The CVWMA mandate is derived from British Columbia’s Creston Valley Wildlife Act. Through the Act, a Management Authority was delegated to manage the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area, a 7,000-hectare (17,000-acre) area of provincial Crown land, or an area that averages 20 km (12.4) miles long by 3.4 km (2.1 miles) wide. It contains one lake (1,500 ha or 3,700 acres) and 17 marshes plus a major river and adjoining mountain slopes. Through the Ramsar Convention the CVWMA has been classified as a wetland of international importance. The CVWMA is a provincial crown agency that operates as a not-for-profit organization with federal charitable status.