Vancouver, B.C.: The Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation is proud to announce over $8.5 million in funding for 178 fish and wildlife conservation and conservation stewardship projects across B.C. this year, with over $1M allocated to projects in the Lower Mainland.
For over 40 years, the Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation (HCTF) has provided funding for conservation projects throughout B.C. Projects are led by a range of partners, including community groups, rod and gun clubs, non-government environmental organizations, First Nations and Indigenous-led organizations, and the British Columbia government. Since 1981, the HCTF has funded over 3,800 projects, representing an investment of over $232 million in conservation throughout the province.
Among this year’s projects in the Lower Mainland region is a multi-year project co-funded by the Forest Enhancement Society of BC (FESBC), working to protect bats from white-nose syndrome—an aggressive, fatal bat disease caused by a fungus. “Saving bats and their biodiversity is important at an ecosystem scale,” said project leader Cori Lausen. “To protect several species of building-roosting bats is not only important for the ecosystem health but is specifically important in urban and rural areas where high human densities benefit from the insect-eating services of these long-lived — yet slow-reproducing – mammals.”
Steve Kozuki, executive director of FESBC said, “HCTF has some of the best expertise in wildlife biology and habitat management. That’s why FESBC is so pleased to collaborate with HCTF. Together we have improved wildlife habitat on numerous successful projects all around British Columbia. And we will continue to endeavour to assist wildlife to thrive and flourish for generations to come.”
The project is being supported by HCTF and FESBC, with $71,036 in co-funding this year.
“FESBC and HCTF are proud funders of our project leaders as they develop local solutions for our species, habitats, and ecosystems,” said Dan Buffett, CEO of HCTF. “For example, Wildlife Conservation Society Canada’s important work to mitigate the spread of white-nose syndrome in bats; this project brings together the most up-to-date science with local land managers and requires collaboration with an extensive group of partners at the international, national, and local levels.”
Other HCTF-funded projects taking place on the West Coast include:
- $152,001 to capture and tag juvenile White Sturgeon in the Fraser River and select tributaries to improve understanding of the distribution and abundance of this important species.
- $8,120 for the ‘Nature is for Everyone’ program, welcoming those who are under-represented in the environmental restoration movement to get involved and connect with nature.
- $20,000 to support the development of an Indigenous-led conservation and protection project on Sumas Mountain in the traditional territory of the Semá:th people.
- $88,591 to better understand the human-caused impacts on urban coyotes to help reduce human-coyote conflict in urban areas.
- $25,000 to improve citizens’ understanding of pollution sources in the Township of Langley and incentivize improved agricultural land management practices.
Each project funded by HCTF undergoes a multi-level, objective, and technical review process prior to final Board review and decision. HCTF’s Board of Directors ensures that species important to B.C. anglers and hunters are supported but also places a great deal of importance on conserving whole ecosystems, species-at-risk, and investing in environmental education across the province.
The FESBC-HCTF partnership exemplifies how collaborative efforts can lead to significant environmental and community benefits. As the two organizations look toward the future, the lessons learned from this partnership will continue to guide efforts in forest and wildlife habitat management.
To read more about these projects, visit www.hctf.ca.
FESBC would like to gratefully acknowledge the financial support of the Province of British Columbia through the Ministry of Forests.