The Bertrand Watershed Education Team project in Aldergrove is the first recipient of the B.C. Water Sustainability Endowment Fund Grant. The grant is provided by the Real Estate Foundation of B.C.
Bertrand Watershed Education Team, or B-WET, was designed by Langley Environmental Partners Society (LEPS) to connect the community to its local watershed and improve both stewardship practices and the health of the ecosystem.
In addition, B-WET received $40,000 from Vancity’s enviroFund. B-WET and LEPS are among 15 innovative organizations working on local environmental issues which recently gathered at a celebration at the Vancouver Maritime Museum to honour this year’s Vancity’s enviroFund recipients, who together will receive more than half a million dollars.
Bertrand Creek is home to Coho salmon, and two endangered species of resident fish, the Salish Sucker and Nooksack dace. The LEPS team will contact all 225 residents who live adjacent to Bertrand Creek and provide them with information and opportunities to improve the way they interact with the stream.
In addition to providing information to streamside residents, the project team will undertake five riparian (streamside) enhancement projects, remove invasive species from riparian areas, remove trash from streams, mark urban storm drains and host walking tours and other educational events
LEPS will engage with streamkeepers, Scouts and Guides, schools, and other groups that are interested in making the connection between human behaviour and the health of the watershed, whether it be water quality, endangered species, or the richness of the overall ecosystem.
The Real Estate Foundation produced a short video of the B-WET project, which had its first showing at the 2011 Land Awards Gala in Vancouver on Nov. 3. The gala was open to the public and proceeds are once again directed to the endowment fund. To view the video, go to http://www.youtube.com/user/RealEstateFdnBC
The B.C. Water Sustainability Endowment Fund was established in 2010 in conjunction with the inaugural Land Awards Gala. The income generated from the fund will support non-profit activities related to water sustainability in the province of British Columbia in perpetuity. Donations to the charitable fund are accepted on an ongoing basis. For more information, visit www.refbc.com
For more information on Langley Environmental Partners Society and the Bertrand Watershed Education Team visit leps.bc.ca
