Newspaper Special Interest Articles

A variety of topics have been written by Society members to raise interest and awareness through a series of bi-weekly articles that appear in the FSJ Alaska Highway News. 

These articles can be found following their publishing by clicking
here.










































Youth Field Session on Water Quality/Watershed Stewardship

Young minds connecting to with nature - learning about watersheds and the importance of keeping our streams and rivers healthy.  On a cool but sunny morning, Allan Blair and Bruce Kosugi shared their passion for watershed stewardship with 2 youth from West Moberly First Nations.  A highlight of the session was the hands-on experience with water quality testing including temperature, flow, oxygen and turbidy measurements on Cache Creek near Fort St John, BC.

This workshop was held in conjunction with the Keepers of the Water II - Keeping the Peace conference.







2007 PRRD Lakeshore Development Guidelines Awareness Presentation

Lakeshore residents and developers have a valuable guideline from the Peace River Regional District for sensible planning and developing property around the lake and close to streams.  A powerpoint presentation was developed by the Society to help highlight some of key considerations.




Lakeshore Development Guidlines - A Primer (Slide presentation)



PRRD Lakeshore Development Guidelines





Erosion Management Workshops
Several workshops have been held for community members to discuss issues of disappearing shorelines.  Fine grained soils in the Charlie Lake area are subject to erosion by water action.  A recent workshop included a virtual tour of Charlie Lake issues and shoreline works.  Speakers from the Ministry of Environment, Nilex and the Society talked about regulations governing shoreline protection along with options for stablization.  These options included bioengineering solutions using natural vegetation and engineering solutions using manufatured materials.

When it comes to bioengineering, there is no better person than David Polster.  David is a plant ecologist who has pioneered the use of bioengineering in riparian areas with steep slopes in British Columbia.  David spoke to members of the Society and residents of the community on several occasions to provide tools and techniques to use local plants in combatting erosion on our shorelines. 





On the Living Edge Workshops
Nationally recognized author and environmental educator, Clive Callaway was invited to speak to residents of Charlie Lake about lakeside living.  Clive has extensive experience, often learning the hard way, of dealing with issues that may people face when first moving out to the lake.  Using many examples, Clive demonstrated that many issues could be resolved or avoided by taking a natural approach.  As an example, the proper use of natural vegetation could save time and money as well as protect your shoreline.  Clive and his partner, Sarah Kipp, have been recognized for their work with the Living  by Water Project with a Canadian Environmental Award.




Community Education and Stewardship Project
The 2001 Community Education and Stewardship Project was sponsored by the Charlie Lake Conservation Society, Adlard Environmental, and Department of Fisheries and Oceans, in co-operation with BC Parks, and the Peace River Watershed Council. The project was designed to educate the public about the environmental problems that the Charlie Lake watershed is facing. The content included description of some problems, analysis of their causes and consideration of actions to help prevent them. Although some of the content was specific to Charlie Lake much of it is applicable to lake ecosystems in general.

The program was designed for people of all ages and was presented during, weekend presentations at Charlie Lake,and Beatton Provincial Parks, and Rotary Park Campground. Presentations were aimed at families and weekend campers and focussed mainly on everyday actions that people can take to help keep the lake healthy. In the fall workshops were offered, which dealt with industrial subjects related to the ecosystem. The Department of Fisheries and Oceans agreed to send limnologist, Todd French, who has extensive experience in the Charlie Lake watershed to participate in the workshops. Brochures and handouts were provided.