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Society News for the Knowing Community
Oils spills have been occurring with
regularity in the Colquitz Watershed, many
from old and degraded home heating oil
tanks. These unfortunate incidents have,
however, helped shine the spotlight on the
state of the creek, and resulted in a lot of
interest in restoration. 2013 will see the
continuation of activities started in 2012.
We will continue to support the formation
of a ‘Friends of Swan Creek Watershed’
stewardship group, help develop a 5 year
restoration plan with this group and other
stakeholders, and undertake stream
restoration activities, including fish habitat
creation and riparian area
plantings/invasive species removal. There
has been overwhelming support from both
the community (our stewardship group
clocks in at over 60 members!) and funders
for this project, and we are looking forward
to much progress this year!
Swan/Blenkinsop Creeks
Volunteers planting native species alongside Swan Creek in Nov 2012
Our Annual General Meeting will be held from 3-5 pm on
Saturday February 16th 2013 at Greenglade Community Centre
(Room #8, 2151 Lannon Way, Sidney, BC V8L 3Z1).
Everyone welcome. Call 250-363-6480 or email
[email protected] for more information. Please RSVP.
p. 1
Welcome to the first edition of our newsletter for 2013! Some of the things on our plate in the coming
year…expansion of our education programs, Creatures of Habitat (Gr. 6) and Watershed/Salmon program (Gr. 3),
stewardship group support in Swan Creek watershed, and continuation of stream and riparian restoration on Hagan
Creek in Mt. Newton Valley. I encourage you to visit our website at www.PeninsulaStreams.ca for more content…and
we hope to see you out on the creek this year! – Francesca, Stewardship Coordinator
TenTen Creek
Yes – I support Peninsula Streams Society!
I’d like to contribute: � $50 � $100 � $250 � $500 � Other __________
Name: _____________________________ Email: ___________________________________________________
Address: ____________________________________________________ Phone: ___________________________
Please make cheque payable to: Peninsula Streams Society, Box 6000, 9860 West Saanich Rd, North Saanich BC, V8L 4B2
� I prefer my donation to remain anonymous. � Please send me a tax receipt.
Chalet CreekLast year was a busy one in the creek with the annual Deep Cove Elementary School education day and fish release, a
work party removing invasive English Ivy from trees near the creek mouth, a survey of Gardner's Pond by Stantec
environmental staff, trail-breaking at the west end of the pond and investigation of soil conditions. Ian gave advice on
the remediation of disturbed areas around Gardner's Pond and we planted grass materials to stabilize the soils.
Activities for this year include planning for the development of a trail and berm and installation of a flow control
system to control outflow from the pond. Water will be pumped during summer months from existing wells in the area
to supplement flow to keep the stream and its inhabitants healthy.
p. 2
ḰENNES/Hagan CreekWith the near completion of our three-year project on the
Waterhouse section of Hagan Creek in the Mount Newton Valley,
we have our sights set on the adjacent stretch of creek, which is
badly in need of reconstruction. This stretch of creek is on the
former Godfrey property and restoration would include
redeveloping floodplains, channel reconstruction, riparian area
dedication and planting, and rock and riffle/pool additions.
In July, sea-run cutthroat juveniles were captured in TenTen Creek: it appeared that these parr had been spawned in
February 2011 and survived the summer of 2011 and winter 2011-12 in the creek. These are the first reported sightings
of salmonids in TenTen Creek in over 60 years, in what many regarded as a stream too polluted to support fish. The
work planned for TenTen this year, in conjunction with the Victoria Airport Authority (VAA), includes finishing the
overflow channel of the Pendray Farms Wetland Mitigation Project started in 2000. As well, slope-stability
assessments and remediation of the East and West landfills on VAA property are expected to be undertaken.
Peninsula Streams Society Newsletter – Jan-Mar 2013
Reay CreekReay Creek had a very successful return of adult coho in the fall of 2012 with about 70 adults returning. Unfortunately,
6 Coho died trying to ascend the dam – temporary modifications were made in-season, with a permanent solution to be
developed/implemented this summer. River otters were also very active in culling the Coho, but evidence of many
“redds” dug leads to the expectation of good fry recruitment from 2012. Preliminary planning for the
restoration/excavation of Reay Creek Pond is under way with the Sidney Anglers Association and the Town of Sidney.
Submitted by Newton Hockey, Friends of Chalet Creek
Restoration/Salmon
“101”redd – the nest, covered by gravel, where a
salmon lays its eggs
parr – (pre-smolt) a juvenile fish that has bars or
stripes (called “parr marks”) on its sides and has
not yet developed scales
smolt – a fish that has developed scales and is
ready for migration from fresh to salt water
riffle – natural or man-made rock weir in the
creek between pools. Provides flow control and
water oxygenation.
riparian – the area next to a water body that is
influenced by the water body and/or influences
the water body
We continue to encourage the construction of a fishway over
Butchart Garden’s dam, and investigations are ongoing to evaluate
Tod Creek mainstem habitat quality. Biologist Lin Callow has been
working with DFO and Mary Haig-Brown (Friends of Tod Creek)
on this project, while Mary and the Friends have done a fantastic job
restoring Whitehead Park, in conjunction with Saanich Parks staff.
Tod Creek
• Become a Member. An annual individual membership is only $5, and entitles you to vote at our AGM. Proceeds
help offset our volunteer insurance costs.
• Volunteer with us. Many opportunities are available. Sign up on our
website or give us a call.
• Shop at Thrifty Foods and use our pre-programmed Smile Card. Thrifty
Foods donates 5% of your bill to our education programs and it doesn’t affect
your participation in the “Club Thrifty” program. Please remember us at the
till; it doesn’t cost you a penny to support us! If you would like a Smile Card,
please contact Francesca at 250.363.6480.
• Donate by cheque on our website through Canada Helps, a secure online donation system.
You can use the “Donate Now” button on the website to securely and electronically make
your donation. Tax receipts issued.
• Donate a product or service for our annual Silent Auction Fundraiser.
We continue to encourage the construction of a fishway over Butchart Garden’s dam, and investigations are ongoing to
evaluate Tod Creek mainstem habitat quality. Biologist Lin Callow has been working with DFO and Mary Haig-Brown
(Friends of Tod Creek) on this project, while Mary and the Friends have done a great job restoring Whitehead Park
(near Prospect Lake), in conjunction with Saanich Parks staff.
Tod Creek
We’d like to sing the
praises of Glenn
Davidson; as our
accountant, he prepares
our year-end reports,
while attending to his
already extremely busy
workload. A HUGE
thank you to Glenn for
his time and services
over the years!
Peninsula Streams Society Newsletter – Jan-Mar 2013 p. 3
In this issue we’d like to
recognize two sponsors:
Canoe Cove Marina for
their continuing support,
and BC Hydro for coming
on board this year to
support our Gr. 3 and Gr.
6 environmental education
programs!
Creatures of Habitat2013 marks the fifth year of our Gr. 6 environmental education program, which takes place around Earth Day in April.
This year we hope to expand the program to school(s) in SD61, in addition to the SD63 schools that we have worked in
for the past four years. We visit each school for a full day, and engage the students in an interactive “EnviroJeopardy”
theatre presentation, workshops, and outdoor restoration activities on/near their school grounds. These activities
include invasive plant species removal, planting and mulching, fry releases, and garbage pick-up. We will need lots of
volunteers to help us guide the students through the restoration activities, so if you are interested, please let Francesca
know and you’ll be added to our volunteer list….more details to come via email and our two websites
www.PeninsulaStreams.ca and www.CreaturesofHabitat.ca ~!
Thank you to our donors!
Governments
District of Central Saanich
District of North Saanich
Town of Sidney
District of Saanich
Province of B.C.
Department of Fisheries and Oceans
Foundations & Organizations
Dee M. Bailin Family Fund
Pacific Salmon Foundation
Sidney Anglers Association
Victoria Foundation
Alistair S. Thomson, Colonel R.O. Bull,
Oolichan, Woodsome Family Funds
Businesses
Alexander’s Coffee
Arbutus Grove Nursery
Canoe Cove Marina
Custom Yacht Sales Ltd.
Drillwell Enterprises Ltd.
LGL Ltd.
Lush Cosmetics
Market on Yates and Millstream
Michell Excavating
Peninsula Co-op
Peninsula Rock Products Ltd.
Red Barn Market
Rhys Davis Ltd.
Russel Nursery
Seahorses Café
Sherwood Marine Centre
Sidney Bottle Depot
Slegg Construction Materials Ltd.
Thrifty Foods - Smile Card Program
Vancity Savings Credit Union
Victoria Airport Authority
Westport Marina
Individuals
C & T Armour, F & P.Boyce, I.Bruce, P.Chandler,
J.Clearihue, D.Coupland, G.B.Davidson, B.Drury,
A.Finall, M.Garside, S.Guy, M.Haig-Brown, B.Hardy,
S. Irving, A.Johnson, P.Kerfoot, A.Marsh, C. Mearns,
A.Nelson, P.Noel, B.Peart, J. Thornburgh,
A.Waterhouse, R.Windsor
Which watershed do you live in?
Visit us online: www.PeninsulaStreams.ca
The Peninsula Streams Society newsletter is
published on a quarterly basis. Do you have
something to add to the newsletter? Submissions
are accepted on a continual basis, inclusion is subject to space
availability and content appropriateness. Please contact us at
p. 4Peninsula Streams Society Newsletter – Jan-Mar 2013
� Ian, Executive Coordinator 250-363-6596 | Francesca, Stewardship Coordinator 250-363-6480