"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"

How will our shoreline change as sea levels rise?

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MVIHES invites you to a presentation on July 27th, by Doug Biffard, Aquatic Ecologist, and Tory Stevens, Terrestrial Ecologist, of the Ministry of Environment. They will show us changes we can expect to see along our shoreline as a result of sea-level rise. 
 
Traditional management approaches assume that many shoreline features are unchanging. New information however indicates that our shorelines are in fact very dynamic. They can be changed by nature and by certain types of human use.

A new approach to shoreline management is needed that recognizes the importance of adapting to impacts of climate change. These factors include: rising sea level, increasing storm intensity and frequency, and changing wind, rainfall, humidity, air temperature and water temperature patterns.

Rathtrevor Park and Parksville Qualicum Wildlife Management Area are managed by BC Parks. Together they protect a 22 kilometre stretch of shoreline. Knowledge of the relative sensitivity of this shoreline to climate change will help the Ministry of Environment and its partners to anticipate where changes will be most dramatic.

This presentation will provide an overview of the shoreline information that the province has mapped in our area. Doug will also discuss how this can be used to investigate the relative sensitivity of shoreline types, and some ideas on the things we can do to help our shorelines adapt.

Using this information, BC Parks and the community can work together to develop an appropriate set of strategies and actions, that are adaptive to rising sea level and changing climate.

This free public presentation will be at the Parksville Conference Centre on Tuesday, July 27th, at 7:00 p.m.  It is provided as part of the Nearshore Education Program funded by the City of Parksville, Town of Qualicum Beach, and Georgia Basin Living Rivers.

For more information:
Michele Deakin
Nearshore Projects Manager
MVIHES
250-738-0232
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