Stream & Shorekeepers

Tseycum has worked with Department of Fisheries and Oceans (DFO) at the Institute of Oceans and Sciences (IOS) over the years to find ways to improve the waters and locate funding in order to do so. After taking a Streamkeeper course in 1998 four of our ladies worked with a team from DFO in Tseycum and at the IOS to restore and enhance streams and do water quality sampling in the Saanich area. They were taught the different species of salmon, trout, insects and other fish that you would see in either a good or bad quality stream. There was work needed in and around the streams, such as, planting different trees needed to reinforce the eroding banks and also place different size rock into the water so that riffles could be redone and/or made. The water quality samples were taken so that we could determine what was polluting each stream and also record the data for future testing and comparison. A few years later the ladies took part in a Shorekeeper program with similar aspects however dealing with saltwater. They studied the plant and wildlife habitat of the beaches and again did sampling and studies to do data collection. This work was a little more detailed as they had to map out the area, work with the tides and document the life within that site. Each animal and habitat was logged, mapped and recorded at IOS so that with each new year we can differentiate between the new and old surveys to compare any loss or growth. These two programs have proven to be insightful and influential as there have been other members that have shown interest and have done their part in what Tseycum is doing to better our community and waters.