A recent initiative by The Land Conservancy of B.C. is creating a wildlife corridor across private land in Upper Clearwater.
Wetlands will be an important part of that corridor and BC Wildlife Federation is seeking public help in mapping those marshes, says federation spokesperson Owni Toma.
A one-day BCWF workshop called Map Our Marshes will take place on Saturday, Sept. 15, 9 a.m. - 1:30 p.m.
The workshop will teach community members the value and classification of wetlands, and will focus on technical GPS field skills in order for participants to learn mapping technology, which can be used in their own environmental projects/endeavors, Toma said.
The main instrument used will be a handheld GPS unit (provided). For the field section, participants will learn how to create tracks and waypoints of the wetland complex surrounding the Wells Gray Research Centre.
After the field session, participants will head into Clearwater to the Wells Gray Inn (pending confirmation) for the classroom component, where they will learn how to upload geographical field data to both GoogleEarth and B.C.’s Community Mapping Network.
In the past, participants have included students (all ages), professionals (such as biologists, ecosystem specialists, politicians/lawyers), local streamkeepers, naturalists, and curious townsfolk - basically anyone interested in environmental conservation.
Participants should bring waders or gumboots if they own them (they are welcome to bring their own GPS units also).
All will be welcome, but there will be a limit of 25 participants, so to ensure a spot, people must register before Sept 10.
More information is available on the BCWF website at www.bcwf.net. To register, email Toma at otoma90@gmail.com.
For more news about The Land Conservancy see page A14.