Salt marsh restoration underway in Boundary Bay
For the last week, a national conservation organization has been working to restore the tidal marsh in Delta's Boundary Bay.
The project, led by Ducks Unlimited Canada, aims to restore the ecosystem by removing many of the logs that have accumulated in the marsh over the years.
Sarah Nathan, project operations manager for Ducks Unlimited's B.C. conservation program, told CTV News most of the logs being removed are "anthropogenic," meaning they were cut by humans, mainly for the forestry industry.
"Over the years, some logs have tended to escape from the log sorts, and because they don't have branches remaining on them or pointy root wads, they roll around, and they can mobilize within the marsh, and they act like rolling pins," Nathan said.
"So, what they end up doing is smothering some really valuable remnant salt marshes that we're trying really hard to take care of."
Large logs – especially those with wide, flat surfaces or root wads – are part of the ecosystem and are being left in Boundary Bay, according to Nathan. It's smaller logs that cause the most trouble.
"(What we're doing) is really just letting the marsh plants grow back, so they are no longer being smothered by a carpet of small pieces of wood," she said.
In addition to serving as a valuable – and increasingly rare – habitat, salt marshes are useful carbon sinks for fighting climate change, Nathan said.
"The main improvement we're really excited about is, in this case, (the plants') ability to sequester their carbon from the atmosphere and store it in the soil," she said.
Ducks Unlimited plans to do some "trial plantings" in the spring in an effort to help the marsh recover, Nathan said. Meanwhile, all the removed wood is being transported to a biofuel facility to be recycled.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Deaths of 4 people on Sask. farm confirmed as murder-suicide
The deaths of four people on a farm near the Saskatchewan village of Neudorf have been confirmed a murder-suicide.
Grandparent scam: London, Ont., senior beats fraudsters not once, but twice
It was a typical Tuesday for Mabel Beharrell, 84, until she got the call that would turn her world upside down. Her teenaged grandson was in trouble and needed her help.
developing Bus plunges off a bridge in South Africa, killing 45 people. An 8-year-old child is only survivor
A bus carrying worshippers headed to an Easter festival plunged off a bridge on a mountain pass and burst into flames in South Africa on Thursday, killing at least 45 people, authorities said.
Calgary bridges remain closed due to ongoing police incident
Calgary police have shut down a number of bridges into and out of the downtown core as officers deal with a distraught individual.
Why some Christians are angry about Trump's 'God Bless the USA' Bible
Former U.S. President Donald Trump is officially selling a copy of the Bible themed to Lee Greenwood’s famous song, 'God Bless the USA.' But the concept of a Bible covered in the American flag has raised concern among religious circles.
George Washington family secrets revealed by DNA from unmarked 19th century graves
Genetic analysis has shed light on a long-standing mystery surrounding the fates of U.S. President George Washington's younger brother Samuel and his kin.
Sunshine list: These were the Ontario public sector's highest earners in 2023
Ontario released its annual sunshine list Thursday afternoon, noting that the largest year-over-year increases were in hospitals, municipalities, and post-secondary sectors.
Kinew, Poilievre meet at Manitoba legislature, discuss each other's priorities
Premier Wab Kinew and federal Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre met at the Manitoba legislature Thursday afternoon.
Biden OKs US$60M in aid after Baltimore bridge collapse as governor warns of 'very long road ahead'
Maryland Gov. Wes Moore warned Thursday of a 'very long road ahead' to recover from the loss of Baltimore's Francis Scott Key Bridge as the Biden administration approved US$60 million in immediate federal aid after the deadly collapse.