Kootenay Conservation Program (KCP), a partnership of over 85 organizations, leveraged significant funding in 2024 towards stewardship in the West Kootenay that, in turn, supports community well-being. With funding from Environment and Climate Change Canada for the Kootenay Connect Priority Places initiative, KCP has brought in millions of dollars to support monitoring and restoration work throughout the Kootenays.
“We are extremely proud of KCP and the ability of our partnership to work collaboratively towards shared conservation goals that benefit local ecosystems and communities” says Juliet Craig, KCP Program Director. “Collectively, KCP partner organizations have a large conservation impact on wildlife and the habitats they depend upon in our region.”
In 2024, Kootenay Connect Priority Places funding continued to support diverse species at risk projects in key ecologically important areas including the Creston Valley, Slocan Valley, and Duncan Lardeau.
In the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area, the funding supported inventories and habitat enhancements for species at risk such as Western skinks, rubber boas, bobolinks, and common nighthawks. Ecosystem surveys informed habitat enhancement efforts to reduce encroaching vegetation and decrease wildfire risk. In addition, a 60 square metre “swallow motel” was constructed to provide a secure nesting structure for colonies that support essential ecosystem services including mosquito control.
In the Slocan Valley, in partnership with the Slocan Lake Stewardship Society (SLSS) and Slocan River Streamkeepers, two riparian sections of the Slocan River were restored, improving habitat for fish and many wetland species including at-risk Western painted turtles. In addition, 2,000 live stakes and native trees, including cottonwood, willow, alder, red osier dogwood, and cedar were planted along the Slocan River at Perry Siding near Winlaw to increase diversity of native plants and enhance habitat.
Just upstream, Kootenay Connect Priority Places funding was used by SLSS, Streamkeepers, and Slocan Integral Forestry Cooperative (SIFCo) to enhance in-stream fish habitat on the Larson Ranch. Both projects were also funded in part by Columbia Basin Trust, contributing critical matching funds to the federal grant. These conservation projects not only support wildlife and habitats in the region, but also support local contractors and agricultural producers, resulting in a more diversified local economy.
At the north end of Kootenay Lake in the Duncan River floodplain, projects focusing on wetland restoration included monitoring the activities of beavers translocated in 2023 as they continued building dams and channels to increase water retention in the floodplain. By the end of September, wetlands in the upper portion of Argenta Slough had doubled in size. The enhanced wetlands contained a record 32 Western painted turtles that were observed basking on logs in Argenta Slough. Given the wildfires experienced in this area last summer, these beaver created and maintained wetlands have an important role to play in retaining water year-round, helping prevent wildfires, and providing refuge for wildlife. The RDCK Local Conservation Fund has also provided a valuable contribution to this project.
“The collaborative partnerships supported through Kootenay Connect Priority Places have enabled local people and organizations to pool their expertise and collectively address priorities that will significantly improve our chances for protecting our region’s biodiversity and ecological resilience in the face of a changing climate,” explains Marcy Mahr, Kootenay Connect Manager.
All this work would not be possible without the support of our local and regional funders such as the Columbia Basin Trust and Fish and Wildlife Compensation Program. The KCP Team and Board would like to acknowledge the important contribution of these funders, as well as KCP partners, as we look ahead to 2025 projects that continue to benefit ecosystem health and our West Kootenay communities now and into the future.
For more information about these initiatives and much more, please visit: kootenayconservation.ca.
Lead image: Riparian planting south of Perry’s Bridge in the Slocan Valley. Ryan Durand photo
