ACAP Saint John, Annual Report 2011-2012

2011/2012

ACAP SAINT JOHN

ANNUAL REPORT

TABLE OF CONTENTSWHO WE ARE 3

2011 AGM MINUTES 4

PRESIDENT’S REPORT 8

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT 9

PROGRAMS 2011-2012 10

GREEN NETWORK 2011 10

URBAN STREAM ENHANCEMENT; PHINNEY HILL 10

NINETH BoFEP BAY OF FUNDY SCIENCE WORKSHOP 11

ELECTROFISHING 2011 11

TREE PLANTING 12

URBAN WATERSHED MANAGEMENT 12

MARSH CREEK ECO-CHALLENGE 13

ENVIRONMENTAL INTERACTION 14

SPONSORS & DONORS 15

BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2011-2012 16

STAFF 2011-2012 17

SECRETARY’S REPORT 19

TREASURER’S REPORT 20

FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 21

STATEMENT OF FINANCIAL POSITION 22

STATEMENT OF REVENUE AND EXPENDITURES AND NET ASSETS 23

NOTES TO FINANCIAL STATEMENTS 24



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Layout and Design of the 2011-2012 ACAP Annual Report by Graeme Stewart-Robertson

WHO WE ARE

ACAP Saint John is a community based, non-profit organisation that en-courages local involvement from all sectors of the Saint John community.

ACAP Saint John was started in 1991 as one of thirteen environmental “hot spots” in Atlantic Canada. We are currently implementing recommendations from our Comprehensive Environmental Management Plan which was developed locally, through a broad based consensus.

The two primary goals of ACAP Saint John are:

1. To work with the community to improve the environmental health and integrity of the Saint John harbour and its tributaries; and,

2. To respond to the growing demand from the public to be more involved in envi-ronmental decision making.

ACAP Saint John can be found online at www.acapsj.com, on facebook at facebook.com/acapsj and on twitter, @ACAPSaintJohn.


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2011 AGM MINUTESANNUAL GENERAL MEETING

JUNE 2, 2011GLENN CARPENTER CENTRE

PRESENT: Terry Cormier, Don Shaw, Brenda MacCallum, Jean MacDonald, Gor-don Dalzell, Renée Estabrooks, Rob MacAndrew, Jeff MacDonald, David Methven, Craig Silliphant, Brian Comeau, Tim Vickers, Graeme Stewart-Robertson, Crystal Colpitts, Melanie Lucas, Kalee Kim, Nikola Stears, Kaitlin Fitzpatrick, Peter Wil-shaw, Roland Gagnon, and invited guests.

Regrets: Wade Cole, SarahRose Werner, Mike Griffin, Claude MacKinnon, Rick Turner, Randy McLellan, Jody Kliffer, Rheal Guimond.

1. President Terry Cormier welcomed Board members and invited guests and of-ficially started the 2011 Annual General Meeting. Terry noted that final reports were e-mailed to Board members, and that only a few hard copies were produced. He asked if any of the Board needed additional time to review the minutes etc. All Board members indicated they did not require any additional review.

2. Gordon D. asked that one ADDITION be added to the agenda pertaining to an update on wetland issues and ACAP’s involvement in advancing wetland regula-tions.

3. There were no amendments to the MINUTES of the 2010 Annual Meeting. Motion Don S. Second Craig S. MOTION CARRIED.

4. PRESIDENT’S REPORT: President Terry Cormier noted that he had been with ACAP in various capacities for twenty years and had enjoyed the experience. He reported that during his Presidency ACAP had continued to develop excellent funding opportunities, and had maintained the stability of contingency fund. He further highlighted the success of the new staffing model with Graeme Stewart-Robertson as the Project Manager. Terry cautioned that while Board engagement had increased (with definitive results) there needs to be even more investment of Board resources to advance ACAP’s existing and pending initiatives. In particular,


A C A P S a i n t J o h n

the international engagement of Blue Legacy could be expanded with more Board input. Terry closed by noting that this was the last year of his term as president and thanked the Executive, Board and staff for making his job easy and enjoyable.

5. EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORT: Tim Vickers highlighted the year of transition that ACAP had experienced, starting with the new staffing model. Tim confessed that the full adoption of the model and its benefits could only be real-ised when he ‘handed off’ appropriate responsibilities to the Project Manager.

Tim further reported that the transition also included the financial reporting, and noted the complexities of ACAP’s various funding agencies. Tim thanked Roland Gagnon for his professionalism and patience in learning the

The theme of transition continued with Tim noting that ACAP had moved from Harbour Cleanup as its cornerstone project, and advanced to a more ‘positive’ endeavour with the Marsh Creek Restoration Initiative. The attention given to this project by Blue Legacy International and their expression of interest in advancing a partnership with ACAP will undoubtedly help to shape our future for years to come.

Tim concluded by thanking the staff for their performance over the past year, the Board for their assistance, and especially the Executive for their contributions and advise on contentious issues.

6. TREASURER’S REPORT: Tim V. presented the Treasurer’s report on behalf of Claude M. He reported that revenues ($305,112) had increased 6.3% over last year’s values, while expenditures ($291,599) had increased by only 1.8%, result-ing in a surplus of $13,513. Tim noted that ACAP’s contingency fund remained intact, and that cash flow would not be a problem in the coming year. The sound financial position reflects the newly acquired expertise and professionalism of our new accountant, Roland Gagnon of Fullscale Accounting, coupled with the in-depth knowledge of ACAP’s financial processes demonstrated by our auditor, Pe-ter Wilshaw of Wilshaw and Associates. Tim once again highlighted the uncer-tainty pertaining to the future of Environment Canada funding, but assured the Board that steps were being taken to diversify our revenue sources. Tim moved that the Treasurer’s Report be approved and that Wilshaw and Associates be re-tained as the auditors for the fiscal year ending March 31, 2012. Second Rob M. MOTION CARRIED.

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7. NOMINATION REPORT: Terry C. conducted the nominations on behalf of Rick Turneri. The nominations for the Board of Directors and for the Executive for the year 2011-2012 as follows;

Gordon DalzellRenée EstabrooksJeff MacDonaldRob MacAndrewRick TurnerDavid MethvenCraig SilliphantRandy McLellanBrian ComeauJody Kliffer

President Don Shaw1st Vice President Craig Silliphant 2nd Vice President Brenda MacCallumTreasurer Jean MacDonaldSecretary Mike GriffinPast President Terry Cormier

i. It should be noted that Rick T. had completed a nominating committee report in time for this AGM; however, due to an administrative oversight the report was not received by the Executive in time for the meeting. A subsequent decision was made by the Executive to maintain the cur-rent status of the Board and Executive as the appropriate procedures were followed with respect to calls for nominations from the floor.

Terry updated the Board on the inability of Claude MacKinnon, SarahRose Werner and Wade Cole to re-offer this year. He then noted that Rick T. had reported that a representative from the Canadian Homebuilders Association had confirmed their interest in sitting on the Board. Terry motioned that along with this position, the Executive be empowered to fill any vacancies it deemed appropriate. Second Jean MacDonald. MOTION CARRIED.

Upon the completion of his last official act as President, Terry was presented with a set of canoe paddles by the former Past President, Jean MacDonald.

Newly appointed President Don S. asked that the New Business be addressed. Tim V. reported that ACAP was proceeding with the Wetlands Inventory project,

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but landowner concerns were slowing the process. He then reported that he (Tim) was a member of the Minister’s Stakeholder Committee on Wetland Regulations and that a broad range of interests were represented at the meetings. Gordon D. asked if the potential existed for ACAP to have a position that conflicted with that of the NB Conservation Council. Tim replied that the possibility certainly existed, but that he did not view this as an issue as ACAP is an independent entity whose credibility is second to none.

Don S. asked the meeting to finish with a reminder that Board members had op-portunities to volunteer for a number of upcoming events.

There being no further business, the meeting was adjourned by Don S. Second Jeff M.

SUBMITTED BY

Secretary, Mike Griffin

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PRESIDENT’S REPORTIt’s hard to recall all of the amazing projects and their results that have been completed over the past twenty years, so instead let us reflect upon the fantastic team that we have all been a part of.

We use the phrase “part of” since we would not be where we are without the dedicated services of Tim Vickers and Graeme Stewart-Robertson together with Crystal Colpitts and the many other staff and volunteers we have worked with during those twenty years. Since we are currently only half way through my two year mandate, this is not a final summary of our efforts but simply an update with another fantastic 12 months to come.

Last year’s outgoing President Terry Cormier said it best when he stated ……

“I have to thank staff, Executive, Board and stakeholders for their contributions. My role has been easy because of their solid work ethic and the excitement that they continually bring to the projects.”

Your Board, as in all previous years, consists of dedicated, unpaid volunteers such as yourselves. Collectively, as your Executives, we have worked with Tim’s input to see our finances in the best shape they have ever been. We have been fortunate in having Renee accept increased responsibilities as both your Secretary and Treasurer. Craig Silliphant has been adjusting to his new place of employment as well as understudying the Presi-dent’s role and he will be the front line contender to accept the responsibility of Presi-dent in 2013.

Nothing is written in stone and you are encouraged and will all be expected to anxiously hurry to get in line for these most envied positions. Mike Griffin has been a strong sup-porter of ACAP and will continue to let his thoughts be heard. Terry Cormier has contin-ued to work diligently on your behalf. Brenda MacCallum has kept us all informed and educated on a great number of concerns.

In summary, we have been very fortunate to have all these wonderful people doing their very best for you and ACAP. We anticipate another exciting twelve months yet to come.

Respectfully,

DON SHAW(Not retired. Just between opportunities)

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EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR’S REPORTThe formation of Governance and Investment Committees in 2011 signalled the ad-vancement of ACAP Saint John’s strategic objective to increase Board engagement within the organisation. Both of these advisory bodies delivered immediate and effective con-tributions to the future administration of ACAP, and have highlighted the value of leverag-ing our underutilised wealth of human resources.

Board members also contributed much needed horsepower to ACAP’s newest initiative, the Marsh Creek Eco-Challenge. The adventure race format of this inaugural event proved an excellent venue to increase community awareness and acceptance on the merits of a restored Marsh Creek. The positive feedback received, combined with lessons learned, have encouraged ACAP staff to aggressively pursue a larger and more inclusive format for the 2012 ‘Round 2’ Marsh Creek Eco-Challenge which, at the time of this report, had already exceeded last year’s participation rates.

The adoption of 2010 recommendations continued as ACAP moved to leverage its excep-tional knowledge of local watersheds into a fiscal asset by adding site specific details to potential watershed and wetland restoration projects. This improved restoration checklist augmented the original 2006 watershed management plans thereby enabling ACAP’s community-centric services to be of greater value to our regional stakeholders.

In keeping with the trend of providing forward looking statements in the Executive Direc-tor’s Report, I would like to highlight three points of interest as we advance into 2012 and beyond. The first reflects the symbolic timing of ACAP celebrating its twentieth year of environmental management in concert with the completion of the Saint John Harbour Cleanup Project. The second is the importance of advancing the Marsh Creek Restoration Initiative such that demonstrable and quantifiable improvements are realised. And third is the requirement for ACAP to assess and update its staff and governance policies, mis-sion and vision statements and five-year (CEMP) management plan. Collectively these three points underscore the pending evolution of ACAP not only in terms of what its long term strategic objectives will be, but more importantly how they will be achieved.

TIM VICKERS, EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR

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PROGRAMS 2011-2012

GREEN NETWORK 2011The 2011 Green Network con-tinues to highlight the suc-cess of this volunteer based model as increasing numbers of people from throughout Greater Saint John become engaged in the hands-on grassroots management of their local environment. The 2011 Green Network helped organise 18 cleanups, involv-ing 1,927 volunteers, which resulted in the removal of

23.2 tonnes of debris from the greater Saint John area.

URBAN STREAM ENHANCEMENT; PHINNEY HILLIn 2010, the City of Saint John replaced a section of municipal water main along Pipe-line Road at Phinney Hill. While replacing the water main, they reconstructed approxi-mately 1000m of a former tributary that was heavily braided and in places running down the centre of Pipeline Road. They also re-placed culverts in Graham Brook under Pipe-line Road. As a continuation from the previ-ous year, in 2011 ACAP conducted site as-sessments from July to October. Assess-ments of the stream’s physical characteris-tics, temperature, dissolved oxygen, pH and total suspended solids were measured at each assessment.

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NINETH BoFEP BAY OF FUNDY SCIENCE WORKSHOPACAP Saint John hosted the 2011 Bay of Fundy Science Workshop with the Bay of Fundy Ecosystem Partnership (BoFEP). The event took place at the Delta Brunswick Ho-tel from September 27th-30th 2011. The four day workshop contained over 50 oral presentations by people from across Can-ada, a field trip of Marsh Creek by Tim Vickers, a presentation by Jonathan Smith of Blue Legacy during the event banquet and 12 poster presentations. Four awards were presented by BoFEP to the top student poster and paper presentations. Proceed-

ings from the event are available on BoFEP’s website.

ELECTROFISHING 2011In 2011, eight streams were electrofished. Some streams were sampled at more than one site and/or on more than one occa-sion. One location (Phinney Hill Stream) was fished on three different dates to pro-vide a means of comparison throughout the summer. Fish were found in all streams, but not at every site. Species composition and abundance varied con-siderably. Eleven species of fish were col-lected (Blacknose dace (Rhinichthys atratu-lus), Pearl dace (Semotilus margarita), Northern redbelly dace (Chrosomus eos), White sucker (Catostomus commersoni), Brown trout (Salmo trutta), Brook trout (Salvelinus fontinalis), Threespine stickle-back (Gasterosteus aculeatus), Ninespine stickleback (Pungitius pungitius), American eel (Anguilla rostrata), Fourspine stickle-back (Apeltes quadracus) and Mummichog (Fundulus heterclitus)).

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TREE PLANTINGTree planting this year took place along the Phinney Hill Stream, an area ACAP has been monitoring since 2010 when a section of city water main was replaced and the stream was re-created along the side of the road. The newly constructed

stream banks were re-vegetated using Hydroseed as mandated by their operating license; however, it was recognised that the addi-tion of trees would increase can-opy cover and improve fish and wildlife habitat. Planting trees along this re-constructed stream not only acted to add canopy cover for the stream and in-creased root structure to prevent bank erosion, it was also a learn-ing process to determine which types of trees and which planting techniques worked best in this

type of habitat. Information gathered will be used in future planting events. Four techniques used were: fascines, pull downs, live staking and potted plants. Wil-low, alder and White spruce were the tree species used. The site was re-visited after the plantings to determine which trees survived. The site will continue to be examined in 2012 for more accurate, longer-term results.

URBAN WATERSHED MANAGEMENTUpdated four watershed management plans that were originally developed in 2006. Any gaps in the original plans were filled and information was updated. This was done through desktop research and field work. The original manage-ment plans had recommendations to improve certain areas in the watersheds. Assessments of the watersheds provided information on which of the recommen-dations were completed, which still needed completed as well as any new rec-ommendations.


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MARSH CREEK ECO-CHALLENGE This past year saw ACAP undertake a whole new form of outreach initiative that physically placed stakeholders within the natural areas of Saint John’s largest watershed so as to immediately impress upon them the un-recognised natural assets in our city. The Marsh Creek Eco-Challenge engaged

our city to think about critical watershed issues while promoting the potential of a restored urban watercourse and new active transportation routes, all the while providing a fun, engaging opportunity to meet new people and learn about our unique natural environment.

When all was said and done, the Marsh Creek Eco -Challenge showcased the potential of the Marsh Creek watershed to a local, national and international audience in a unique out-door adventure event, which has been unparalleled in At-lantic Canada. In the course of a day, the Marsh Creek Eco-Challenge brought the focus of the region onto the untapped natural beauty and geographic diversity of Marsh Creek and truly showcased the ability of an urban watershed restoration project to transform the worst of Saint John's image into an economic driver for not just the city, but for New Brunswick and Eastern Canada as a whole.

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ENVIRONMENTAL INTERACTION

A cloud-based platform that provided an unprecedented level of knowledge dis-semination pertaining to site-specific environmental characteristics in the region. Over the course of this project’s duration, over a half million hits to the ACAP Saint John website were registered from 26,000 visitors from New Brunswick, across every Canadian province and from around the world, indicating a keen and growing public interest in environmental issues both at home and abroad. These users, on average, spent anywhere from several minutes, to half an hour on the site, indicating a high level of engagement with the material offered and the depth with which it could be interacted. The Environmental Interactions project has suc-

ceeded in bringing e n v i r o n m e n t a l management and decision making into the contempo-rary realm of on-l ine interact ion and engagement, and sets a new benchmark for en-vironmental pro-jects in Atlantic Canada.


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SPONSORS & DONORSALERT

Blue Legacy InternationalBoFEP

Canaport LNGCBCL Ltd.

City of Saint John

City of Saint John Municipal Operations and EngineeringClow

Emera New BrunswickEnvironment CanadaFundy Engineering

Fundy Region Solid Waste Commission

Glenn Carpenter CentreHome Depot Evergreen

J.D. Irving

NB Environmental Trust Fund

NB Department of Post-Secondary Education, Training and Labour

NB Department of Environment

NB Wildlife Trust FundNaTECH

Parkway MallRockwood Park

Service CanadaStantec

TD Tree CanadaThe Bike Guyz

Xerox NAAO Saint John97.3 The Wave & Country 94

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BOARD OF DIRECTORS 2011-2012

DIRECTORS 2011-2012

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Don Shaw President

Craig Silliphant 1st Vice-President Clow Canada

Brenda MacCallum 2nd Vice-President FRSWC

Renée Estabrooks Treasurer, Secretary J.D. Irving

Terry Cormier Past President Consultant

Neil Pond Urban Landscaping

Gordon Dalzell Clean Air Coalition

Randy McLellan Clean Earth

Mike Griffin Environmentalist

Robert McAndrew Naturalist

Jeff MacDonald Irving Oil Refinery Resigned

David Methven University of New Brunswick

Craig Silliphant Clow Canada

Richard Turner Hughes Survey & Consultants Ltd.

Jean MacDonald Resigned

Rheal Guimond CHBA-SJ

Jody Kliffer City of Saint John

Brian Comeau Xerox

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STAFF 2011-2012TIM VICKERS Tim advanced his administrative skills by completing his MBa in International Business in the Spring of 2012 and continues to leverage economic interests into ACAP projects in an effort to develop regional examples of ‘truly’ sustain-able development. Tim continues to work towards the ad-vancement of transformation change within the watersheds of greater Saint John.

GRAEME STEWART-ROBERTSON Graeme fully established himself in 2011 as ACAP’s Project Man-ager putting his personal mark on a new signature event “The Marsh Creek Eco-Challenge”. Graeme was able to expose 125 others to the rugged natural beauty of this urban watershed in a physically chal-lenging setting. The success of this event has inspired him to make 2012 an even greater success and we look forward to seeing what he has in store for the competitors.

CRYSTAL COLPITTS Crystal expanded her role at ACAP in 2011, demonstrating her ex-ceptional ability to meticulously organise events, and was recog-nised for her outstanding contributions to hosting the 9th Bay of Fundy Science Workshop in Saint John. Crystal continues to prove she is one of the most reliable and productive employees ACAP has ever had the privilege of working with.

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AMBER DENNIS Amber joined ACAP for a second summer working part-time while finishing her studies at UNB. Aside from working on the Urban Watershed Management project, she also helped with electrofish-ing, the Eco-Challenge and the Marsh Creek Cleanup. Despite her busy schedule, she managed to successfully complete her tasks and more. Her hard-work was appreciated and ACAP wishes her all the best in her studies.

KAELEE KIM & JAMES LONDON Kaelee and James joined ACAP for the summer on their CO-OP work term from the New Brunswick Community College where they studied chemical technology. The Coliform Source Identification (CSI) project kept them very busy throughout the summer trying to identify the source of coliform into a Lake at Rockwood Park. They spent most of their time in the field taking water samples from around the lake and in the lab analysing the samples. Their hard work and dedication to the project was greatly appreciated and we wish them all the best in their studies.

MELANIE LUCAS ACAP was fortunate to have Melanie coordinate the Green Network again this summer after her first year of university at UNB Saint John. Melanie started at ACAP during her high school co-op program in 2010 and has spent the past two summers at ACAP suc-cessfully organising cleanups around the community. Melanie brought her hard-work and enthusiasm to many other projects throughout the summer includ-ing tree planting, the Eco-Challenge and electrofish-ing.

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SECRETARY’S REPORTAccording to the by-laws of the company, the following are the current members of ACAP Saint John for the purposes of the year 2012 Annual Meeting.

Don Shaw

Craig Silliphant

Renée Estabrooks

Brenda MacCallum

Terry Cormier

Mike Griffin

Gordon Dalzell

David Methven

Rob MacAndrew

Rick Turner

Randy McLellan

Brian Comeau

Jody Kliffer

Rheal Guimond

Neil Pond

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A C A P S a i n t J O h n

a c a p s j . c o mfacebook.com/acapsjtwitter.com/ACAPSaintJohn

76 Germain Street

P.O. Box 6878, Stn. A

Saint John, New Brunswick

Canada E2L 4S3

Phone: 506-652-2227

Fax: 506-633-2184

Documents

ACAP Saint John, Annual Report 2011-2012