Society News for the Knowing Community

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Welcome to our spring/early summer 2013 edition. Visit us at www.PeninsulaStreams.ca for more content. Thanks

for reading~! – Francesca, Stewardship Coordinator

Creatures of Habitat – Gr. 6 Environmental Education Program

In April, with our dedicated team of volunteers, we visited Bayside, Royal Oak and Glanford middle schools to engage

the Gr. 6 students in a day of environmental action. It was our first year taking the program to SD61 (Glanford), and

we enjoyed working with their students at Baxter Park. A huge thank you to Saanich Parks staff who were on-site the

whole day to help educate the students about the unique ecological aspects of the park. Royal Oak students again

worked on their school property to continue to eradicate Himalayan blackberry, with the future plan of restoring the

Colquitz tributary that runs alongside the edge of the property. The photo below is of half the Gr. 6 Bayside class at

Gowlland Tod Provincial Park. These students worked on three sites within the park, to dig out Himalayan blackberry

roots and remove English ivy…they really impressed us with their energy and curiosity. THANK YOU to our

sponsors, workshop providers, and staff and students at the schools. Stay tuned for ‘Part Two’ of Creatures 2013, as

we’re hoping to work with North Saanich students in the fall to continue their legacy of invasive species removal and

also do some planting.

Bayside students, volunteers and teachers at Gowlland Tod Park. Photo credit: Charlene Rozon

Yes – I support Peninsula Streams Society!

I’d like to contribute: $50 $100 $250 $500 Other __________

Name: _____________________________ Email: ___________________________________________________

Address: ____________________________________________________ Phone: ___________________________

Please make cheque payable to: Peninsula Streams Society, Box 6000, 9860 West Saanich Rd, North Saanich BC, V8L 4B2

I prefer my donation to remain anonymous. Please send me a tax receipt.

Gr. 3 Watershed/Salmon Education Program

Seahorses Fundraiser Our 4th annual dinner/silent auction

fundraiser was a great success. Held on

April 11th and once again hosted by Sandi

Harte and the wonderful staff of the

Seahorses Café in Brentwood Bay, we

enjoyed a delicious meal, musical

entertainment by Farrell Boyce and Bob

deWolff, a charming reading by Anny

Scoones from her latest book, and the nail-

biting auction. A huge thank you to the

businesses and individuals who donated

items for the auction, and to everyone who

participated in the auction. We raised an

astounding $5750! Thank you to tireless

organizers Denis Coupland and Newton

Hockey, and to Judith Kirchner and Ryan

Windsor for providing extra help on the

evening.

Planning is underway for our 8th annual Gr. 3 program. We’re looking forward to teaching this year’s Gr. 3 students

about watersheds, water pollution prevention and the Pacific Salmon Lifecycle. If you’re interested in helping out at

any of the schools, let us know by email. This program will take place from May 20th to June 14th.

S.I.D.E.S. Education Program Over the course of four weeks in January and February, we partnered with instructor Patsy McCarter and the South

Island Distance Education School (S.I.D.E.S) to help them deliver a course on water, including learning about water

chemistry, quality, watersheds etc. With the help of Colquitz watershed steward Bob Cox, we provided in-class

instruction on watersheds (using our watershed model) and water chemistry. We also took the group of 20 students on

field trips to Swan Lake Nature Sanctuary and Viaduct Flats.

Our AGM was held on Saturday February 16th at the Greenglade Community Centre in

Sidney. We had an excellent turnout, with 36 attendees. Our 2013 Board of Directors

includes: Newton Hockey (Chair), Lin Callow (Vice-Chair), Mary Haig-Brown (Past

Chair), Denis Coupland (Treasurer), Fred Haynes (Secretary), Ryan Windsor (Corporate

Fundraising Chair); Members at Large include: Jack Thornburgh, Marjorie Garside,

Sheila Irving, Dave Stephen, Farrell Boyce, Judith Kirchner, Alice Johnson, Greg Harris,

Bruce Hardy, Mary O’Brien.

Annual General Meeting 2013

Visit us on Flickr for more photos of the evening:

http://www.flickr.com/photos/peninsulastreams/

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Deep Cove elementary students releasing Coho and Chum salmon fry.

Chalet Creek

ḰENNES/Hagan Creek

Reay Creek

Blue Heron Creek p. 3

Submitted by Newton Hockey

The berm project for Gardner's Pond is

progressing after encouraging reactions

from North Saanich District Council and

the Environmental and Parks

Commissions as well as Municipal Staff.

The municipal right of way has been

surveyed and staked and a drawing

prepared for architects, who will assemble

plans and photos for submission to

Council and all interested parties. A

neighbourhood meeting will be called to

hear their reactions to our plan and to

listen to any concerns and suggestions.

We still need to do further work on pumping water from local wells into the pond during summer months. When

everything comes together, we shall be able to further enhance the health of the creek by enhancing the summer water

flow down the creek.

As usual, the Deep Cove school students all trooped down to the Robertson property on the creek where they were

instructed on the plant and animal life before releasing salmon fry (after duly naming each fish!). The instructors

reported that Chalet Creek has become more healthy every year since restoration began. Earlier in the year, we released

more Coho fry into the creek and look forward to returns in the coming years.

Peninsula Streams Society Newsletter – May – Jun 2013

The Blue Heron Creek restoration project is again on the horizon. The redevelopment of the property next to Blue

Heron Park is under application at the District of North Saanich. If the rezoning and subsequent construction proceeds,

the developer will pay for the restoration of Blue Heron Creek all the way to the Pat Bay Highway. Restoration

planning and implementation of the Blue Heron Park section of the creek will be undertaken in cooperation with

Memorial Park Society, with the participation of Parkland Secondary students. Stay tuned for more news of this

exciting partnership.

Spring is here and the Waterhouse pond is functioning admirably as a stormwater retention pond. Now is the time of

year where we set the outlet elevation so that the pond functions as habitat for fish, amphibians and ducks. However,

we need to increase the amount of vegetation at water’ s edge to inhibit resident Canada Geese usage. Therefore on

Saturday June 1st starting at 9:30am we’ll be having a workparty at the Waterhouse property. Activities will include

planting, mulching, gravel additions and Himalayan blackberry maintenance. Lunch will be provided. Please RSVP

to peninsulastreams@gmail.com Also stay tuned for news on restoration plans of Lower Hagan on the old Godfrey

property.

The Victoria Airport Authority (VAA) Reay Creek diversion channel, built summer 2012, to bypass heavily

contaminated sediments in the old channel, had a successful winter’s experience. We anticipate an opportunity with

VAA in the fall of 2013 to undertake plantings with our volunteers on the new channel. Meanwhile downstream,

planning for the Reay Creek Pond renovation continues; sediment sampling and analysis needs to be undertaken to

determine what the fate of the sediments in the pond would be. We hope to undertake the renovation in the summer of

2014.

Tod Creek

Tetayut Creek

On Earth Day this year, 24 girls from

a local Girl Guide and Pathfinder

group helped us plant over 60 trees

alongside Tetayut (aka Sandhill)

Creek in Adam Kerr Park (corner of

Keating X Road and Central

Saanich). In a month or so they’ll

return to the park to help us mulch

and water the trees (including

Douglas fir, cedar, maple, alder,

grand fir, and spruce). Thanks for

your help, girls~!

Central Saanich has allocated

Integrated Stormwater Management

Plan funds to begin the engineering of

the stormwater detention/amphibian

wetland in Adam Kerr Park, with a

look towards construction to start

summer 2014.

TenTen Creek

The Victoria Airport Authority continues to make improvements on their local streams with a major reconfiguration of

stormwater entering the lower creek from the runways; as well a sediment trap will be constructed downstream of

Willingdon Road. The Pendray wetlands complex will be improved with an outflow channel constructed to the

reservoir.

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New Friends of Tod

Creek Watershed

logo, designed by

Des Bowker.

Submitted by Lori James-Derry

Mary Haig-Brown and the Friends of

Tod Creek Watershed continue work on

restoring Whitehead Park [on Prospect

Lake]. Our Restoration Plan, prepared

by Biologist Marian McCoy, includes

"removing Himalayan Blackberry and

other invasive plants, amending the

soil, improving site drainage, and

planting native plants to restore the site

to a healthy riparian area."

Peninsula Streams Society Newsletter – May – Jun 2013

For more information about the Friends of Tod Creek Watershed, visit http://todcreek.rd123.ca/

Girl Guides and leaders help plant trees at Adam Kerr Park to celebrate

Earth Day 2013.

• Become a Member. An annual individual membership is only $5, and entitles

you to vote at our AGM. Proceeds help offset our volunteer insurance costs.

• Volunteer with us. Many opportun-

ities are available. Sign up on our website or give us a call.

• Shop at Thrifty Foods and use our pre-programmed Smile Card. Thrifty

Foods donates 5% of your bill to our education programs and it doesn’t affect

your participation in the “Club Thrifty” program. Please remember us at the

till; it doesn’t cost you a penny to support us! If you would like a Smile Card,

please contact Francesca at 250.363.6480.

• Donate by cheque or on our website through Canada Helps, a secure online donation system.

You can use the “Donate Now” button on the website to securely and electronically make

your donation. Tax receipts issued.

• Donate a product or service for our annual Silent Auction Fundraiser.

Peninsula Streams Society Newsletter – May – Jun 2013 p. 5

We would like to recognize

Vancity Credit Union, one of

our long-time sponsors. This

year they are supporting our Gr.

6 and Gr. 3 environmental

education programs, and our

stream restoration projects on

Chalet, Swan and Hagan Creeks.

Thank you so much for your

continued support~!

We would like to thank our

fabulous ‘Creatures of Habitat’

Volunteers, past and present.

Words cannot express the extent

of our gratitude for your support

of this program, your dedication,

time and enthusiasm. THANK

YOU~!

Swan Creek stewards and Saanich staff at April 2013 Streamkeepers

course.

Swan Creek

In spite of being the “new kid on the block”, the newly formed Friends of

Swan Creek Watershed group has been active. Activities include: replanting a

small section of the creek with native plants, building up W.Q expertise by

shadowing existing programs, sending ten members to the Streamkeepers

course; working on a collaborative relationship with Swan Lake and Christmas

Hill Nature Sanctuary and other groups and planning several other on the

ground activities through to the fall. The FSCW Board is developing an action

plan to focus and direct activities over the next several years. Everyone agrees

that we need to be in this for the long haul.

Two workparties were held the weekend of May 11-12th; the first to clear

reed canary grass from our fall 2012 planting site near Columbine Rd. The next

day another group got together to remove broom and blackberries from Swan

Creek on the west side of McKenzie Ave. by Glanford Ave. Part of this area

had been planted with native species when McKenzie Ave. was widened.

Submitted by Bob Cox

Thank you to our donors!

Governments

District of Central Saanich

District of North Saanich

Town of Sidney

District of Saanich

Province of B.C.

Department of Fisheries and Oceans

Foundations & Organizations

Dee M. Bailin Family Fund

Pacific Salmon Foundation

Sidney Anglers Association

Royal Oak Lions

Victoria Foundation – Alistair S. Thomson, Colonel

R.O. Bull, Oolichan, Woodsome Family Funds

Businesses

Arbutus Grove Nursery

BC Hydro

Canoe Cove Marina

Custom Yacht Sales Ltd.

Drillwell Enterprises Ltd.

LGL Ltd.

Lush Handmade Cosmetics

Market on Yates and Millstream

Michell Excavating

Peninsula Co-op

Peninsula Rock Products Ltd.

RBC Blue Water Fund

Red Barn Market

Rhys Davis Ltd.

Russel Nursery

Sherwood Marine Centre

Sidney Bottle Depot

Slegg Construction Materials Ltd.

Thrifty Foods - Smile Card Program

Vancity Savings Credit Union

Victoria Airport Authority

Westport Marina

Individuals

C & T Armour, F & P.Boyce, I.Bruce, P.Chandler,

D.Chown, J.Clearihue, D.Coupland, G.B.Davidson,

B.Drury, A.Finall, M.Garside, S.Guy, M.Haig-Brown,

B.Hardy, N.Hockey, S. Irving, A.Johnson, S.Johnson,

P.Kerfoot, A.Marsh, C. Mearns, A.Nelson, P.Noel,

B.Peart, J. Thornburgh, A.Waterhouse, R. Wickson,

R.Windsor

Which watershed

do you live in?

Visit us online:

www.PeninsulaStreams.ca

The Peninsula Streams Society newsletter is

published on a quarterly basis. Do you have

something to add to the newsletter? Submissions

are accepted on a continual basis, inclusion is subject to space

availability and content appropriateness. Please contact us at

peninsulastreams@gmail.com

p. 6 Peninsula Streams Society Newsletter – May – Jun 2013

Ian, Exec. Coordinator 250-363-6596 • 250-888-2191 (cell) | Francesca, Stewardship Coordinator 250-363-6480

@ PeninsulaStreams@gmail.com

Map courtesy of CRD website.