About Us
Becoming a member of the Society keeps you up to date as to what is happening in the Tsolum River watershed. You help us by increasing our membership which assists with fundraising and a voice for the environment.
Tsolum River Restoration Society Mission:
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To restore the health and productivity of the Tsolum River to historic levels
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Reduce dissolved copper concentration in the Tsolum Watershed to levels that support aquatic species
-Current target is to below 0.007mg/L below Murex Creek (7 ppb) -
Achieve minimum flows that support the upstream migration of returning adult salmon
-Current target is .45 cms at Rees Bridge (Dove Creek Road) -
Protect the Tsolum River from activities that may damage the health of the Tsolum River Ecosystem
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Protect the meander corridor of the Tsolum River and its tributaries
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Restore and/or mitigate for lost or damaged habitat
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Enhance stocks until populations build to capacity
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Promote sustainable stewardship of the Tsolum River Watershed
Our number one priority, of course, has been to end the 40 years of pollution from an abandoned copper mine and after the formation of an effective partnership we have developed a comprehensive plan to cover the site. (Full Detailed Design Report is now available Click here to Download Report (pdf, 42 MB)) Work will commence this summer (2008) with the project now fully funded by BC Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources and BC Ministry of Environment.
We continue to develop a strategic plan for watershed management, have an effective and dedicated Board of Directors and have almost 500 membersand 50 - 60 active and supportive volunteers...
A Short History
The Tsolum River Task Force (TRTF) grew out of many years of dedicated work by citizens concerned about water and watersheds of the Comox Valley. In 1992, DFO’s Salmonid Enhancement Task Group, the Comox Valley Environmental Council and other local organizers held the "Water Lifestream of the Comox Valley" forum to discuss the health of local watersheds and other water related issues. The result of this forum was the production of the report titled " Water- Lifestream of the Comox Valley" (1993), which raised community awareness of watershed issues.
The Comox Valley Watershed Assembly was a local forum that convened monthly to discuss watershed issues. At these meetings focus groups were formed to discuss concerns presented to the Assembly, and to develop solutions to these problems. The Assembly was very effective in bringing watershed issues to the public and instrumental in the formation of many watershed stewardship groups. In 1995, the "Tsolum Team" was formed at a Watershed Assembly meeting and in 1997, the "Healing the Tsolum" workshop was attended by over 200 local residents. At a meeting the following day, the TRTF was formed with the goal of restoring the Tsolum River to historic levels of health and productivity.
The TRTF took its message to the Provincial Minister of Employment and Investment (Mines and Energy), the Honourable Dan Miller, and to the Minister of the Environment, the Honourable Cathy McGregor to request funding and support for the TRTF’s efforts to clean up the problem of minesite pollution, address the problem of low summer water flows in the river and restore fisheries habitat throughout the watershed. In response to this call for action, the Ministers directed the TRTF to apply to Fisheries Renewal B.C. and the Environment Youth Team for assistance with this task.
In the spring of 1997, funding was received from DFO for the Tsolum River Restoration Project to be administered by the Comox Valley Project Watershed Society, with the supervision of the project under the control of the Steering Committee of the TRTF. (Reprinted from the “State of the Tsolum River” report, 1999)
By the summer of 1998 it had become clear that the TRTF was not functioning as it had over the past year. Agency and industry members were not as forthcoming in their comments and participation and action orientation began to grind to a standstill. It was revealed that Provincial/Federal orphaned minesite remediation had become a legal issue with Notices of Remediation Orders being issued to other minesite locations in the province. The Brittania site on Brentwood Bay began to hit the media. As the remediation had taken a turn towards the courts, agencies and industry were instructed by their legal counsels to not speak openly about the minesite issues. The loss of the freedom to speak openly restricted the Task Force to the point where it became redundant. In October 1998 the Tsolum River Restoration Society was formed.
Since that time the TRRS has continued to push for remediation of the minesite with a resolution passed in January of 2001 that the Society would not support any further studies - that the issue had been studied enough and all the data led to “Source Control” It was moved and carried that the TRRS would push for a complete cover of the site.
A bold step had been taken on behalf of the citizens of the Comox Valley who have suffered the economic losses for over 40 years of pollution. It was further decided that addressing low flows, habitat restoration, stock enhancement, community awareness and protection of the watershed would be our focus while working towards source control proceeded. With the demise of many of the funding sources this work has slowed but continues.
In 2003 a unique partnership was formed; industry, all levels of government, the Pacific Salmon Foundation and the Tsolum River Restoration Society worked together to implement a Passive Wetland Treatment Project. The project was immediately successful in reducing toxic copper levels in he river but all agreed it was a relatively short-term solution.
Since 2004 the partnership has continued to press forward with long-term source control.
At the end of 2007 a plan to cover the site found agreement, a final design document was completed in 2008, the needed $4.5 million dollars in funding has been secured and the partnership is excited to report the project is underway with Quantum Murray taking the lead.We expect work to cover the site will be completed by 2011.
The TRRS now turns its focus to other limiting factors and are mounting a biophysical assessment of the entire watershed, the publication of an updated "State of the Tsolum River Report" and a business plan for the watershed that details our work over the next decade.
See "NEWS" for minesite plans and See "PROJECTS" for an overview of the Biophysical Assessment and Business Plan Project.
Staff
 | Jack Minard - Jack has been the Coordinator for the TRRS since 1998. Email: tsolumriveratshaw.ca Phone: 250.897-4670 |
President
 | Stewart Duncan - Stewart took over the reins after Dave Ferguson stepped down in 2003 Email: fish@connect2learning.com Phone: 250 703-2920 |
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