment, support our economy, and create strong communities,” said Nathan Cullen, Minister of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship. “Thanks to the excellent work done by the Forest Enhancement Society and Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation enhancement and restoration of our valuable provincial habitats is a promise we can deliver to our children and future generations.”

Releasing a Vancouver Island marmot – Marmot Recovery Foundation

In 2016, FESBC was established with one of its key purposes to help improve wildlife habitat within B.C.’s forests. Recognizing the nearly four decades of expertise and proven track record of HCTF in terrestrial ecosystem and biology management, it became clear that a collaborative partnership was the way to help achieve this purpose. HCTF has exceptional expertise and funding administration capabilities, plus established systems for project solicitation, evaluation, and adjudication.

FESBC Executive Director Steve Kozuki said “HCTF has done an outstanding job of connecting with local habitat experts around the province to do the work that needs to be done in order to provide the biggest benefits for wildlife. As pressures on wildlife continue to increase, this work is more important than ever.”

Projects funded through this partnership have not only focused on forest health and evaluating the habitat and wildlife response to fire but also on creating better conditions for wildlife. For example, a multi-year prescribed burn program to restore and enhance Stone’s Sheep habitat by increasing the quantity and quality of forage and reducing the tree density of the forest to allow easier traverse between forage areas. These improvements have also led to increased forest recreation opportunities for people and healthier, more resilient ecosystems that can better withstand diseases, insects, and climate change.

Moose cow and calf during calf-at-heel surveys

“For over seven years, the HCTF and FESBC partnership has funded forestry-focused conservation work in B.C. and is a testament to the power of collaboration with our grant recipients who lead a diversity of projects supporting multiple values,” said Dan Buffett, CEO of HCTF. “The projects funded through this initiative over the last several years have yielded incredible outcomes, not only for forest ecosystems but a wide range of wildlife and many B.C. communities.”

This year nine projects are receiving funds through the FESBC and HCTF partnership, including:

• $71,036 for the protection of bat colonies in the Lower Mainland from white-nose syndrome.
• $48,795 for protection and enhancement of wildlife habitat on Salt Spring Island.
• $66,401 to evaluate how wildfires affect owls in the Thompson-Okanagan region.
• $149,775 to enhance and restore wild sheep habitat in the Peace region through prescribed fire.
• $81,170 to identify the effects of landscape change on moose health and forestry management in central B.C. through field surveys and lab analysis.
• $30,480 for stewardship and restoration work of riparian black cottonwood forests of the Kettle River Watershed in the Boundary region, a rare ecosystem with several species at risk.

The FESBC-HCTF partnership exemplifies how collaborative efforts can lead to significant environmental and community benefits. As the two organizations look toward the future, the lessons learned from this partnership will continue to guide efforts in forest and wildlife habitat management.

See HCTF’s 2024-25 Approved Project list, highlighting FESBC co-funded projects, here.