Salmon-Safe certificate presentation photo (Sept 26): Tim Croyle (Chief Operating Officer, BC Transit), Theresa Fresco (Regional Manager, Fraser Basin Council), Aaron Lamb (Chief Sustainability Officer, BC Transit), David Marshall (CEO, Fraser Basin Council) and Melissa Zimmerman (People & Culture Vice President, BC Transit).

September 2022, Updated February 2023

In September 2022 Salmon-Safe BC announced its first certified site on Vancouver Island — BC Transit's new HandyDART site in View Royal. With a salmon-bearing stream running along the perimeter of the site, BC Transit's project team took important measures to preserve and restore the health of the wild salmon habitat and the Craigflower Creek watershed overall. The site design incorporates nine rain gardens to capture and treat stormwater on site before releasing it back into the environment. Restoration of the stream provided an acre of additional instream and riparian habitat. Read about it! Media Release and Backgrounder

In February 2023, young salmon and trout made themselves at home on the site. Biologists counted 27 fish (20 juvenile Coho salmon and seven cutthroat trout) in the newly-constructed stream that connects with nearby salmon-bearing Craigflower Creek. Well done, all!

Learn more about the program below and on the Salmon-Safe BC website.

YVR Recertification

FBC CEO David Marshall (centre left) presents Vancouver International Airport President and CEO Tamara Vrooman with a certificate to recognize the Salmon-Safe recertification of YVR in 2022. Joining the event were Morgan Guerin, Senior Marine Planning Specialist of Musqueam First Nation (right), and Andrea McDonald, FBC Program Coordinator, GVSS region. Photo: YVR

April 22, 2023

In 2023 the Vancouver International Airport (YVR) was recertified by FBC’s Salmon-Safe BC program to recognize YVR’s ongoing commitment to progressive land and water management practices that benefit Pacific salmon habitat and water quality. YVR was the first airport in North America to achieve Salmon-Safe certification in 2016 and is now the first organization in Canada to be recertified.

YVR has integrated Salmon-Safe principles into its operations, such as by taking steps to reduce harmful pesticides; implement a comprehensive stormwater management plan; reduce site-wide water consumption and ensure zero sediment runoff during future construction activities. YVR’s commitments are important, given its location in a busy and growing metropolitan area at the mouth of the Stó꞉lō or Fraser River — one of the world’s most important salmon-bearing rivers.

The Salmon-Safe BC recertification assessment was undertaken by a team that included an Indigenous knowledge holder from Musqueam First Nation on whose traditional territories the airport is located. Including Indigenous ways of knowing in the Salmon-Safe process offers essential insights in the assessment and brings together knowledge streams in way that reinforces a commitment to stewardship and to reconciliation.

There is opportunity for many other BC businesses, industries, communities and organizations to seek Salmon-Safe certification for sites they manage. This includes offices, retail centres, parks and campuses in urban and suburban areas. Check out the YVR blog and video.

About Salmon-Safe BC

The Salmon-Safe program was introduced in British Columbia in 2011 by the Fraser Basin Council and Pacific Salmon Foundation in collaboration with Salmon Safe in the United States. Since 2018 FBC has been the sole program delivery body for Salmon-Safe BC. There are three areas in which to seek certification.

Commercial, industrial and residential sites, even those not immediately adjacent to streams, rivers or coastal waters, have long-term cumulative impacts on fish and other aquatic and terrestrial species. Contaminants, for example, can affect groundwater and be transported through storm drains into rivers and marine waters.

Salmon-Safe urban site certification is available to BC municipalities and regional districts, developers and other landowners and property managers in both the private and public sector. The certification can apply to such places as parks and natural areas, college or university campuses, business sites and residential developments in urban, suburban and rural settings. Land with or without watercourses on it can be certified.

Salmon-Safe standards can help landowners and property managers improve urban land management practices by:

• Capturing and infiltrating stormwater on site

• Maintaining a buffer of trees and vegetation along streambanks

• Restoring streams and watercourses that were diverted or buried by previous development

• Increasing the use of permeable surfaces to reduce runoff

• Using integrated pest management techniques to control weeds and pests

• Reducing water use through more efficient irrigation and drought-resistant landscaping

Martin Nielsen of the design firm DIALOG. In February 2021, the Vancouver studio of DIALOG became the first Salmon-Safe accredited firm in Canada, based on its commitment to sustainable design and environmental protection. The Vancouver DIALOG team has developed a number of projects in Metro Vancouver that align with Salmon-Safe BC urban development standards. These include 2150 Keith Drive (an upcoming 10-storey office building in False Creek Flats), a planned six-storey office building in North Vancouver and a new North Shore Wastewater Treatment Plant.

Salmon-Safe firm accreditation is available for design consultants, land developers and construction firms that want to respect key principles of urban watershed stewardship while undertaking work on buildings, streets, parking areas and related infrastructure.

Through thoughtful site planning, implementation of low-impact design solutions, and use of eco-friendly materials, site designers have the opportunity to contribute to the restoration of urban watersheds.

Learn more on the Salmon-Safe site: Firm Accreditation.

Salmon-Safe works with agricultural producers to adopt agricultural practices that better protect water quality and salmon habitat. Erosion and runoff, excessive irrigation, excessive manure and nutrients, pesticide use and lack of vegetation are examples of how farms can negatively impact water quality and habitat for fish and wildlife. Salmon-Safe standards help agricultural producers to better protect stream habitat and water quality by:

• Optimizing water use

• Applying natural methods to control farm pests

• Reducing nutrient runoff

• Controlling erosion

• Maintaining healthy riparian and in-stream habitat conditions

• Protecting wetlands and natural areas

• Promoting plant and wildlife diversity