"Committed to the recovery of wild Pacific salmon in mid Vancouver
Island watersheds through habitat restoration and community engagement"
"Committed to the restoration of wild Pacific salmon in mid Vancouver
Island watersheds through habitat restoration and community engagement"

General - News

Beach Seining in the Englishman River Estuary

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beachseining2MVIHES is conducting a beach seining study this summer in the Englishman River Estuary as part of a project with the Nature Trust. Thanks to the Nature Trust, one of the man-made dykes in the estuary is being removed. Why you ask? That's a very good question.

The estuary is a place where tidal waters from the ocean move up into the Englishman River, and river water flows out to the ocean. This mixing of salt and freshwater that changes four times daily with the tide, creates a multitude of habitats that support a wide variety of unique plants, animals, birds, and insects. The estuary serves as a nursery area for several species of salmon. 

ERestuarydyke

The construction of the dyke in 1969 isolated the western portion of the estuary, apparently to prevent tidal intrusion and reclaim the land from the sea. In 1979, the dyke was breached and the gap was spanned by a bridge. This reopened the western part of the estuary to the influences of tide and salt water and with them came the fish and the estuarine marsh plants. The bridge has since been removed and the gap widened. However, the remaining stretch of dyke (in red) still impedes the original estuarine flow into the western portion of the estuary, so is being removed.

beachseining5The Nature Trust plans to monitor the changes that occur in the western portion after the dyke is removed. That's where MVIHES and the Arrowsmith Naturalists come in. We are identifying and counting the fish that we capture during beach seining to determine if the numbers and species of fish change after removal of the dyke. The Arrowsmith Naturalists are monitoring vegetation in the western portion to determine what changes occur in the vegetation.

MVIHES completed a comprehensive Bio-inventory of the estuary in 2008. The sites beachseining6where beach seining occurred during the bio-inventory are being used in this year's study, so not only can we compare results from before and after the dyke is removed, we can also compare with the results in the bio-inventory.

 Come on out and join the fun, learn to identify the different fish species, and know you are collecting some valuable information that can be used in future estuary land management.

 

Groundwater and the Englishman River

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Between Englishman River Falls and the Hatchery, the flow in the river drops by approximately 6%; this suggests the Englishman River loses water, thus recharging the fractured bedrock aquifer. 

 Most of the bedrock wells depict a stable groundwater elevation trend; however, there are two wells where a decreasing trend and one well where an increasing trend has been observed. 

To learn more  check out the report  Groundwater - Surface Water Interaction in the Englishman River - Project Update                                            

 

 

 

 

Shelly Creek Stream Assessment and Fish Habitat Survey Report

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Beginning in the summer of 2014, our members began a systematic study of the creek’s physical and biological features, using a method developed by the Government of BC called the Urban Salmon Habitat Program. In 2015, we completed the survey in the upper reaches of the creek (above Highway 19). With up to 20 members contributing hundreds of hours measuring habitats in conditions that resembled a jungle, we now had a better idea of what was happening to Shelly Creek. 
salmon8Two of the major findings of the study were:
1. The creek’s pools between Blower Road and Wildgreen Way have been filled in with sediments as a result of erosion of the creek’s stream banks from high (winter) flows.
2. Much of the 2 km of creek above Highway 19 has been excavated. This has resulted in significant changes to the natural hydrology of the watershed. Click here to read the  complete report, Shelly Creek Stream Assessment and Fish Habitat Survey Report-2014 and 2015.

 

In an effort to understand how these changes to the stream’s hydrology can be modified to improve the stability of the creek, and hence the water quality, MVIHES hired one of British Columbia’s experts on water engineering, Jim Dumont, P.Eng., to study the creek and provide us with a report. The report is complete and is titled: Shelly Creek Water Balance and Sediment Reduction Plan, Technical Summary.

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