The historic floodplain and riparian ecosystems of the Slocan and Little Slocan rivers will be inventoried and mapped.
The Regional District of Central Kootenay, which belongs to the Slocan Lake and River Partnership, is inviting qualified consultants to submit proposals.
The RDCK said in a news release that the resulting maps and guidance will provide current information to help government, landowners and residents make better-informed decisions about land and water use along the river.
The mapping will identify the location and condition of riparian ecosystems and provide a common information base to support future planning, decision-making and working with landowners.
The Slocan River is one of the last undammed rivers in the Columbia Basin, and its valley bottom contains rare and threatened ecosystems, the RDCK said.
Mature black cottonwood floodplains, including the provincially red-listed black cottonwood, snowberry and roses ecological community, support a range of species at risk. These riparian areas also help filter water, stabilize riverbanks and provide important connections for wildlife across the valley.
Much of this land is privately held, so the future of the river depends on good information, strong relationships with landowners and a shared commitment to stewardship, the RDCK said.
“The land along the Slocan River is mostly in private hands, so the health of this river has always depended on the people who live beside it,” said Slocan Valley regional director Walter Popoff.
“This mapping will help us see the whole river while still recognizing that each property is part of a larger system. Good information does not replace the care that landowners and neighbours already bring to the river. It strengthens it. It helps people see what they are already stewarding and their place in the river’s story.”
The project is funded through a $100,000 grant approved by the RDCK board in July. It is led collaboratively by the Slocan Lake and River Partnership, which also brings together the Sinixt Confederacy, the Syilx Okanagan Nation Alliance, the Villages of New Denver, Silverton and Slocan, and the provincial government.
The mapping will follow the provincial sensitive ecosystems inventory methodology and update baseline mapping completed by the Slocan River Streamkeepers in 2012. This methodology records which ecosystems are present and their condition. It gives the partnership and its members a shared foundation for conservation, restoration and development decisions, and a starting point for working with landowners, the RDCK said.
The mapping itself does not create new regulations or change how any property can be used.
The request for proposals closes on Oct. 28.
