Colquitz Coalition Annual Meeting – Feb. 13, 2019
For meeting notes and Presentations, please see the Peninsula Streams Society Google Drive.
Goward Springs Workparty – A Great Day for Staking
On the frosty morning of December 9th (2017), a crew of 12 energetic volunteers joined the Goward Springs Stewards and Peninsula Streams Society (PSS) at the Vancouver Island Technology Park (by Camosun College Interurban Campus) to plant stakes on Viaduct Flats. Stakes had been cut the day before in preparation for the event. Together, the crew planted a total of 90 stakes (30 each of Red-osier Dogwood, Cottonwood and Willow) in under an hour. When the final stake had been planted, Brian (of PSS) provided a stake-cutting demonstration so that stewards could embark on their own staking projects. And if planting 90 stakes wasn’t enough, volunteers also helped remove an old fence from the park and a few even tackled some invasive Himalayan Blackberry bushes. A Special thanks to Lynn Husted of Goward Springs Stewards for providing treats for the event.
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- Staking Location
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- Mary and Lynn collecting the stakes.
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- Volunteers hard at work.
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- All in a morning’s work. Good work everybody!
A Day in the Life of a Water Quality Volunteer
At our annual Colquitz Coalition meeting a couple weeks ago, Goward Springs Steward Sarah HG gave a presentation on the group’s water quality (WQ) results in the watershed. In this post she takes us along on their recent January WQ outing. The group goes out once a month to collect measurements on dissolved oxygen, pH, water temperature, turbidity, electrical conductivity and total dissolved solids; they also collect water samples for fecal coliform analysis. Field WQ measurements are taken monthly at 8 sites: 4 tributaries flowing into Viaduct Flats, and 4 sites on Viaduct Creek/Goward A between Viaduct Flats and the Colquitz River. For an aerial of the Goward Springs Watershed, see the CRD Colquitz River Watershed map here…Goward Springs is SW of Beaver Lake. If you’re interested in joining them on a future trip or other volunteer activity, or would like more details about their WQ program, please contact them. Thanks for sharing, Sarah!
Today’s guest author Sarah Hudson-Gray would like to extend a special thanks to photographer Mike MacFarlane, WQ partner Lucy Bashford, and Al Rosenthal and Erin Jones for their help.
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- 1) I begin water quality monitoring each month by calibrating the meters. Always interesting to see the state of my drinking water before heading into the watershed.
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- 2) At Site 1: Cottage Creek we meet up with Al and Erin. New to water quality monitoring, they came along to see how it works and to have a nice walk on a Sunday morning.
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- 3) I always love the company and help with writing down the measurements.
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- 4) Probably the only use for a spoiler on a Neon: a nice, flat surface to measure turbidity with Secchi columns.
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- 5) Lucy joins us for Site 2: Dugout Pond at the Horticultural Centre of the Pacific (HCP). This is one of the tributaries to Goward Springs.
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- 6) At HCP, the deer keep trying to visit. They don’t even volunteer their time to the gardens.
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- 7) I think Site 2 is below an owl tree, judging by the several sodden owl pellets.
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- 8) Site 3: Viaduct Creek at the Lookout Parking Lot is on the mainstem above Viaduct Flats.
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- 9) Viaduct Flats is a favourite place for bird watching. This platform is off of Interurban Road across from Viaduct Avenue.
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- 10) Across Viaduct Flats can be glimpsed the Horticultural Centre of the Pacific.
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- 11) At Site 4: Horse Bridge on Conway Creek we take the regular measurements, but we are observing this tributary especially since high fecal coliform counts have been detected here.
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- 12) There are suds in evidence, but the electrical conductivity and total dissolved solids measurements taken do not indicate a problem.
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- 13) Collected a sample for fecal coliform analysis.
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- 14) It’s so wonderful to see Spring emerge. Such a blessing to see flowers bloom when the rest of Canada is descending into the coldest part of Winter.
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- 15) At Site 5: South Weir on Viaduct Flats, Lucy and I pause to pose in our wellies.
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- 16) Water is flowing over the North Weir as well as the South Weir. The system is designed to maintain the water level of Viaduct Flats between 26.7 and 26.8 metres above mean sea level.
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- 17) At Site 6: Viaduct Creek, Downstream of the Confluence with Layritz Creek, it begins to rain.
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- 18) Layritz Creek has a headcut that is eroding upstream toward Markham Road. The result is the input of fine sediment to Viaduct Creek, which has embedded the gravel substrate.
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- 19) Site 7: Viaduct Creek Upstream of Quick’s Bottom is the last site that is decidedly part of the Goward Springs Watershed. It’s difficult to discern separate channels in the field of thick reed canary grass just downstream.
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- 20) High water at Site 8: Viaduct Creek, Upstream of the Colquitz River confluence means that flows from the Colquitz River and Viaduct Creek may join somewhere in Quick’s Bottom. Hard to tell, but the Colquitz is visible as separate at this sampling point.
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- 21) Still, the water quality looks good.
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- 22) Done water quality monitoring for January 2017, it’s time to go dry out!
Jan. 2017 Meeting of the Colquitz Coalition
Dear Colquitz Coalition,
Well the time has come to schedule our annual meeting~! We last met in November 2015. We suggest a meeting in January 2017. Please let me know which of the following dates work for you and we’ll select ONE of the dates to accommodate as many groups as possible. Please respond with your availability by January 2nd.
Option 1 – Thursday Jan. 19th from 7-9pm
Option 2 – Saturday 21st from 1-3pm
Option 3 – Wednesday 25th from 7-9pm
The location is TBD, but may be Pearkes Rec. Centre as that location has worked pretty well for us in the past.
This meeting is open to all the current Colquitz Coalition groups and any groups interested in our activities and/or in joining, or individuals interested in environmental stewardship/volunteering etc. in the watershed. This is an opportunity to share the projects your group has been working on, goals achieved, setbacks experienced, and to talk of future projects, build partnerships, etc.
Any and all members of the individual groups are welcome to attend (not just the Colquitz Coalition reps).
Thank you in advance for your response, and we look forward to meeting with you in the new year~!
Francesca, Peninsula Streams Society
Fall 2015 Meeting of the Colquitz Coalition
It’s time to schedule the next gathering of the Colquitz Coalition~!
We’d like to schedule the next Colquitz Coalition meeting for mid November. We’ve selected two dates to choose from (Tuesday Nov. 10th or Thursday Nov. 12th). Let us know which date works for you, or if both dates work equally well. Please let us know by Friday Oct. 23rd which date(s) work for you, and then we’ll notify everyone by email with the selected (most popular) date, and meeting location (likely Pearkes Rec. Centre). It will be an evening meeting, commencing at 7pm.
The meeting is open to all members of the Colquitz Coalition and new groups who wish to join the Coalition. Also welcome to attend are members of the public who may be unaffiliated with Coalition groups but are interested in stewardship of the Colquitz River Watershed. Please contact Peninsula Streams Society if you have any questions~!
Thank you,
Francesca
Peninsula Streams Society
Colquitz Mainstem Community Meeting #2
The second meeting of the Colquitz Mainstem Stewardship group will take place on Wednesday November 4th at 7pm. See Calendar listing for more details.
Colquitz River Walk with stewards, Sep. 29, 2015, photo credit: Francesca Loro
Swan Creek Riffle Repair Workparty
Members of the very active Friends of Swan Creek Watershed met on September 20th to distribute rock and gravel in the stream and rebuild a riffle from last year.
Photo Credit: Debbie Oostland
“A Tale of Two Lakes” (Elk/Beaver)
Can Aging lakes be rejuvenated?
A public forum co-sponsored by the UVic Environmental Law Centre and Victoria Golden Rods and Reels Society will be held on Thursday October 29 from 7-9pm. The purpose of the forum is to provide scientific information about the problems with Elk/Beaver Lake and potential measures to address them. There will be three speakers and information booths of various stakeholders. One of the speakers will be Dr. Rick Nordin, who published a report on the water quality at Elk/Beaver Lake. For more info about the forum, contact Mick Collins, Co-Chair Elk/Beaver Lake Initiative at 250-598-3294.
Anticipated attendance is 100-200 people. They encourage everyone to arrive around 6pm to visit with various stakeholders at their booths from 6-7pm.
For detailed invitation, click here.
For parking map, click here (parking lot marked with red arrow)
The following organizations have confirmed their booth spaces to date:
· Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC
· Habitat Acquisition Trust
· Peninsula Streams Society
· Victoria Rowing Society
· Victoria Golden Rods and Reels Society
· Gorge Waterway Initiative
Invitation: Colquitz Mainstem Community Meeting
See today’s article in the Saanich News about Peninsula Streams Society’s upcoming meeting.
Swan Creek Capital City Allotment Gardens Restoration Project
Date: Beginning July 2015
About the Project:
Swan Creek is an urban Salmon stream in Greater Victoria. It was logged, then farmed and ditched in many areas. The upper reach below Swan Lake has a Community Garden area that is very popular and well-used. In winter, the lower elevation garden plots flood due to the plugged creek channel from the past and present activities. The problems were identified in a 2014 habitat assessment resulting in a collaborative plan by the Peninsula Streams Society, District of Saanich, Friends of Swan Creek Watershed and Capital City Allotment Gardens Society. The restoration plan involves moving garden plots, establishing best environmental management practices for the gardeners (i.e. fertilizers, garbage, encroachment, etc.) and restoring the creek channel. Our plans include: excavating the accumulated sediments, removing invasive plants, improving storm water inputs, installing spawning gravel, deepening pools, planting native plants and installing educational signage. With thanks to the Recreational Fisheries Conservation Partnerships Program and the Pacific Salmon Foundation.
Photo Credit: Debbie Oostland
