Anyone who has been to a public event hosted by the Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program (FWCP) knows how much energy, humour and dedication Angus Glass brings to his work. Angus has been a Communications Coordinator with FWCP for over 20 years (since 2004), demonstrating his undying enthusiasm for the critical habitat enhancement and conservation work that FWCP supports.
FWCP is a five-way partnership between BC Hydro, the Province of B.C., Fisheries and Oceans Canada, First Nations, and public stakeholders, with the goal of conserving and enhancing fish and wildlife in watersheds impacted by BC Hydro dams. The FWCP comprises three regions: Coastal, Peace, and here with the Columbia Region that started in the mid-1990s when several smaller compensations programs were rolled into one.
The Columbia Region board is made up of representatives from the program partners and is supported by technical committees and a First Nation Working Group. “The FWCP itself is small, with half-a-dozen staff across our three regions,” explains Angus. “Then we have a small team of part-time communication and community engagement contractors based here. Everyone involved with the FWCP is extremely committed and very rewarding to work alongside.”
Angus gets a great deal of satisfaction through sharing knowledge and results generated through the various projects that FWCP supports.
“Delivering FWCP’s annual online information sessions is always fascinating, because there is so much to learn,” he adds. “The project proponents are passionate about their work, and typically want to share their results and lessons learned. There is no point in doing the work and then having the results in a report sitting on a shelf.”
A recent FWCP online information session delved into new restoration techniques aiming to return normal function back to riparian and wetland areas in the East Kootenay. Other topics included the use of probiotics to support bat health as the threat of white-nose syndrome in the province accelerates, and the use of low tech beaver dam analogues to support wetland restoration across B.C. Angus says it is fantastic to see the potential of small-scale projects having significant positive impacts for fish and wildlife.
“The in-person events are even more rewarding, because when people feel a connection to nature and learn about ecosystems, that is when positive change happens.” FWCP hosts public events throughout the Columbia region each year, which highlight some of the work they are supporting through funding. These include Turtle Day, Critter Day, the Juvenile Sturgeon Release, Toadfest, and the open house at Meadow Creek Spawning Channel.
For years, the FWCP has been funding projects related to conservation of western toads, including the implementation of fencing and tunnels, led by the Province of B.C. and local biologists.
“Toadfest has really helped coalesce the partners at the table,” Angus explains. “For example, as the level of support from the community for western toads has grown, the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure has come on board as an active partner—funding and installing multiple toad crossings. The corridor near Summit Lake may be the largest in terms of investment for herpetofauna connection under the roadways anywhere in the province. Toadfest has been an effective event for raising awareness about toads and providing education about their life cycles and critical habitat needs.”
Another annual outreach event is Turtle Day at Elizabeth Lake in Cranbrook. For years the FWCP has been funding the Rocky Mountain Naturalists’ work of monitoring and maintaining western painted turtle nesting beds, under the guidance of the Ministry of Water, Land, and Resource Stewardship.
Because the work of monitoring the nests, checking for mortalities, and removing invasive plants was already happening every spring, it seemed like a great opportunity to host a public outreach and educational event as well. The public and school groups can see how the nests are built, learn the turtles’ lifecycle, and see turtle hatchlings just hours after emerging from the ground. This year Turtle Day will coincide with Earth Day on April 22.
“People go to Mexico and Costa Rica to see turtles, while we have these Blue-listed, vulnerable, and very beautiful western painted turtles right here. We should be doing everything we can to understand their needs and look out for them.”
The biannual Critter Day event held at Beaver Creek Provincial Park near Trail, co-hosted by the FWCP, Kootenay Conservation Program (KCP), and the Trail Wildlife Association, also brings fresh ideas and builds on the connections that already exist in the local communities. Critter Day is coming up on May 10 this year, with live critters on display and hands-on activities for kids and adults alike.
Collaboration and partnership are essential components of Angus’s work with FWCP. He values KCP’s role in the region, the landscape-level conservation happening through Kootenay Connect Priority Places, and the collaborative approach to prioritizing land securement.
“FWCP was right there at the start as a funder for Kootenay Connect. That has been fantastic, because KCP took that information and has created a landscape-level approach to conserving species at risk. Land securement is a big part of FWCP’s relationship with KCP. The approach of bringing agencies, First Nations, stakeholders and other interested parties together and then prioritizing land securement opportunities, is very effective.”
Angus feels very fortunate to be able to work in the environmental field through the FWCP. His educational background—economics, transportation, then a master’s degree in tourism development—was certainly leading him in a different direction.
“I have been involved in a very mixed bag of contract work over the years: from the Bella-Coola ferry link, to adult literacy, housing issues, and small business development; but it was my work in community engagement with forestry road deactivation and fisheries issues in northern B.C., including managing a coho fish fence on the Bulkley River, that really solidified my interests on the environmental front. This contract came up here in the Columbia Region and I’ve been with FWCP ever since.”
When not appreciating the nature around us, Angus enjoys playing sports, including soccer, badminton, and tennis.
Photos: Juvenile sturgeon release at Shelter Bay; Toadfest crew; western painted turtle hatchling at Turtle Day; rare northern-spotted owl at an FWCP display in Coquitlam; Mr. Toad; rubber boa at Critter Day; sockeye salmon fry in Castlegar; caribou at Kootenay Pass in 2012: Angus Glass photos.
