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Protecting rare, endangered Garry Oak and Associated Species Ecosystems

Protecting rare, endangered Garry Oak and Associated Species Ecosystems Garry Oak Meadow with Great Camas (Camassia leichtlinii) Albino Flower. Credit: R. WilesWe are excited to share about our activities growing awareness and stewardship of the special and endangered Garry Oak ecological community on Maple Mountain! We’ve been collaborating with the BC Conservation Federation (BCCF), the Province of BC, and the Municipality of North Cowichan to develop what we plan to be a long term program focusing on caring for this special ecosystem this region is blessed with. This will include a dedicated web page coming soon! Maple Mountain is home to endangered Garry Oak and Associated Species Ecosystems that have been identified as a priority for conservation. In the recent past, unique Garry Oak and Associated Ecosystems thrived over 60-70% of Maple Mountain. This unique habitat provided abundant food and resources to multiple diverse communities within the Traditional Coast Salish nation. Because of a variety of impacts, this special ecological community has been reduced to only 10-20% on the mountain, and over 100 important species of plants, lichen, insects, reptiles, animals, and birds are threatened. Due to this decline, the government has specified Garry Oak and Associated Species Ecosystems as priority places for conservation and protection. We are aiming to connect with private landowners and residents in the area in order to further awareness of the ecological concern and how people in the community can help protect and restore these special places. CCLT Board directors Bruce Coates and Roger Wiles clearly having a great time removing invasive Scotch Broom! Credit: S. Cottell Volunteer Stewardship  Stewardship and ecological regeneration involves learning to identify both the native species within the ecological community as well as invasive plants and animals that threaten it. It’s important to learn and use best practices for removal of invasive species such as Scotch broom and Spurge laurel (aka Daphne laurel). The Cowichan Community Land Trust is eager to help landowners and residents learn these practices and support individual and community restoration efforts. Early this year we began planning, and in March we coordinated 4 volunteer sessions removing invasive scotch broom and some spurge laurel in a target area of the North Cowichan Municipal Forest lands on Maple Mountain. Over the course of these sessions our small team removed over 3000 m2 of scotch broom!! And that’s no small feat as it involves a steep climb with all the gear just to get to the area. Yay team! We are planning more volunteer invasive species removal events in the Maple Mountain Municipal Forest, so stay tuned if you are keen to join! It’s a beautiful place to take in the beauty of our region while helping care for it. Please be aware that because the access and terrain is difficult it’s not an appropriate activity for children and dogs. Interested in being on the volunteer list for these activities? Email: info@cowichanlandtrust.ca

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Best Water Ways update

Best Water Ways resources launched! We are welcoming 2021 by launching the Best Water Ways Watershed Literacy, Stewardship, and Restoration Place based learning resources! These are freely accessible to Educators of all types working with learning groups in our communities across BC and beyond. Click here to explore the resources! The seed of the Best Water Ways initiative began to germinate a couple of years ago during a riparian restoration project along Askew Creek in Chemainus, BC. The project spontaneously involved a group of grade nine students, and it got us thinking about how much more rich the learning experience could be if there were some well developed resources ready at hand that educators and learners could access to connect a holistic, place-based watershed exploration with various field activities. We sought funding from the Real Estate Foundation of BC and the Pacific Salmon Foundation with the aim of creating watershed learning resources that could be utilized freely and easily by Educators all over the Province and beyond. With the support of these foundations, we were able to move ahead with designing and developing this initiative. This Best Water Ways initiative has been a satisfying collaboration involving the professional instructional design expertise and production of the Open School BC team and ongoing feedback from subject matter experts. This includes Quw’utsun Knowledge Keepers and Elders, community partners such as the Cowichan Watershed Board and members of their Watershed Connections educators working group, Cowichan area Ecologist and Ecosystem Restoration Specialist David Polster, and Victoria area Ecosystem Restoration Specialist Karen Mann. Several local teachers and their students were actively involved in piloting the first drafts of the resources, and their input has been invaluable. The final drafts of the session materials were also reviewed by an independent specialist in Indigenous Education, and we thank them for their valuable feedback. A special thanks is extended to Genevieve Singleton for the addition of her fabulous photographs that really bring these resources to life! It’s very exciting to be launching these resources, and we hope that they are supportive to educators looking for materials that can be readily integrated into the pod-style, virtual and/or outdoor learning scenarios arising because of the global pandemic. Please check out the Best Water Ways web page where you can access all the session materials and more, and feel free to share with those who might be interested in this initiative!

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Seeing Cowichan Forests Beyond Trees

Seeing Cowichan Forests Beyond Trees Phase 1 report now available John Scull was instrumental in the development of this initiative. It has been lovingly dedicated to John’s memory and his commitment to conservation and restoration in our region. Photo courtesy of Linda Hill. In March 2020, the Cowichan Community Land Trust (CCLT) launched the first phase of a new initiative: Seeing Cowichan Forests Beyond Trees. Funding for the initial phase was obtained from the Vancouver Foundation’s System Change grant program. The objectives of phase one were to: Research forest conservation mechanisms and strategies already in place within the region, Assess and evaluate opportunities and barriers to forest conservation, Gather input from the community regarding forest conservation awareness and concerns, and Enhance understanding about how the CCLT could support more forest conservation and reforestation on private land in the Cowichan Valley. We were pleased to commission Registered Professional Forester and ecosystem-based management specialist Heather Pritchard to research and produce a report proposing recommendations to aid the CCLT board in determining options for further action. This report is now complete and, having been received and approved by the board we are excited to share it with the community. Key recommendations in the report include: Expanding and promoting the capacity to hold conservation covenants within privately owned forest land, Educating the community and land-owners about the value and benefits of conservation covenants on forest ecosystems, Building awareness and community capacity to adopt voluntary best practices for tending forest ecosystems in the Cowichan region, Pursuing research opportunities related to the extent of old and mature forests in the region as well as the potential applicability of carbon offset initiatives, Working collaboratively with community partners to build non-governmental organization capacity to drive change, Proactively engaging with local and provincial governments to promote and support related initiatives, and Expanding First Nations engagement. The complete report can be accessed through this link: Seeing Cowichan Forests Beyond Trees phase 1 report ‘Seeing Cowichan Forests Beyond Trees’ was conceived in part by founding CCLT director John Scull, who was involved in the initiative right up until his very unfortunate passing this past summer. We are deeply saddened by his departure and have dedicated the ‘Seeing Cowichan Forests Beyond Trees’ initiative to John as a heart-felt commemoration of his amazing contributions to the Cowichan community. The Forest Conservation Committee of the CCLT board is currently planning the next phase of the initiative, developing actions informed by the recommendations in this report.

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Seeing Cowichan Forests Beyond Trees

Seeing Cowichan Forests Beyond Trees During this socially stressful time of humanitarian emergency, nature carries on and the Cowichan Community Land Trust (CCLT) wants you to know about our latest project: ‘Seeing Cowichan Forests Beyond Trees’.        As a result of the E & N Land Grant of 1887, the Cowichan region is almost entirely privately owned. Recognizing this, the 2015 Conservation Strategy of the Coastal Douglas-fir Conservation Partnership identified the protection of forests on private lands as a priority. This project explores how best to implement and promote that vision in the Cowichan region.       The Cowichan region has historically had a resource-based economy with forests being valued mostly for timber. There is a public awakening to the notion that forests can be much more than tree farms and that new, ecosystem-based management models for privately owned land can facilitate a more comprehensive vision of forests. The science tells us that forests: support healthy watersheds, vital to salmon populations and other wildlife as well as human communities. cleanse and oxygenate the air. stabilize slopes, attenuate runoff, and help groundwater recharge. are essential to the Coast Salish people who depend on healthy forests for a variety of traditional uses. are a valuable tool in fixing and storing carbon to counter climate change. provide spiritual benefits, recreational opportunities, attractive scenery, and are a calming amenity for local communities. provide non-timber forest products such as fruits, berries, mushrooms, nuts, salal, game, fish, medicinal plants, and a range of barks and fibres that have economic value.            We are aware of North Cowichan’s ongoing reappraisal of municipal forest practices at the behest of citizens. In concert with this public process, there is a comparable recognition that privately owned forests can be ecologically managed.  We embrace the view that forests are more than trees waiting to be logged or land slated for development; they are inherently valuable for all the multiple benefits they provide. This new thinking requires a change in our organization’s role, as well.  In the past, land conservation efforts of the Cowichan Community Land Trust (CCLT) have focused on places valued for rare and unique ecological features, recreational values, or because of individual or community attachment to the land.  This project explores the potential for CCLT to protect land in perpetuity solely for its forests and their myriad of unsung benefits.            Heather Pritchard, Registered Professional Forester and ecosystem-based planning specialist has joined our team to help us deliver this timely project. Through research, interviews, consideration of work in other jurisdictions, and public consultations, the project will work to expand public perceptions of forests while identifying and prioritizing available privately owned forest land for conservation, stewardship, and restoration. We will examine the current limitations and barriers to private forest conservation, stewardship, and restoration and collaborate with local partners to help reduce those barriers.        Some of the plans we had for community engagement and work-shopping over the next few months are shifting to align with the evolving COVID situation. However, we are well underway with research, planning, and conversations that can be conducted remotely. We are eager to hear from owners of private forest lands in the Cowichan region, as well as from anyone within the community who has an interest in the project. Work on the development of virtual platforms for community participation is underway to provide opportunities for sharing ideas and perspectives about local forest conservation.           This initiative is funded by the Vancouver Foundation Systems Change Grant Program, and we are very grateful for their unflinching support in these uncertain times. Be well, everyone, and please take a moment to think about forests beyond trees. For more information, please contact: info@cowichanlandtrust.ca

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UPDATE: Best Water Ways is well underway!

Best Water Ways: Watershed experiential learning in action! We launched the Best Water Ways: Watershed Literacy, Stewardship, and Restoration initiative in last few days of 2018, and are pretty stoked about where we are at right now with this project. The Best Water Ways resources have emerged as suite of six learning sessions complete with an Educator’s Guide, a Learner’s Guide, and materials needed for session activities. These learning resources are designed using principles of inquiry-led, place-based learning which allow them to be easily adaptable to different grades and learning contexts. Educators are provided with clear guidance around how each session ties into different grade curriculum competencies. There is also an emphasis on exploring and valuing the Indigenous Ecological and Cultural Knowledge in the communities we call home.  The sessions include experiential learning through active riparian area restoration. A focus group of local educators and experts has been actively contributing input and feedback on the resources as they develop, along with professional instructional design review and visual formatting from Open School BC. We are currently piloting the use of the Best Water Ways resources with educators and learners in the Cowichan Region. We have had some wonderful experiences with environmental science classes from Queen Margaret School, and are busily planning more activities for the coming spring. If you are an educator of youth in the grade 9-12 age range, we are enthusiastically open to more opportunities! We will support the delivery of the learning sessions as needed and help organize and roll out the restoration activities. Feedback gleaned from the piloting will be used to refine the resources as needed, and once finalized these resources will be available online to educators around the province and beyond. We are thrilled with how this initiative is evolving and look forward to sharing more about the pilot activities as they roll out! For more information please call Stephanie at 250-746-0227 or email stephanie@cowichanlandtrust.ca Many thanks to our project funders: The Real Estate Foundation of BC, The Pacific Salmon Foundation, and the Province of BC.  

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CWAP Summer 2019 Update

Clean Water Action Project – Summer 2019 Since the community meeting on February 28th, together with the Somenos Marsh Wildlife Society (SMWS) and the generous support of our funders, we have made great headway on the Clean Water Action Project (CWAP). This summer we have completed 22 property visits around Quamichan Lake; completed 8 property visits around Somenos Lake; sent 30 riparian recommendation reports to the participating homeowners; hosted a LakeKeepers Workshop with BCLSS at Quamichan Lake with 17 attendees; and planned & created restoration plans for the fall for 12 selected properties. The goals of the property visits that we conducted this summer were assess the riparian zone (the 30m interface between land and freshwater, learn more on the resources page on our website about how the riparian area protects and filters the lake); evaluate any actions on the property which may be affecting the riparian area; provide guidance for the homeowner concerning stewardship and restoration of their riparian area in the form of a recommendation report; and select up to 25 properties around the lakes for restoration work provided by the CCLT and the SMWS. What’s next? Shown are some of the invasives we’ll be removing this fall. From left: yellow flag iris (Iris pseudacorus), creeping Jenny (Lysimachia nummularia), Himalayan blackberry (Rubus armeniacus), reed canary grass (Phalaris arundinacea) This fall, we will begin the actual restoration work at the selected properties. The work will include removal of invasive species such as yellow flag iris and reed canary grass, native species planting and livestaking, and bank stabilization. Sign up here to get your name on the volunteers list: https://signup.com/client/invitation2/secure/2882396/false#/invitation After the bulk of the restoration work is completed this fall, we will continue regularly monitoring and maintaining the sites in the months following. The Clean Water Action Project is a three year undertaking, and we’ve only just gotten started!

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Best Water Ways

Best Water Ways: Watershed Literacy, Stewardship, and Restoration Place-Based Learning Initiative. The Cowichan Community Land Trust (CCLT): Friends of Cowichan Creeks program is excited to be spearheading the Best Water Ways (BWW) initiative with the aim to accelerate fresh water and fish habitat literacy, stewardship, and active restoration within our schools. In order to meet curriculum requirements, the program will be directed towards students in grades nine to twelve in science and social courses. As of May 2019, we are developing the project and place-based learning resources and will begin piloting the program in Cowichan Valley’s schools in the fall of 2019. Over the next two years, BWW will be refined and made accessible online for use throughout the region and the province. Participating teachers will guide their students through several activity sessions. These lessons begin by introducing the concept of watersheds and the interconnection of people, ecosystems, and water. The sessions then introduce and explore the negative impacts of humans and climate change on our watersheds, and what students can do to help mitigate these impacts. Finally, students will participate in an active restoration activity at a local creek, lake, or other water source, where students will learn how to protect, restore, and care for their local watersheds. Activity sessions include Watersheds- Wading In Mapping our watersheds Watershed Detectives Watersheds under Stress Watershed SOS Riparian Restoration Workshop The BWW initiative aims to provide teachers and students with sufficient resources to run the learning sessions independently. The resources in development include a downloadable educator’s guide, a downloadable learner’s guide, and web-based audio-visual tools. Links to conservation organizations, ecological restoration specialists, and Indigenous knowledge support in each region provide help with the riparian restoration activities and other specific local elements. We are excited to launch pilot runs of this program in the Cowichan Valley in fall 2019. The learning resources will be available and accessible to educators in BC (and beyond) in 2020. Let’s inspire stewardship and active restoration of our watersheds through education! If you are a teacher interested in running part or all of this program in your classroom, please contact us for more information regarding how BWW meets parts of the required curriculum, how you can use the resources available, etc. We can be contacted with any inquiries about the project by email at info@cowichanlandtrust.ca or by phone at (250) 746-0227. With acknowledgement and gratitude to our project funders:  

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Clean Water Action Meeting Follow Up

Thanks so much to those of you who were able to join us to launch the S-amuna’| Somenos and Kw’amutsun | Quamichan Lakes Clean Water Action Project on February 28. Much gratitude is extended to Fred Roland for opening the space in a good way and acknowledging our presence within the traditional unceded territory of the Coast Salish people. It was a great opportunity to hear about the cultural and scientific significance of the Lakes from speakers Tim Kulchyski (Cowichan Tribes) and Dr.Dave Preikshot (Somenos Marsh Wildlife Society). We understand there was a lot going on that evening in the area. Collective Space came on scene and filmed the speakers for the benefit of those who wanted but couldn’t attend. Here are the links to the 3 part youtube video series and downloadable files of the associated slides. We are aware the lighting isn’t great in these videos, our apologies! We decided to film on the fly but didn’t think to muster up extra lighting. Part 1. Guest Speaker Tim Kulchyski (Cowichan Tribes) :https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MwPNZUVHmJo Part 2. Dr.Dave Preikshot (Somenos Marsh Wildlife Society/SMWS): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AyYBOS0K2jk Part 3. Elizabeth Aitken (SMWS) and Steph Cottell (Cowichan Community Land Trust (CCLT))https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EkzOOf8a6HM What’s next for the Clean Water Action Project? We are now in the process of scheduling land-holder visits to assess riparian area health over the spring and summer. If you are a resident with property around either of the lakes and are interested in a visit, please contact us: Phone: 250-746-0227 email: info@cowichanlandtrust.ca Alternatively you can fill out the following form and either drop it off or pop it in the mail. Our office address is: #6-55 Station Street, Duncan, BC V9L 1M2 Many thanks to our generous funders:  

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S-amuna’| Somenos and Kw’amutsun | Quamichan Lakes Clean Water Action project

S-amuna’| Somenos and Kw’amutsun | Quamichan Lakes Clean Water Action project Water quality in both S-amuna’| Somenos and Kw’amutsun | Quamichan Lake has been a concern for residents since the 1950s. E.coli, septic runoff, sediment, phosphorus and other chemical loading, invasive species, fish habitat degradation, and flooding are ongoing issues for the community. Both the Somenos Marsh Wildlife Society (SMWS) and the Cowichan Community Land Trust (CCLT) are long-standing local environmental conservation and stewardship organizations in the Cowichan Valley. We are working together on the Clean Water Action project, providing public outreach, awareness, and stewardship strategies for the residents of S-amuna’| Somenos and Kw’amutsun | Quamichan Lakes. The Clean Water Action projected is funded through an EcoAction grant from the Government of Canada, as well as through financial and in-kind contributions from Cowichan Tribes, the Municipality of North Cowichan, the Quamichan Watershed Stewardship Society, The Cowichan Watershed Board, the British Columbia Institute of Technology.   The SQ Clean Water Action project aims to inform residents about what has been learned in recent water quality surveys and engage local action around improving practices and scaling up restoration of ecologically important riparian areas. Community residents love these lakes, not only for the important natural habitat and ecological services they provide but also for recreation and well-being. No one wants to see the algae blooms and invasive species impacting these important waterbodies and shorelines. Come learn how you can be involved in this community action project! Please join us at our community information meeting on February 28th, details below! We are gathering information about resident’s water quality experiences and common practices around the lakes. Please visit our survey link to contribute important information for this project.

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