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Killdeer bird to have a nesting place

The North Jubilee Wetland Project has been successful in their application for grant funding.

Alicia Wallace

Rossland News

The North Jubilee Wetland Project has been successful in their application for grant funding under Columbia Basin Trust’s environmental funding program. The funding will provide the financial resources to complete phase one and two of the North Jubilee Wetland Project. The total grants provided to complete a feasibility study and construction is $29,000.

Rossland residents Rachael Roussin and Eva Cameron spearhead the project. Their qualifications and experience are in wetland conservation, landscape design, land stewardship and watershed management.

Phase one is to finalize the feasibility study, which is due to be completed by February this year. It will include a site history, community concerns, design, construction budget, maintenance plan and monitoring indicators. This plan will also include best practices from other wetland restoration projects in the West Kootenays. Both Roussin and Cameron are carrying out the work to complete this feasibility study.

The feasibility study will be presented to the City of Rossland Council in the spring of this year. Upon council’s approval, the project will receive the funding for phase two — the construction of three wetland pools at the northern end of Jubilee Park on Jubilee Street.

Roussin explains that this project has many positive outcomes for both the community and native animal habit. “The wetland will enhance and restore habitat for animals that reside in the area like frogs and birds. Particularly the killdeer bird which nests every spring at Jubilee Park...its nests have been disturbed,” she said.

The vision for this rehabilitation project is to improve the park and make it more useful to the community. This project will not impact on the soccer fields or the community gardens. The drier areas of the park will be designed as useful public space. The park will also serve as an outdoor classroom for students who can study the wetlands and learn about ecosystems.

The site is a pre-existing stream and wetland, which has been drained and managed as a park by the city for over 65 years. The site and is inherently wet, has organic wetland soils. The wetlands will capture rainwater and surface runoff. This will reduce large volumes of runoff in the spring that is directed into storm water drains, saving the taxpayers money. These wetlands slow down water flow and allow for water to absorb into the soils, acting as a natural filter before flowing downstream.

The public is invited to provide input throughout the process. If you would like to provide feedback to the North Jubilee Wetland Project please send it via email to the city’s planner, Stacey Lightbourne at staceylightbourne@rossland.ca.