Property in Avola totalling 7.4 acres was among 26 ecologically significant conservation areas recently acquired by the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) from The Land Conservancy of British Columbia (TLC).
According to a NCC spokesperson, the Avola Creek property is in three separate titles on Diamond Drive and River Drive. It is comprised of undeveloped wetland and adjacent woodland, and contains channels and pools for salmon spawning.
This transfer of lands is part of the TLC's plan to sell many of its properties in order to deal with its debt.
Another North Thompson property owned by TLC, the Clearwater Wetlands and Wildlife Corridor near Wells Gray Park, was not included in the deal with NCC.
According to a TLC spokesperson, the Upper Clearwater land is being transferred to Thompson Rivers University, with the deal expected to be completed by the end of the year.
For more than a year, NCC has worked with The Nature Trust of BC, TLC and others to find a way to ensure the conservation status of TLC's high-priority conservation lands and provide for their long-term stewardship.
Some of the 26 properties will be transferred to The Nature Trust; final details about subsequent transfers are still being worked out.
The Nature Conservancy of Canada is the nation's leading land conservation organization, working to protect our most important natural areas and the species they sustain. Since 1962, NCC and its partners have helped to protect more than 2.7 million acres (over 1.1 million hectares), coast to coast. Over one-third of those acres are in British Columbia.