Water Stewardship Information Sources
| ID | 2967 |
|---|---|
| Citation | Yaqan Nuki Friendship Society (2010) Project Report for the year 2009. A work in progress: continuation of the Yaqan Nuki Wetlands Friendship Society's Rehabilitaiton of the Lower Kootenay Band Wetlands. Prepared for Columbia Basin Fish and Wildlife Compensation Program and Columbia Basin Trust. |
| Organization | Fish and Wildlife Compensation Program - Columbia Basin; Columbia Basin Trust |
| URL | http://biodiversityatlas.org/reports/details.php?reportID=517&searchterms= |
| Abstract/Description or Keywords | YNWFS was created in 2003, in response to the drying up of the LKB wetlands for approximately 5 years, due to aging infrastructure and failing pumps. The society’s first two years were mostly involved in finding and patching trouble spots that would begin to re-instate a water habitat into these thirsty marsh beds. This included such activities as mending or replacing leaking culverts, mechanically resurrecting the 3 non-functional pumps that supplied water to the marshes, clearing foliage encroachment and fallen trees from the maintenance trails, and cleaning out water intake and output canals. Our goal has been the rehabilitation and long term maintenance of these Lower Kootenay Band marshes and the promotion of a healthy wetland ecosystem. Besides marsh and other wildlife integrity, our endeavor creates a teaching /learning wetland habitat for the LKB band as a whole and its school system in particular. 2009: The society’s imperatives for this year were the following:- • Cattail Encroachment: Tanal marsh became a concern at least four years ago. The disappearance of open water areas, so necessary to the safe access and egress of water birds, along with the subsequent absence of these birds in the choked marshes needed to be addressed. Our decision to raise the water level of the marsh as high as the dykes would allow in the fall of 2007 and maintain this till the present, has prompted progressive cattail die-off. • Leopard Frog Program: The results of last year’s feasibility study has arrived. The results were positive. • Band pump/Skincus canal : This original but unused canal was built to enable diversion of land drainage water from the Band pump before it outlets into the Kootenay River. It is presently unusable as it overflows the bank and floods the croplands.. Raising by 2 feet, for approximately 1000 meters of the east bank would deem it a viable canal for water flow into Skincus marsh. Ability to have this free water resource will reduce the Society’s pumping costs by at least one-fifth yearly. • North pump outlet canal : When water is being transported to the system’s marsh areas, the east bank saturates the land on the down side. This creates boggy conditions and renders maintenance access impossible without first shutting off the water supply and allowing a drying time of about 2 weeks. This compromises the marshes, especially Hidden Lake, which has actually lost all water once while repairs were being accomplished. We need to widen approximately 1000 feet of the east bank to allow maintenance machinery to access and work without having to interrupt the water supply. • South (Tanal) marsh pump : The pump was problematic in 2008, needing frequent restarting. Close monitoring in 2009 to assess the pumps working capacity and water output. |
| Information Type | Report |
| Regional Watershed | Tanal Marsh |
| Sub-watershed if known | |
| Aquifer # | |
| Comments | |
| Project status | |
| Contact Name | Art Tremblay |
| Contact Email |