| Abstract/Description or Keywords |
The Christina Lake Foreshore Inventory and Mapping (CLFIM) Project was implemented by the Christina Lake Stewardship Society in partnership with Fisheries and Oceans Canada (Community Mapping Network), the Regional District of Kootenay Boundary, and the Ministry of Environment in the spring of 2008. A detailed inventory of Christina Lake was conducted using two assessment procedures. Initial procedures included geo-referenced digital video documentation of the entire foreshore, the delineation of foreshore segments based on contiguous sections of foreshore that have similar characteristics, and the documentation of key attributes for each segment. The objective of this phase of the project was to provide an overview of the foreshore habitat condition on the lake which included the littoral zone to the upland area. Characteristics such as foreshore morphology, land use, riparian condition, and anthropogenic alterations were entered onto the CLFIM database. The second phase of the project included conducting individual site (lot) assessments, documenting additional attributes, correlating digital photographs, and data entry onto a separate CLFIM database. This level of assessment was conducted in order to provide a higher level of detail on the existing foreshore conditions on Christina Lake. The majority of the results discussed in this report are based on the level of detail that the individual site assessments provided. The overall results show that the level of disturbance and modification of the Christina Lake foreshore has been compromised primarily by residential development activities as well as by Crown access points, commercial, and park land uses. The results showed that 77% of the foreshore has been disturbed by anthropogenic (human caused) alterations, including substrate alterations above and below the high water mark, removal of riparian and aquatic vegetation, infilling, beach grooming, importation of sand, retaining walls (armoring), and shoreline development. The assessment of foreshore modifications also included the enumeration of docks, boat launches, boat houses, and groynes. All of these structures and modifications can degrade the foreshore environment by fragmenting habitats that are essential and relied upon by a myriad of aquatic and terrestrial species for all or part of their lifecycle. Even though there is a high level of foreshore impacts, 23% of the foreshore of Christina Lake remains undisturbed. Effective foreshore planning, development, and management with an environmental ethic is a challenging task for all Communities and Regulatory Agencies. As with all challenges, come opportunities. Christina Lake is home to shore and stream spawning kokanee. The kokanee shore spawning activities on Christina Lake are associated with low rocky shore and gravel beach shore types that have gravel dominated substrates. Areas that are not as highly used include cliff/bluff, wetland, and sand beach shore types, although limited spawning does occur in these areas. The majority of the spawning locations were associated with areas assessed as having low or moderate (medium) disturbance levels. There is a high level of concern with the increasing trend of removal of substrate materials to build groynes within prime spawning habitat locations in the north end of Christina Lake. Tributary entranceways for stream spawning kokanee are Sandner Creek, McRae Creek, and Sutherland Creek. Natal streams such as Sutherland Creek have had a noticeable decline in annual fish enumerations and McRae Creek has failed to have kokanee return in 2006, 2007, only 8 kokanee observed in 2008, and no kokanee returned in 2009 due to low or no water flow at the mouth of the creek system. It has been observed and reported that stream spawning kokanee occurred in both Stewart Creek and Christina Creek in the fall of 2009. Historically, this occurrence has never been documented before. The information collected from this project and subsequent assessments via monitoring protocols will be provided to local and senior government agencies to assist in the management of the foreshore of Christina Lake. Specifically, it will aid in developing land use policies, regulations, standards, and educational tools to promote public awareness with the aim of increasing the long term protection of upland, riparian, and aquatic ecosystems indicative of a healthy lake and watershed. The information from this project and subsequent assessments will provide a benchmark for foreshore protection initiatives and monitoring development. The recommended actions include: developing and implementing a riparian protection plan and legislation, identifying current and potential water quality degradation sources, future assessment and monitoring requirements, the identification and protection of critical habitat areas, determining lake carrying capacity, and public awareness education. |
