The federal government is investing $240,373 to help recreational fisheries with two restoration projects aimed at conserving salmon.
The announcement was made by Jati Sidhu, the MP for Mission-Matsqui-Fraser Canyon, on Saturday, Dec. 10. The money will go to two separate projects in Mission and Chilliwack through the recreational fisheries conservation partnerships program (RFCPP) and will be focused on improving floodplain and wetland habitats.
“The government of Canada is proud to support this community-oriented initiative,” Sidhu said in a press release. “[It] returns our precious ecosystems to their natural form and restores fisheries habitat across the country to the benefit of all Canadians.”
Almost $140,000 will be dedicated to improving spawning, off-channel rearing and over-wintering habitat used by chum, chinook and coho salmon in the lower Stave River. It will extend off-channel tidal channels and improve floodplain habitats used by the spawning salmon.
Another $100,599 will go to restoring salmon spawning in the Chilliwack and Vedder River watersheds, including the restoration of habitat areas on Stewart and Salwein Creek as well as the Trestle Channel.
The RFCPP is a six-year, $53 million program that has funded more than 500 projects since 2013, with three previous projects funded under the Fraser Valley Watersheds Coalition (FVWC).