The ultimate goal of this Habitat Stewardship Program (HSP) Prevention Stream project is to keep the American eel (COSEWIC designation of Threatened) and the Atlantic salmon (COSEWIC designation of Not At Risk) from being listed under the Species at Risk Act (SARA). This project focuses on the Bonavista North region of Newfoundland and Labrador. Throughout this project IBEC will expand on its existing stewardship plan (Restoration, Protection and Enhancement of Ecosystems; A Management Plan for the Bonavista North Region) by extending the geographic range within which important habitats and areas of concern will be assessed and prioritized for future protection and stewardship efforts.
Sites will continue to be identified that require rehabilitation work due to natural (e.g. beaver dams, stream bank erosion, low water levels, etc.) or man-made causes (roadways and trails that intersect stream, improper installation and maintenance of culverts, damaged bridges that create barriers to fish migration, etc.). Identification of specific threats to target species will allow for continued planning of management and restoration activities to mitigate these threats.
IBEC will engage volunteers, watershed users and general citizens to help with these protection and restoration efforts. Through this project, the integrated database and ArcGIS map developed under the current HSP project will be expanded to include a wider geographic area which will span from Burry’s Brook in Deadman’s Bay to the North and Traverse Brook to the South, near Hare Bay and Dover.
This project also includes the construction of a nature-like rock fishway to migrate the migration barrier caused by two perched culverts and allow access to approximately 8 kilometers of stream and 300 hectares of lake habitat located upstream of the current barrier. The structure will be monitored regularly to ensure it is functioning as intended.
Project Term: July 11, 2016 – September 30, 2016
Project Photos
This project was funded by:
Indian Bay Ecosystem Corporation (IBEC) 