Park Rill Creek Restoration and Stewardship Project

2008

$10,662

$6,000

Park Rill Creek originates in the mountains near Twin Lakes and enters the Okanagan River just north of Oliver. A group of landowners whose properties border Park Rill Creek banded together in 1998 to increase the awareness of the important fish and wildlife values of the watercourse. Many of the members of the 'Friends of Park Rill' had noticed the absence of salmon and a significant decrease in the number of rainbow trout over the few years prior to 2008. They also determined that a large beaver dam was posing potential flooding issues to many landowners and noted approximately eight locations along lower Park Rill that had abandoned cars and other deleterious materials. The Friends of Park Rill consulted with biologists from South Okanagan-Similkameen (SOS) Stewardship Program and Ducks Unlimited (DU), the RDOS and the Ministry of Environment and worked together with those agencies on this project. The Park Rill Restoration and Stewardship Projectincluded the installation of a water leveler into the beaver dam and the removal of abandoned vehicles and other debris located in the creek or within the riparian habitat, in concert with a community stewardship initiative. This project helped to restore healthy streamside vegetation and water quality, and reduced the risk of extensive flooding, while building community support for ecological values along lower Park Rill. It also provided a framework for engaging private landowners and developing community clean-up campaigns and stewardship initiatives on priority watercourses in the RDOS.