Local Conservation Fund proposals approved

At its March 5, 2010 meeting, the Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK) approved over $80,000 in allocations to various Local Conservation Fund projects that were recommended by the newly formed Technical Review Committee.

“We were very impressed with the range of project proposals and the recommendations put forth by the committee,” said RDEK board chair, David Wilks. “It has been important to the RDEK and East Kootenay Conservation Program (EKCP) that the funding be directed primarily toward projects that will have an impact on the ground and we are certainly looking forward to seeing these projects unfold over the coming year.”

The funding has been allocated to 8 projects:

• Northern leopard frog reintroduction, an assessment of the capability of the upper Columbia River valley wetlands for the reintroduction of the northern leopard frog, an endangered species – Columbia Wetlands Stewardship Partners – $13,800

• Lake Windermere Project, for the protection and enhancement of the quality of Lake Windermere by means of inter-agency cooperation, scientific water quality monitoring, public engagement and on-going citizen-based monitoring – Wildsight – $10,000

• Columbia Valley invasive plants neighborhood program to ensure that private landowners in Electoral Areas F and G are aware of invasive weeds and to take action to control/eradicate them, working with 100 landowners – Windermere District Farmers Institute – $24,000

• Limber pine restoration project, to enhance recruitment, seed collection, seedling propogation and seed planting of the blue-listed species of conservation concern – Whitebark Pine Ecosystem Foundation and Keefer Ecological Services Ltd. – $10,000

• Columbia River – restoration of Fairmont Reach, to restore riparian habitat that is critical for spawning Kokanee and the rare Lewis’s woodpecker as well as other aquatic and riparian-dependant species – Columbia Wetlands Stewardship Partners and Fairmont Hot Springs Resort Ltd. – $8,750

• Ecological goods and services demonstration project, to test and demonstrate a voluntary, incentive-based, private land conservation program that pays landowners to maintain and enhance the natural assets that they manage – Windermere and District Farmers Institute – $5,000

• Abel Creek restoration and stewardship, towards establishing a community-based Abel Creek working group to protect and restore Abel Creek as a healthy riparian stream eco-system through restoration and stewardship activities – District of Invermere – $5,000

• Restoring Dutch Creek to its original pre-1975 channel, to study and determine if the project is technically feasible, ecologically beneficial and supported by the federal and provincial governments and first nations and to determine what benefits there would be to fish and wildlife if this could be done – Columbia Wetlands Stewardship Partners – $7,000

The Technical Review Committee first determined whether or not each proposal met the mandatory requirements. Then those that did were scored independently and the merits discussed. Finally, their individual average scores were submitted.

“This is a very exciting step forward for conservation in the upper Columbia Valley,” explained EKCP Manager, Wayne Stetski. In total, $83,550 was approved, leaving $99,250 unallocated, which will be used to fund future projects, land acquisitions and conservation covenants on private land should such opportunities present themselves.

The next proposal call is expected to go out this fall.

Readers can find out more about the East Kootenay Conservation Plan at http://www.ekcp.ca and go to ‘Local Conservation’.

For further information, you may contact Wayne Stetski, Manager of the EKCP by phone at 250-581-1122 or email dkcp@cyberlink.ca, or contact David Wilks, board chair, RDEK at 250-425-2522.