Woodstream Park Restoration Project Underway

For Immediate Release

August 8, 2012- A Salmon Enhancement Project, funded by the Pacific Salmon Foundation in partnership with City of Nanaimo Parks, Recreation and Culture, and lead by the Harbour City River Stewards will get underway next week in Woodstream Park.  The goal of the restoration project is to bring Departure Creek back to being a viable, fish bearing stream as outlined in the Departure Bay Neighbourhood and the City of Nanaimo Official Plans.

This summer the stream restoration and fish habitat improvements, supervised by British Columbia Conservation Foundation project biologist Jeramy Damborg, will be concentrating on the area above the diversion sediment structure upstream to the first park bridge.  The in-stream work, in partnership with City of Nanaimo Parks, will include constructing rock grade control riffles, installing spawning gravel and large woody debris and constructing bio-engineered slope erosion protection. This work is scheduled to begin on Monday August 13, 2012.

City of Nanaimo Public Works will also be involved, as they will excavate the collected sediment out of the diversion sediment pond and will do some repairs to the diversion system. This work will be done within the same time frame as the other in-stream work to minimize the impact on the stream and its occupants.

In order to protect the fragile riparian zone bordering the creek,  City of Nanaimo Parks Operations has undertaken to install low level split cedar railings along some heavily impacted areas bordering the park path to delineate some of the areas where riparian re-vegetation planting will be undertaken later this fall and winter. This management plan is designed to control the eroding banks and to provide critical shade and other important benefits to the stream occupants and local wildlife.

A Coho fry survey of Departure Creek is being undertaken by Charles Thirkill of Fishtech and is funded by DFO.  This work will establish base line data to assist in properly assessing and monitoring the salmonid population in the creek. For further information please contact Jean-Michel Hanssens, Habour City River Stewards, Departure Creek project manager at 250-729-8871.

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