The Regional District of East Kootenay (RDEK) Board of Directors has approved $133,600 in funding for nine projects in 2022 through the Columbia Valley Local Conservation Fund.

“The goal of this fund is to make a difference on the ground. This year we have approved a number of new initiatives in addition to supporting several ongoing projects,” said Columbia Valley Services Committee Chair Clara Reinhardt. “The projects receiving funding illustrate what a positive impact the Conservation Fund is making in our Valley again this year and we are excited to see them get underway.”

The projects approved for funding in 2022 include:

• Conservation of Biodiversity in Columbia Valley (Columbia Wetlands Stewardship Partners) – $15,000;

• Columbia Valley Farmland Advantage Stewardship Project (Windermere District Farmers Institute) – $17,985;

• Bat Roost Habitat Enhancement in the Columbia Valley (Wildlife Conservation Society Canada) – $20,000;

• Marion Creek Wetland Restoration Project (Nature Conservancy of Canada) – $20,000;

• Columbia Lake Water Monitoring and Environmental Education (Columbia Lake  Stewardship Society) – $15,000;

• Reimagining the Threads that Bind Wildlife Conservation to Farming (Wild Sheep Society of BC) – $12,000;

• Columbia River Headwater Lakes Monitoring & Education: Lake Windermere – Year 2* (Lake Windermere Ambassadors) – $11,415;

• Upper Columbia Swallow Habitat Enhancement Project -Year 2* (Wildsight Golden) – $15,000;

• Strategic Invasive Plant Control of Leafy Spurge – Year 1* (East Kootenay Invasive Species Council) – $7,200;

“KCP received excellent applications to the CVLCF again this year for projects that steward wildlife, habitat and water and ultimately contribute to the quality of life in the Columbia Valley,” said Juliet Craig, Program Director for the Kootenay Conservation Program. “These projects are innovative community-based approaches to conservation in the Valley.”

The Columbia Valley Local Conservation Fund is administered by the Kootenay Conservation Program (KCP) on behalf of the RDEK. A Technical Review Committee, made up of a number of

Columbia Valley residents who have conservation expertise, reviews the funding applications and makes recommendations to the RDEK Board of Directors.

For more information on the Columbia Valley Local Conservation Fund or the approved projects, contact the Kootenay Conservation Program or visit www.kootenayconservation.ca  

Lead image: A Lake Windermere Ambassadors/Kootenay Conservation Program volunteer Tests lake water. Kootenay Conservation Program photo

RDEK

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