Healthy lands and waters – the foundation for a healthy community.
We are pleased to announce the publication of our latest newsletter! Take a look at all our latest projects and test your knowledge with fun and games from Westshore Nature Kids!
In May of 2024, BC Parks Foundation, in collaboration with the Metchosin Foundation, announced the creation of a nature reserve in the heart of the Bilston Creek watershed. This newly protected land includes dry Coastal Douglas-fir forest and associated ecosystems.
“This is a story about natural spaces and wildlife that are facing big odds, and the great people that are saving them,” says Andy Day, CEO of BC Parks Foundation. “I love this project because it shows that if you set your mind to making a direct positive impact, you can create a fantastic legacy for people and animals now and far in the future.” .
Both organizations worked with partners and the landowner family to secure the 32-acre parcel. About two-thirds of the Bilston Creek watershed is situated in Metchosin, a rural municipality just west of Victoria BC, known for its forests and farms.
“We are pleased to see this nature reserve become a reality for Metchosin and recognize its contribution to ecosystem stewardship in our broader region,” says Metchosin’s mayor Marie-Térèse Little. “Metchosin is well known for nature so it’s wonderful to know that this special property will enjoy enduring protection. I offer my thanks and congratulations to all parties involved.”.
BC’s dry Coastal Douglas-fir ecosystem is highly endangered due to ongoing development and urbanization. The newly protected land is habitat for keystone mammal species like bears, cougars and wolves as well as species at risk, such as sharp-tailed snakes. The property includes wetlands, mature forest and upland manzanita scrub.
Says Valerie Jaeger, president of the Metchosin Foundation, “The Metchosin Foundation has worked for years to foster education and community support for wilderness in Metchosin. The purchase of this property in the heart of the Bilston Creek watershed, with its ponds, wetlands, and Coastal Douglas-fir forest, makes our hearts sing. Protecting ecosystems from hilltop headwaters to the seashore at Witty’s Lagoon is the goal of the Metchosin Foundation’s Bilston Conservation Corridor project. We hope this nature reserve is the first in a series of conservation outcomes for the Bilston Creek watershed in Victoria’s Westshore region.”
Protection was made possible through partnership between the BC Parks Foundation and the Metchosin Foundation, with support from Wilson 5 Foundation, the Victoria Foundation and private donors. This partnership holds promise for similar reserves in the future, because it is based on a mechanism that makes it easier for the owners of sensitive and biodiverse ecosystems to create a conservation outcome for their property.
We are pleased to release the 2023 edition of the Metchosin Foundation newsletter, containing updates on our many activities over the past year and ongoing projects. Please download and share!
On Feb 24 an important interim milestone (a “Standstill Agreement”) was reached regarding a proposed Indigenous Protected Area at Mary Hill.
We are very fortunate in Metchosin to have relatively dark night skies. People from around the CRD come here to take advantage of this increasingly rare situation (especially so close to an urban area). The Royal Astronomical Society of Canada’s star parties, hosted on the Metchosin Municipal grounds, have been very popular over the years as a way members of the public can have a chance to peek through a telescope at distant celestial objects.
One notable recent celestial event that many Metchosinites witnessed was The Great Conjunction of Jupiter and Saturn in December 2020, which was followed by the addition of Mercury to make it a triple conjunction on January 7. In March we will see the moon make conjunctions with Jupiter (March 9th), then Saturn (March 10), and finally Mars (March 19). On April 21-22 we will have the Lyrid meteor shower, an annual event that has been witnessed by humans for at least 2,700 years, produced when the Earth passes through the tail of the comet C/1861 G1 Thatcher.
Clear, dark skies are essential to good star gazing – a source of wonder and enjoyment for many. Darkness in general is essential to human health, as well as that for wildlife and ecosystems.
For humans, researchers have shown that darkness helps our creativity and mood. Too much artificial light at night, specifically during our “circadian trough” between midnight to 6am, over the long term is harmful to us, and is even considered a probable carcinogen. It can lead to higher incidences of diabetes, cardiovascular problems, depression, substance abuse, obesity, breast cancer and prostate cancer (melatonin production in the body is believed to help ward off these cancers, which is disrupted by artificial light at night).
As for nature, the impacts of light pollution were recently surveyed in a meta-analysis (a study that compiles the state-of-the-art in scientific knowledge on a subject) by the University of Exeter, which showed that activity patterns, breeding cycles, vulnerability to predators, and hormone levels are being affected across a broad range of species. The effects were found everywhere – among microbes, invertebrates, animals and plants. This manifests as reduced pollination by insects, insect deaths on lamps, and trees budding earlier in spring, to name just a few known ways that artificial light disrupts nature.
The ever-growing urban footprint of the CRD is rapidly reducing where dark night skies can be enjoyed in the region. This is not only a shame for people who are deprived of this fascinating experience, but it is a threat to our local flora and fauna. Light pollution is a growing problem, but fortunately one that we have easy solutions for. Limiting urban sprawl is one, for which Metchosin has done a great job thus far. Another is to limit the amount of light that is able to shine in directions it’s not needed. This means shades over lanterns intended for lighting roads, parking lots, and sidewalks, reducing light and energy wasted shining skyward. Some municipalities have bylaws requiring this. Limiting outdoor lighting in residential settings is also important, particularly for the localised effect it has on rural and urban wildlife. Turning off non-essential lights (or using motion sensors if security is your concern) goes a long way to doing your part to reduce the harmful effects of light pollution to both your neighbours and nature.
Like our parks, trails, forests and beaches, Metchosin’s dark night skies are a special part of our community’s natural capital. They allow us to step beyond our nighttime doorways and appreciate celestial phenomena that are timeless – and increasingly difficult to experience elsewhere.
To learn more about this subject, the TEDx talk Why We Need Darkness by Paul Bogard is very informative, and this brochure published by the Royal Astronomical Society of Canada has practical tips on reducing light pollution.
April 5 – 12 is International Dark Sky Week. Take some moments to enjoy our precious dark skies in these fine clear spring nights.