The Cowichan Watershed Society (CWS), aims to enhance the health of the Cowichan watershed through a collaborative, holistic approach. This project aligns with CWS’s organizational targets, focusing on fish health, water flows, riparian health, water quality, and estuarine health. By addressing these interconnected goals, the project will foster sustainable water use, improve ecosystem health, and ensure that local communities in the Cowichan Valley can benefit from a vibrant, resilient watershed.
Country: Canada
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Natural Edge on Canada’s Great Lakes
Shorelines are vital habitat, throughout their life cycles, over 90% of aquatic species use shorelines for food, shelter, breeding, and rearing areas. However, shoreline development is impacting Canada’s freshwater ecosystems, causing issues such as poor water quality, erosion, and blue-green algae blooms. Taking action on both public and private property now can help reverse these effects while protecting the future of our freshwater. Watersheds Canada’s Natural Edge is a shoreline naturalization program with the goal to restore shoreline and agricultural buffers. Watersheds Canada provides local groups with the tools and information to deliver the program in their communities, including the Natural Edge App, Canada-wide Native Plant Database, an online Admin system, and all necessary program materials. For this project Watersheds Canada reached out to partners in the Ontario Great Lakes region and has included the following 5 projects areas for this partnership opportunity.
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Neil’s Flats Floodplain Forest Restoration
In partnership with the Nashwaak Watershed Association, this restoration project contributes to restoring the Neil’s Flats area from an area that was clear cut to a floodplain forest. This site was historically cleared for farming, leaving the riverbank vulnerable to erosion from ice scouring and flooding. As a result, there has been a significant loss of land and sedimentation issues within the Nashwaak River. The project is designed to prevent riverbank erosion and sedimentation by planting willow trees along the eroded riverbank. Restoring the floodplain forest habitat through this active restoration from old farm fields to a silver maple floodplain will enhance the stability of the ecosystem and forest community.
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Rebuilding Freshwater Habitat Mayook Marsh
The 60-acre Mayook Marsh is located on British Columbia provincial Crown land in the Kootenay River floodplain in southeastern BC, 13 miles east of the City of Cranbrook. With the loss of more than 85% of historic wetlands in the southern, heavily populated parts of the province, upgrading water control structures that maintain water levels in DUC’s engineered wetland projects, such as Mayook Marsh, is critical. Mayook Marsh provides habitat for waterfowl, endangered western painted turtles, and a diverse suite of other wildlife species. Located within provincial range land, Mayook Marsh also provides stock watering for five ranchers who share rotating Crown grazing tenures. In addition, the marsh falls within the traditional territory of the Ktunaxa Nation.
A water control structure installed in 1976 by Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) maintains water levels in this 60-acre marsh, this project will upgrade the water control structure to maintain water levels and provide an increase in freshwater storage capacity. The project includes replacing the control structure, upgrading the dam, and improving the access road. DUC has reached out to the Ktunaxa to explore opportunities to collaborate on continued stewardship of the land’s natural values. -
Resilient Waters Taylor Road and North Nicomen Slough
In partnership with MakeWay Charitable Society, Resilient Waters and the Leq’a:mel First Nation, the project in North Nicomen Slough will complete a soft restoration of the area that will improve the habitat quality and fish access between two lakes, Joe’s Lake and Back Lake. A newly constructed, fish-friendly floodgate enhances fish access, closing only during periods of heightened flood risk. The project will include additional work to automate the floodgate, and replace a culvert to provide reliable flood protection for Leq’amel First Nation and the local community.
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Columbia Valley Wetlands Project II
The Upper Columbia River and adjacent Columbia Wetlands are one of the largest wetland complexes in British Columbia and one of the largest floodplain systems in North America. The wetlands encompass 26,000 hectares and are one of the few remaining intact portions of the Pacific Flyway for migrating birds. The natural levees make the Columbia Wetlands incredibly unique, separating several hundred sub-basins with differing amounts of marsh, open water, riparian shrubs and floodplain forest. It is a large landscape with overlapping values of high biodiversity, ecosystem services, and climate change adaptation and mitigation.
In partnership with Living Lakes Canada, a member of the Columbia Wetlands Stewardship Partners (CWSP). The project seeks to increase open water habitat in Columbia Valley wetlands through the installation of a series of beaver dam analogs (BDAs), to conduct water quality and ecosystem biodiversity monitoring, with hopes to conserve the exceptional ecological and cultural values of the Columbia Wetlands system.
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Bay of Quinte Reforestation
This project will focus on improving water quality in the Bay of Quinte and Lake Ontario by contributing to one of the largest reforestation efforts in its service area. Quinte Conservation Association will restore at least 20 acres of riparian zone and upland forests with 750 plants per acre in the Bay of Quinte. Increasing forest cover throughout the watershed, in addition to along rivers, streams, and lakes draining to/and along the Bay of Quinte and Lake Ontario, will aid in intercepting and slowing rainfall and runoff. Slowing and capturing rainfall will reduce the amount of runoff entering water systems, reducing the frequency of flooding events, and aiding in recharging groundwater while contributing to cleaner water. Replanting forests will support wildlife and help to rebuild strong and resilient ecosystems with rich plant and animal life in a now increasingly fragmented landscape.
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Big Meadow Bog Restoration Project
Brier Island, at the mouth of the Bay of Fundy, Nova Scotia, is rich in unique biodiversity including being home to the eastern mountain avens, an endangered plant found only in two locations globally. It’s core habitat, Big Meadow Bog, was compromised by water ditching in the 1950s, disturbing eastern mountain aven habitat.
A partnership of conservation organizations, including Nature Conservancy of Canada, has undertaken restoration work in the bog where eastern mountain avens is most populous and faces the greatest threats from habitat loss. The project vision of the partnership is that “…the Big Meadow Bog wetland ecosystem is restored, leading to the recovery of sustainable populations of Geum peckii (mountain avens).” This two year project is aimed at recovery efforts for the endangered eastern mountain avens: eliminating threats, monitoring water quality and quantity in the bog, and mechanically assisting avens germination and survival.