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Coastal Restoration Fund: Projects in British Columbia

Tom Berry gravel pit: Restoration and recovery for Fraser River chinook and Pacific salmon off-channel habitat

Recipient: Fraser Valley Watersheds Coalition

Project goal: The aim of this project is to restore the 14.5 hectare Tom Berry gravel pit, a large intact off-channel habitat immediately adjacent to the Fraser River. This will return its function as fish habitat for juvenile chinook, coho, and sockeye salmon and restore its capacity to support a floodplain ecosystem in form and function.

Time frame: 4 years

Fund allocation: $776,524

Partners:

Media announcement:

Government of Canada makes significant Coastal Restoration Fund investments in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

Cowichan/Koksilah watershed to sea - Protecting and restoring Canada's wild river heritage as an integral link to the Salish Sea

Recipient: Cowichan Tribes

Project goal: The aim of this project is to

Restoration work will improve key habitats that have the potential to support chinook productivity thus extending benefit to southern resident killer whales, First Nations' fisheries, the Georgia Strait ecosystem and the Cowichan/Koksilah coastal watersheds.

Time frame: 5 years

Fund allocation: $2,677,742

Partners:

Cowichan estuary survey crew collecting baseline information at the planned breach site for fish presence and utilization.

Cowichan estuary survey crew collecting baseline information at the planned breach site for fish presence and utilization.

Map of planned breach to improve connectivity between Koksilah and Cowichan River estuaries.

Map of planned breach to improve connectivity between Koksilah and Cowichan River estuaries.

Media announcement:

Government of Canada makes significant Coastal Restoration Fund investments in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

Minister Wilkinson meets with Cowichan Tribes to discuss habitat improvements

Restoring estuary connectivity on the delta of the Fraser River estuary

Recipient: Raincoast Conservation Foundation

Project goal: The aim of this project is to improve habitat connectivity and natural processes on the banks of the Fraser estuary. This will be achieved by addressing historically constructed flow control structures that present physical barriers to estuarine processes and limit juvenile fish migration.

These activities will directly benefit juvenile chinook and other Pacific salmon species, as well as many other species which rely on the estuary. Better access throughout the Fraser estuary will potentially improve early marine survival for Pacific salmon.

Time frame: 5 years

Fund allocation: $2,658,217

Partners:

Media announcement:

Government of Canada makes a significant coastal restoration fund investment in Fraser River Estuary in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

Restoration of estuary and intertidal areas within Barkley Sound and Kyuquot Sound/Checleset Bay on the West Coast of Vancouver Island

Recipient: Maa-nulth Treaty Society

Project goal: The aim of this project is to restore priority estuaries to improve productivity of chinook and chum salmon populations in the Barkley Sound, Kyuquot Sound / Checleset Bay on the West Coast of Vancouver Island. Activities will work to mitigate stressors from forest harvesting and road building activities.

Time frame: 5 years

Fund allocation: $1,350,000

Partners:

Two construction vehicles breaching the Sarita River causeway to improve estuarine connectivity in Sarita River estuary.

Two construction vehicles breaching the Sarita River causeway to improve estuarine connectivity in Sarita River estuary.

The breach in the Sarita River causeway.

The breach in the Sarita River causeway.

Media announcement:

Government of Canada makes significant Coastal Restoration Fund investments in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

Surf Inlet Watershed and Dam Salmon Restoration Feasibility Project

Recipient: Gitga'at First Nation

Project goal: The aim of this project is to

The Cougar Lake - Surf Inlet Dam was named as one of the top 12 dams to be decommissioned or modified to restore rivers and access for fish in British Columbia by the River Recovery Initiative in 2001.

Time frame: 1 year

Fund allocation: $100,000

Partners: N/A

Media Announcement:

Government of Canada makes significant Coastal Restoration Fund investments in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

Lower Skeena and estuary sockeye, chum and chinook habitat reconnaissance, restoration and rehabilitation

Recipient: North Coast Skeena First Nations Stewardship Society

Project goal: The aim of this project is to identify, prioritize, design and implement several sockeye, chum or chinook salmon habitat restoration projects. These projects will be designed to

Increased productivity resulting from restored salmonid habitat will provide benefits to the coastal environment in the form of increased prey availability for predators of all salmon life-stages.

Time frame: 5 years

Fund allocation: $875,000

Partners:

Media announcement:

Government of Canada makes significant Coastal Restoration Fund investments in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

Salish Sea nearshore habitat recovery project

Recipient: SeaChange Marine Conservation Society

Project goal: The goal of this project is to recover ecosystem health and increase resilience of nearshore intertidal and subtidal habitats for all species of salmon and the fish upon which they rely.

The focus will be native eelgrass and riparian habitats in estuaries and bays where salmon are most affected by anthropogenic activities, such as

Species of special concern are chinook, coho, and steelhead, which have experienced a tenfold decline in survival during the marine phase of their lifecycle in nearshore marine habitats.

Time frame: 5 years

Fund allocation: $1,309,333

Partners:

Media announcement:

Government of Canada makes significant Coastal Restoration Fund investments in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

Squamish estuary salmon habitat recovery project

Recipient: Squamish River Watershed Society

Project goal: The aim of this project is to improve estuarine processes and access for juvenile chinook and other Pacific salmon species to the Squamish River estuary. Improvements to existing passage structures will be constructed at several locations on the estuary floodplain. The project will also examine and potentially implement a re-alignment of the existing training dyke.

Time frame: 5 years

Fund allocation: $1,626,973

Partners:

Media announcement:

Government of Canada makes a significant Coastal Restoration Fund investment in the Squamish River Estuary through the Oceans Protection Plan

Salish Sea North - East Coast Vancouver Island salmon highway (nearshore habitat) mapping and restoration

Recipient: Comox Valley Project Watershed Society

Project goal: The goal of this project is to increase habitat connectivity for salmonid species along 86 km of eastern Vancouver Island shoreline. It is estimated that this will result in key habitat restoration over approximately 4,500m2 which will increase habitat connectivity for juvenile salmonids in Area 14 from Oyster River estuary to Nile Creek estuary.

Time frame: 5 years

Fund allocation: $689,000

Partners:

Construction of a salt marsh bench at Royston Wrecks, Royston BC. The site will be planted in year 2.

Construction of a salt marsh bench at Royston Wrecks, Royston BC. The site will be planted in year 2.

Bill Heath, Project Watershed, conducting a benthic survey to collect baseline information prior to the project.

Bill Heath, Project Watershed, conducting a benthic survey to collect baseline information prior to the project.

Media announcement:

Government of Canada makes significant Coastal Restoration Fund investments in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

Orca sustenance: Thompson River chinook project 2017-2020

Recipient: British Columbia Conservation Foundation

Project goal: The project objective is to improve habitat for critical life stages of Southern and Northern Thompson chinook salmon which have been identified as an important food source for coastal resident killer whale populations. Habitat restoration projects will be implemented at 9 key locations on the Thompson River to improve migratory corridors and spawning and rearing habitat for chinook salmon. It is estimated this will result in approximately 18,035 m2 of restored habitat.

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $1,733,746

Partners:

Media announcement:

Government of Canada makes significant Coastal Restoration Fund investments in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

Pacific salmon explorer

Recipient: Pacific Salmon Foundation

Project goal: This project will compile the information needed to assess the status of salmon populations and evaluate pressures on their spawning, rearing, and migratory habitats, helping to inform future restoration projects.

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $1,200,000

Partners:

Map of the regions the Pacific Salmon Explorer will include.

Map of the regions the Pacific Salmon Explorer will include.

An example of the information that will be available to view on the Pacific Salmon Explorer.

An example of the information that will be available to view on the Pacific Salmon Explorer.

Media Announcement:

New funding supports technical innovation to restore salmon-bearing watersheds in British Columbia

Estuary Restoration in the Fraser River Delta and Connected Wetlands

Recipient: Ducks Unlimited Canada

Project goal: This project will benefit aquatic ecosystems in several ways. By re-connecting previously alienated habitat through dike breaches and improvements to water control structures, the amount of accessible brackish marsh habitat currently available for fish and other aquatic organisms will increase. Natural physical processes such as circulation, salinity gradients, and nutrient and estuary sedimentation processes will be restored, ensuring that these habitats are more resilient and robust to sea level rise. Removing invasive plants and restoring native vegetation will improve the overall habitat quality of estuaries and salt marshes by supporting the food-web for aquatic species. Through increased fish access and food-web benefits, the project will support efforts to recover northeast Pacific southern resident killer whale population, for which Chinook and Chum salmon are key prey species.

Time frame: 4 years

Fund allocation: $2,039,912

Partners:

Fyke net sampling in tidal channels in the Fraser River south arm marshes. (M. Manson photo)

Fyke net sampling in tidal channels in the Fraser River south arm marshes. (M. Manson photo)

Existing training jetty limiting juvenile salmon movement in the Fraser River South arm. (M. Manson photo)

Existing training jetty limiting juvenile salmon movement in the Fraser River South arm. (M. Manson photo)

Media Announcement:

Government of Canada makes a Significant Coastal Restoration Fund Investment in British Columbia through the Oceans Protection Plan

San Juan and Gordon River – Estuary and Coastal Area Restoration

Recipient: Pacheedaht First Nation

Project goal: The San Juan and Gordon River Estuary and Coastal Area Restoration project has three main components for improving critical estuarine habitats through re-connection of prioritized tidal channels, and the restoration of estuarine vegetation and forage fish habitat. These critical habitat improvements will effectively stabilize and enhance estuarine function improving early marine rearing for chinook, chum, coho and pink salmon. By restoring ecological function of the estuary, the food chain linkages of increased forage fish (i.e. sand lance) availability to chinook will further enhance the accessibility of Chinook salmon to the Southern Resident Killer Whales in their adjacent coastal foraging habitat.

Time frame: 4 years

Fund allocation: $1,670,000

Partners:

Media Announcement:

Government of Canada works with Pacheedaht First Nation to restore wild salmon habitat

Musqueam Fisheries Habitat Restoration 2020

Recipient: Musqueam Indian Band

Project goal: Musqueam Indian Band aims to build its capacity to be key partners and leaders in aquatic and foreshore fisheries habitat restoration within the Musqueam territory of the Lower Fraser River and parts of the Salish Sea.

The aim of this project is to:

Time frame: 4 years

Fund allocation: $1,200,000

Partners: N/A

Media Announcement: N/A

Lower Fraser River Wetland Conservation and Restoration Plan

Recipient: Lower Fraser Fisheries Alliance

Project goal: This project represents a partnership between First Nations, conservation organizations and researchers leading conservation activities in the Lower Fraser River. It is the intention of this project to formalize these relationships and create a more strategic and holistic restoration plan that directly engages First Nations communities; informs the public, industry and developers; and will lead to opportunities for funding of specific restoration projects. A deliverable of this project is a report entitled The Lower Fraser Regional Strategic Fish Habitat Restoration Plan.

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $800,427

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Restoring marine habitat around log handling facilities in Haida Gwaii

Recipient: Secretariat of the Haida Nation

Project goal: The purpose of this project is to develop and implement a community-based restoration strategy for sensitive marine areas at priority sites that have been impacted by historic forestry practices. These sites include log dumps, log sorts, booming grounds, log storage areas, historic log disposal areas and barge loading grounds, which are located at estuaries, eelgrass meadows, nearshore salmon rearing habitat and coastal watersheds. This project will restore marine aquatic habitats impacted at historic log handling facilities to create productive habitat, enhance biodiversity values and recover traditional use values. It will also create a blueprint for future restoration work by identifying priority sites, establishing appropriate restoration techniques and developing training resources.

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $1,162,263

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Nimpkish Watershed Lower River and Estuary Restoration Project

Recipient: 'Namgis First Nation

Project goal: The goal of this project is to assess the Lower Nimpkish River and Estuary for existing chum spawning and rearing habitat, develop a restoration plan and improve the habitat quality through restorative actions. A secondary goal is to have ‘Namgis members participate in the assessment, monitoring and rehabilitation methodologies, providing opportunities for greater skill development.

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $482,505

Partners: N/A

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Heart of the Fraser: collaborative partnership to restore Chinook and Chum Salmon habitat in the Harrison-Chehalis and Nicomen Slough river systems

Recipient: Fraser Valley Watershed Coalition

Project goal: This project provides actionable measures to restore, conserve, and manage salmon habitat in the “Heart of the Fraser”, located in and around the Harrison River and its confluence with the Fraser River. This is a highly productive area for important Pacific salmon stocks such as Harrison River Chinook, with strong ties to the Recovery Strategy for Resident Killer Whales as it relates to prey availability. This project works in partnership with three First Nations and other partners and directly links to CRF priorities to; contribute to strategic planning for restoration priorities; rehabilitate aquatic habitats; contribute to long-term sustainability; Build local capacity and understanding; restore a key habitat supporting important Pacific salmon stocks in the Fraser River estuary and major tributary to the lower Fraser River (i.e. Harrison River). This project will restore historic slough systems within the Harrison River, Nicomen Slough and the Fraser River. Restoration efforts will consider ecological processes including natural succession, plant communities, and flow regimes.

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $1,283,983

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Nootka Sound Chinook Salmon River Habitat Riparian Project

Recipient: Nootka Sound Watershed Society

Project goal: This project will accelerate the recovery of riparian forest on 6 Chinook salmon streams in Nootka Sound. The project is intended to assess and treat streamside vegetation to accelerate the recovery of mature forest cover, improve bank cohesion and future large woody debris (LWD) supply, which will improve channel morphology processes on the 6 streams.

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $904,009

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Collaborative salmon and salmon habitat restoration and research in the Nicola Watershed

Recipient: Fraser Basin Council Society

Project goal: The project objectives are to:

The project outcomes will provide information leading to better decisions and improved salmonids.

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $376,307

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Thompson Basin fish habitat restoration through collaboration and shared vision

Recipient: Shuswap Nation Tribal Council

Project goal: The overall goal of this project is multi-species and ecosystems-based approach to help protect and restore critical habitats for several salmonid species at risk in the Thompson Basin. To address the goal, the project consists of 3 related objectives:

  1. stream Flow and Water Temperature Monitoring
  2. sensitive Habitat Inventory and Mapping (SHIM) on Bonaparte River
  3. habitat restoration initiatives in Bonaparte Watershed

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $428,282

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Restoring the Nanaimo River Estuary

Recipient: The Nature Trust of British Columbia

Project goal: The goal of this project is to restore coastal estuarine processes and improve the connectivity of estuarine fish habitat in the Nanaimo River Estuary. In partnership with the Snuneymuxw First Nation (SFN), we will remove historic berms, address factors limiting freshwater flow to the eastern estuary and pursue the reconnection of off-channel wetland habitat. This project will result in improved habitat quality and accessibility for juvenile salmon, including chinook, chum and coho salmon that make extensive use of the estuary. In addition, these actions will increase the resiliency of the estuary to climate change impacts and other anthropogenic disturbances, including sea-level rise.

Time frame: 3 years

Fund allocation: $484,519

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Bessette Creek restoration and streamflow monitoring

Recipient: Okanagan Nation Alliance

Project goal: Bessette Creek (including Harris, Duteau, and Creighton creeks) is of special conservation concern for threatened salmon stocks in the South Thompson watershed. It provides critical spawning and rearing habitat for threatened Coho (COSEWIC 2016) and endangered Chinook (COSWEIC 2018). Spawning salmon return in low numbers in late summer/fall, coinciding with periods of extremely low water levels and high temperatures. Inhospitable water conditions extend through the year, and compounded with a large agricultural footprint and water demand, optimal juvenile salmonid habitat is largely absent.

Two real-time hydrometric stations will be installed:

  1. upgrading the existing station at the outflow of Nicklen Lake (on upper Harris) to real-time
  2. new location strategically located on lower Harris Creek to closely monitor and manage withdraws.

Maintenance and monitoring of these stations will occur 9 times throughout the funding year. The provincial Regional Drought Response Plan will be informed by data collected. This plan will help prevent water removal during low-flow periods and maintain levels required by salmonids and other aquatic organisms.

The project will also address sedimentation issues by working with Farmland-Riparian Interface Stewardship Program (FRSIP) to engage landowners to conduct large-scale bank stabilization and instream restoration in the Bessette Creek watershed. The Farmland-Riparian Interface Stewardship Program has identified several landowners interested in conducting instream/riparian work to address siltation, bed aggradation and flooding issues. The Okanagan Nation Alliance, the Farmland-Riparian Interface Stewardship Program and these landowners will collaboratively conduct restoration projects in the Bessette Creek watershed.

Time frame: 1 year

Fund allocation: $109,812

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Restoring the Quatse River Estuary

Recipient: Kwakiutl First Nation and The Nature Trust of British Columbia

Project goal: In 1960, a forestry road (known as Goodspeed Road) was constructed to facilitate logging operations. The road bisected the head of Hardy Bay in the estuaries of the Quatse and Quatsese Rivers. These impacts resulted in loss or alteration of 5.3 ha of intertidal marsh that significantly changed tidal exchange and freshwater flow. To address this concern, The Nature Trust of British Columbia (NTBC)/West Coast Conservation Land Management Program (WCCLMP) and the Kwakiutl First Nation (Kwakiutl) aim to rehabilitate the estuary from these impacts. The overall goal of the project is to restore coastal estuarine processes and fish habitat connectivity in the estuary. The outcomes of the projects will result in improved tidal and riverine connectivity near the Quatsese River, improved water quality, due to increased tidal flushing, and improved fish habitat quality and quantity.

Time frame: 1 year

Fund allocation: $192,400

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

Clayoquot Sound Chinook Salmon Recovery Initiative

Recipient: Central Westcoast Forest Society

Project goal: This project is lead by the Hesquiaht, Ahousaht, and Tla-o-qui-aht First Nations of Clayoquot Sound in partnership with the Area 24 Salmon Roundtable and Central Westcoast Forest Society (CWFS). The work is an excellent example of the strong regional partnerships that are required to restore and rebuild wild salmon populations. The primary goal of this project is to rebuild wild Chinook populations by restoring critical Chinook habitat in high-priority estuaries and watersheds in the Clayoquot Sound. Project elements include:

A secondary goal of the project is the recovery of Chum Salmon through habitat restoration. Chum Salmon are an important prey species for Southern Resident Killer Whale populations from summer to late fall (Ford & Ellis 2005; 2006). Restoring Chum habitat and revitalizing Chum populations will directly benefit Resident Killer Whale populations, and restoring Chum populations will also benefit estuarine and freshwater ecosystems.

Time frame: 1 year

Fund allocation: $336,700

Partners:

Media Announcement: Government of Canada invests in aquatic habitat through the Oceans Protection Plan

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