| Abstract/Description or Keywords |
Graymont Western Canada Inc. (Graymont) is proposing to construct and operate a limestone quarry and lime processing plant (the Project) located approximately 40 kilometres (km) northeast of Prince George, British Columbia (BC). The Project is regulated under the Mines Act and is a reviewable project under the BC Environmental Assessment Act (BCEAA). The Project initially entered the review process in 2006, but was placed on hold by Graymont in 2007. A revised Project Description was filed with the BC Environmental Assessment Office (EAO) in 2013 which reinitiated the Project and the environmental assessment process. This report describes the baseline fish and fish habitat within and in proximity to the proposed Project footprint (i.e., the lower Bateman Creek watershed). It provides the basis for assessing the potential effects of the Project on fish and fish habitat, which will be included in Graymont’s application for an Environmental Assessment Certificate (EAC). Five (5) field visits were completed: in the winter, spring and summer of 2007, and spring and summer of 2014, to document fish and fish habitat in the lower Bateman Creek watershed. The area surveyed during the 2007 field programs included the lower three (3) stream reaches of Bateman Creek (Reach 1, 2 and 3), extending upstream from the confluence of Eaglet Lake, and several Bateman Creek tributaries. The field visits in spring and summer 2014 were conducted to supplement the 2007 data and address data gaps in the context of revised Project information. Reach 1 starts at the confluence of Bateman Creek and Eaglet Lake, and continues for approximately 2.5 kilometres (km) upstream. It is slow-flowing and characterized by u-shaped banks with extensive macrophytic growth. Reach 2 is approximately 1 km long and exhibits a steeper gradient with boulders and more turbulent flows. Reach 3 starts approximately 3.5 km upstream of the confluence with Eaglet Lake. The stream gradient drops and maintains a riffle-pool morphology as Bateman Creek continues to the upstream boundary of the Project area (i.e., near the location of the proposed quarry). Fish habitat in Reach 1 is more suitable for forage fish than for rainbow trout. Although rainbow trout were captured during field surveys in 2007 and 2014, captures in Reach 1 consisted primarily of forage fish including white sucker, redside shiner, prickly sculpin and burbot. Reach 2 and Reach 3 both provide excellent spawning and rearing habitat for salmonids. The fish community above Reach 1 consists almost exclusively of rainbow trout; a single juvenile white sucker was captured in an impounded side channel of Bateman Creek during field surveys. Tributaries to Bateman Creek are typically small and ephemeral. Only a few of the surveyed tributaries exhibited flow during the summer 2007 and 2014 assessments. Todd Creek is the farthest upstream and was the largest tributary surveyed. Todd Creek and lower reaches of smaller tributaries (Unnamed Tributary 1, 5 and 7.2) were found to support fish. Fish distribution in the Bateman Creek watershed is generally limited by low summer water levels. In addition to fish sampling and habitat assessment, benthic invertebrates, periphyton, chlorophyll a and sediment chemistry (BAC-1 only), were surveyed at an overview level to support the assessment of baseline fish and fish habitat. The benthic community in Reach 1 and the upper limit of Reach 3 were dominated by chironomids and tubificid worms, which are typical of lotic depositional habitats. The lower portion of Reach 3 was dominated by Ephemoptera and Plecoptera, which reflects the coarser substrates. The overall benthic community structure is considered representative of functional watercourses in the region. Periphyton communities were dominated by diatoms, most notably Navicula, Nitzschia, and Achnanthes. Green algae contributed to periphyton densities in both the Bateman Creek mainstem and Todd Creek. Periphyton biomass (measured as Chlorophyll a) ranged from 1.86 _g/cm2 at Todd Creek to 3.51 _g/cm2 at BAC-3. BAC-1 sediment analysis identified a site consisting of depositional habitat dominated by fines (28% sand, 53% silt and 19% clay) and organic substrate (2.6% TOC). The lower Bateman Creek watershed provides good spawning and rearing habitat for rainbow trout, and seasonal habitat for several fish species near the confluence with Eaglet Lake. The fish size classes observed in Bateman Creek were not sufficient to support sport fishing activities, but a portion of the population is likely recruited to Eaglet Lake, where abundant food sources and habitat are available to support larger sized fish. |
