Biodiversity Protection

Thank you for your comment. I'd like to begin by acknowledging that North Cowichan staff do what they can within their power to protect and conserve the beautiful, biodiverse ecosystems throughout the valley. Unfortunately, the Cobble Hill Quarry Nature Park is outside of North Cowichan's jurisdiction, meaning we have no control over the development activities permitted there. This park would be within the Cowichan Valley Regional District's jurisdiction, and you can reach their environment team at environment@cvrd.bc.ca.

Thanks for your questions, comments, and web link to conservation work being done elsewhere.

Much of the discussion in the article linked above deals with forest management practices. It is important to note that the long-term management policy of our municipal Forest Reserve is currently under a significant review. The Municipal Forest Reserve review is a separate process from the Biodiversity Protection Policy, which involves an analysis of economic, social and ecological costs and benefits and how these can be balanced in the future. For more information on the forest review, and to contribute to that discussion, please visit https://www.connectnorthcowichan.ca/MFR. That being said, Environment Staff, and our consultants developing the Biodiversity Protection Policy, are collaborating with Forestry Staff, and consultants leading the Municipal Forest Reserve Review, to ensure that the goals, actions, and recommendations of both processes will be mutually supportive.

In the first phase of the Biodiversity Protection Policy we will work with a team of environmental experts at Diamond Head Consultants to develop an inventory and assessment of key biodiversity features, habitats, ecosystems and the natural assets within the municipality to give our community an understanding of our biodiversity status. This public engagement is an important component of the assessment phase and will give staff and our consultants better understanding of knowledge held by members of the community and their biodiversity priorities. We are also seeking to talk to First Nations to draw upon their knowledge of biodiversity in our community.

The second phase of the Biodiversity Protection Policy will focus on policy development specifically. Based on information from the assessment phase staff and our consultants will report on;

• biodiversity and conservation targets and goals,
• relevant actions for the municipality and staff,
• education, monitoring, and management programs, and
• biodiversity policy opportunities.

Thanks for contacting us. The Municipal Forest Reserve is currently undergoing an extensive review of management policies going forward. The four major options include;

• Status quo
• Reduced Harvesting
• Active Conservation, and
• Passive Conservation

The Biodiversity Protection Policy will support North Cowichan Council strategic plan goal of being a leader in environmental policies and practices to support the future health of our community. Alongside the updated Official Community Plan, the Biodiversity Protection Policy will enable North Cowichan to policies and management plans that help preserve and restore ecological features, habitats, species and natural assets.

The Biodiversity Protection Policy has two goals;

1. An assessment report of the key biodiversity features within the municipality. This assessment will give the community an understanding of our biodiversity status to aid in developing meaningful policies and actions to preserve and enhance that biodiversity.
2. A policy report that will identify biodiversity, conservation, and restoration goals and the policies and actions necessary to meet those goals based on information from the assessment phase. The policies and actions will acknowledge existing capacity within North Cowichan’s staff, partnerships with neighbouring jurisdictions, and local stewardship groups.

Thanks for your question. Environment Staff are assessing our pond and wetland features to plan out budgeting requirements and maintenance schedules for features including the pond at Heron's Place. The biodiversity protection policy will be useful in helping the municipality prioritize which of these features are most in need of attention. Public input such as yours helps Staff identify natural assets that are especially valued by our community and those towards which we need to devote management resources.

Thanks for your questions and comments. The story map is the main channel through which we will be obtaining public input on significant biodiversity assets in North Cowichan. Our project consultant, Diamond Head, has found that in other communities the StoryMap provides a way to communicate with as wide an audience as possible. It should be noted that Environment Staff and Diamond Head will report to Council with draft reports for both the assessment and policy development phases of this project. Feedback on these can be provided by the public to either Council or Environment Staff. If you would like to contact an environment staff member please use the email and/or phone number provided above under "Who's Listening".

Due to our large and geographically diverse jurisdiction, North Cowichan prioritizes funding, resources, and effort on seven noxious weed species;

• Blueweed (Echium vulgare),
• Garlic Mustard (Alliaria petiolata),
• Giant Hogweed (Heracleum mantegazzianum),
• Gorse (Ulex Europaeus),
• Knotweeds (Fallopia spp. and Polygonum spp.),
• Poison Hemlock (Conium maculatum), and
• Wild Chervil (Anthriscus sylvestris).

Factors we consider for weed prioritization include to ensure a coordinated and efficient invasive plant management program for our tax payers include;

• the current density of the given plants infestation on our land base and the hazards,
• the risks they present to biodiversity, human health, the economy, and infrastructure,
• the treatments available for a given species, and
• species our adjacent land managers are prioritizing for treatment.

We anticipate that the Biodiversity Protection Policy will highlight the significant ecological assets requiring enhanced protection measures to help us prioritize area specific treatments for invasive species like Scotch Broom and Tansey Ragwort.

Thank you for your questions! Council has authorized spending up to $89,995, plus GST, for the Biodiversity Protection policy, which includes $15,000 for consultation with First Nations. The Contracting Firm for the project is Diamond Head Consulting Ltd. The project began in July 2022 and is anticipated to be complete by May 2023. The project has two main phases – an assessment phase (with report) and a policy development phase (with report).

The Biodiversity Protection Policy is being developed to identify environmental assets so that we can; recommend policy approaches to protect biodiversity that are consistent with community priorities and update our monitoring and management of North Cowichan’s environment. The Biodiversity Protection Policy will also be used to help inform discussions by Council and the Community on environmental asset management, land use decisions, and bylaws.

Thanks for the question! Lands within the Municipal Forest Reserve (MFR) will be included in the mapping and habitat analysis work of the assessment phase. However, a significant and established process is in place to determine how land within the MFR will be managed in the future, the MFR Review. The Biodiversity Protection Policy will therefore be prepared with consideration of management goals resulting from the MFR Review. Conversely, information and advice from the Biodiversity Protection Policy may be taken into consideration by parties engaged in the MFR Review and/or during the development of the forest management plan following the conclusion of the Forestry review.

Thanks for your questions! As with land habitat, aquatic areas will be assessed to identify habitat and features of significance. The assessment phase of the project will include work to confirm the mapping of all watercourses , the identification of unmapped watercourses, ditches, and potential areas of overland flow or remnant creeks as well as connected and non-connected wetland or pond features. The marine foreshore will also be mapped to delineate extent and habitat.

In the policy development phase of the project information from the assessment phase will be used to identify:

• biodiversity and conservation targets and goals
• roles for the municipality and staff in the greater policy context
• education, monitoring, and management programs
• biodiversity policy opportunities

Thanks for taking the time to contact us with your question. The Biodiversity Protection Policy is being developed to identify environmental assets so that we can update our monitoring and management of North Cowichan’s environment. This information will be used to help inform discussions by Council and the Community on environmental asset management, land use decisions, and bylaws.

Private lands are not being surveyed in the study. Environmental data is being collected from existing monitoring programs, and environmental mapping work done for the Province, the Cowichan Valley Regional District and the Municipality of North Cowichan. Field verification of this data was achieved by work on public lands.

The Municipality has engaged DiamondHead Consultants to prepare a plan for North Cowichan that is specific to our communities needs. DiamondHead has been directed to develop a biodiversity policy document that considers:

• Our unique ecological assets
• Elements of our environment deemed significant by residents of North Cowichan
• Elements of our environment identified by First Nations communities as ecologically and culturally significant 
• Existing environmental monitoring and management programs in North Cowichan
• Existing environmental regulations in North Cowichan
• The capacity of North Cowichan staff to implement and achieve existing and new policy goals