Category Archives: Rivers & Oceans

Rivers & Oceans, Waste

West Coast infrastructure is on the rise to stem the wave of ocean plastics

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Editor’s note: FOCI volunteers carried out a ‘Mother’s Day Beach Clean-up of the beach between Hollyhock and Seaford Road, Cortes Island on May 9, 2022.

Coastal community cleanup groups on eastern Vancouver Island have been itching for the opening of B.C.’s newest ocean debris recycling depot. 

The Cumberland site, operated by Comox Strathcona Waste Management (CSWM) in partnership with the Ocean Legacy Foundation, opened in mid-June to tackle the tonnes of plastic washing ashore in the region, said Stephanie Valdal, CSWM’s waste management services co-ordinator. 

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Rivers & Oceans

Drastic ocean level fluctuations impact intertidal species

By Melissa Renwick, Ha-Shilth-Sa, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Tofino, BC – The west coast experienced some of its lowest tides of the year last week, leaving some intertidal animals vulnerable to the heat. 

A recent series of events lined up to trigger a “tidal phenomenon” that resulted in an exaggerated tidal range, according to Denny Sinnott, a DFO supervisor for Tides Current and Water Levels.

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Rivers & Oceans

DFO plans more fishery closures under salmon management plan

By Kaitlyn Bailey,  Prince Rupert Northern View, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Fisheries and Oceans Canada’s (DFO) Northern BC salmon management plan will take a precautionary approach to manage fisheries, including increased closures for the 2022-2023 year, stated a July 8 news release.

The Integrated Fisheries Management Plan report stated that environmental trends, including high river temperatures, suggest salmon productivity will be below average this year. Salmon productivity refers to the number of adult salmon produced per adult spawning fish.

As a result, key changes in the plan include extra closures throughout the northern Pacific region.

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Industry, Rivers & Oceans

Mining risks for Pacific Northwest salmon murky due to lack of transparent data

National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

The impact of mining on key salmon watersheds in northwestern Canada and the U.S. is impossible to gauge because of a lack of transparency and access to data.

That was one conclusion of a cross-border study involving a team of experts in salmon ecology, watershed science, mining policy that surveyed the intersection of mining risk with important salmon habitat, ranging from Montana to Alaska as well as B.C. and the Yukon.

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Rivers & Oceans

Perceived Biodiversity loss in Mansons Lagoon

Around 30 people trekked around the Spit into Mansons Lagoon, during the July 12 ‘Gumbooting the Lagoon.’ While Jane Newman, from the Cortes Island Museum, explained the site’s human history, marine biologist Deb Cowper and FOCI’s Autumn Barrett-Morgan introduced everyone to intertidal life forms. One of the many topics that arose was the loss of marine life.  

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