A band of volunteers put the finishing touches on a restoration project at Deer Lake Brook on March 21 and 22.
About 15 volunteers came out on Friday and Saturday to plant native species along a stretch of the small waterway that serves as important habitat for many species at Burnaby Lake. The crew also removed invasive blackberry bushes, cleaned up the site and set up a fence to keep dogs and beavers out.
"I think it went really well. It was fun and people had a good time, and we were able to talk to people about the importance of this kind of work," said Ann Green, a volunteer coordinator with the Burnaby Lake Park Association.
The project, which started last summer, was a joint effort between the Burnaby Lake Park Association, the Fraser Valley Conservancy, Fisheries and Ocean Canada and biologists from the Coastal Painted Turtle Project. Deer Lake Brook is the main connecting waterway that flows from Deer Lake into Burnaby Lake. The brook is a habitat for many species, including the endangered Western painted turtle and the Pacific water shrew, the red-legged frog and great blue herons. Chum, pink and coho salmon were also trying to travel through the brook but were blocked by an old weir, which was removed in July with a large excavator. The team then added rocks, large tree trunks and wads of roots to create a more natural flowing brook with basking sites for turtles. Within days, fish and wildlife were spotted using the restored habitat.
The March weekend of work put the finishing touches on the project.
