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Biodiversity a work in progress

RMOW falls short of goal of preserving 2,010 hectares, but significant work still underway

In 2009, with Olympic developments substantially complete, the Cheakamus Community Forest becoming a reality and the Official Community Plan rewrite on the horizon, Whistler Council approved a plan called the Whistler Biodiversity Challenge 2010.

The timing coincided with the United Nations' International Year of Biodiversity program, which ran through 2010, as well as the 2010 Games.

The goal was to protect 2,010 hectares of land by the end of 2010, protecting local biodiversity through a number of different measures.

Now, the end of 2010 is near and the program will not reach its goal. But with a variety of other initiatives in the works, Whistler may actually exceed it.

From the outset, working with a team of six local biologists, the RMOW identified and mapped five types of ecosystems known to be biodiversity "hot spots" - old growth forest, old pine forest, wet rich sites, floodplain and riparian. That generated an area covering roughly 10,316 hectares, or more than a third of Whistler's total area of 27,114 hectares (up from 16.500 hectares following a boundary expansion approved in 2008).

They overlaid that map with property lines, including Crown land, and discovered that 502.8 hectares were already protected or protectively zoned. Of the remainder, the majority is Crown land and not available for any kind of permanent development, although some of the land will be managed as working forest by the Cheakamus Community Forest.

While the 502.8 hectares is only a quarter of the stated goal, there are a number of initiatives underway - including the Official Community Plan (OCP), Protected Areas Network (PAN) and biodiversity corridor planning, Cheakamus Community Forest planning and proposed ecological reserves - that will help the municipality protect additional lands in the next few years.

"This will continue on in time, despite the fact that it says '2010' in the name," explained Heather Beresford, environmental stewardship manager for the RMOW.

Beresford presented an update of the Whistler Biodiversity Challenge 2010 at the Dec. 7 regular council meeting, following an update from the Whistler Biodiversity project - a separate biodiversity inventory that is being managed by local ecologist Bob Brett. The project has increased the number of identified species of plants and animals to 2,553 from the 2004 total of 494, while also identifying 46 rare species and 152 non-native species.

The presentation listed some of the initiatives and opportunities that are currently on the table to increase the amount of protected area in Whistler:

• The analysis of land use identified two areas for ecological reserves - the Green Lake Ecological Reserve, which applies to a parcel of land between Whistler Secondary School and Edgewater, and the Alpha Creek Ecological Reserve between Millar's Pond and the Kadenwood Road.

• The OCP, through the PAN, will attempt to establish a biodiversity corridor through the valley, as well as a Wildland Zone from Madely Lake to 19 Mile Valley that will be off limits to most activities and will not be considered for forestry operations. That encompasses most of Whistler's west side, but makes allowances for existing bike trails and hiking to Rainbow Lake.

• Partnership opportunities include B.C. Hydro placing a temporary moratorium on the transit station site for 2011 while an agreement to protect two pieces of that parcel is finalized; requesting a setback from the pond on that site from Terasen Gas; working with Nicklaus North Golf Course on the proposed Fitzsimmons Fan Biodiversity Project; and working with local and provincial groups to create a Whistler Land Trust.

• Dedicating the north end of Spruce Grove park to create a spawning side channel for Fitzsimmons Creek, while preserving a riparian area around the channel.

Other initiatives include municipal membership and support for the Sea to Sky Invasive Species Council; the Environmental Protection Bylaw cited for completion in 2011; continued support for the Whistler Biodiversity Project (including sponsorship for the BioBliz and Fungus Among Us weekends); and continued work on an ecosystem-based management plan for the Cheakamus Community Forest.

It's unknown how much land will ultimately be protected under all of these initiatives, or what kind of protection will be afforded. For example, the PAN strategy recognizes three levels of protection, from outright bans on any development to bans that allow for non-motorized recreation and trail development.

Beresford says the Biodiversity Challenge is directly responsible for some of the initiatives that are in the works.

"One of the new things is the proposed Fitzsimmons Fan biodiversity project and protecting the bird habitat down there (at the Green Lake spit)," she said. "And of course all the projects with our community partners, and getting in touch with Terasen Gas, B.C. Hydro and Whistler Blackcomb and working on projects over time. What was really great about the Biodiversity Challenge announcement is that it really put the spotlight on biodiversity, as well as some more resources, more time, and more focus on biodiversity issues."

It also entrenched the concept of biodiversity in the OCP, says Beresford.

"The last time we looked at that was in 1993, when biodiversity wasn't on the radar, and now we've put it on the forefront and we'll be making specific policy statements in regards to this. There is the whole question of how do you do land use planning, and what's important to our community, and we're able to give (biodiversity) more attention now because it's consistent in our workshops that the environment is really important to the community of Whistler."

There are only minor budget implications for moving forward on the Whistler Biodiversity Challenge, including $25,000 a year for Ecosystem Monitoring (including funding for the Whistler Biodiversity Project), $2,000 a year to the Sea to Sky Invasive Species Council and $30,000 for the Cheakamus Community Forest (to be repaid by the community forest through timber sales). In 2011 there is $130,000 to $150,000 in the budget for the Spruce Grove Spawning Channel - a project requested by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans to compensate for the loss of other spawning channels as a result of development on the Lower Fitzsimmons Creek.