CVN Facebook Posts
Join the Comox Valley Conservation Community for a day long celebration of the watersheds and waterways that connect us all in the Comox Valley!Learn about restoration and habitat enhancement projects, salmon cycles, drinking water, forests, creeks, wetlands and estuaries – and so much more. Art projects, kids activities, volunteer engagement opportunities, hands on learning and guided walks – all looking out over the beautiful Puntledge River.Comox Valley Nature will be there with our new outreach tent. Come by and say hello, and try our bird identification game. We can also show you why native plants are best for your garden, and how to spot invasive species.Pack a picnic and stay for the day! Saturday Sept 19th from 9 am – 3 pmin Puntledge Park 1111 1st , Courtenay
In her memoir, Pacific Northwest author Caroll Simpson recounts the highs and lows of running a remote fishing lodge on her own following the untimely death of her husband, and of falling in love with the natural world. Simpson tells stories of living in the remote wilderness and managing the lodge, becoming an accidental environmental activist, fending off wild animals, working as an angling guide and finally, fighting off a proposed mining operation and participating in the development of a government land management plan as a spokesperson for the wilderness tourism industry.While Simpson welcomed paying guests at Ookpik Lodge, unwanted house guests included a woodchuck, a pack rat, and martens. Simpson constantly had to watch out for grizzlies, moose, and cougars. Storms and extreme weather also provided fodder for hair-raising tales. All this makes for wonderful storytelling.Caroll’s story is essentially a love story. In an essay for Sierra Club, Simpson wrote: “I developed an immense passion for flora and fauna. Just walking back and forth on the 300’ dock several times a day, I was exposed to the unbelievable beauty of the northern spectrum of water life: the golden eagle soaring above, the osprey and kingfisher diving and coming up with fish for their hatchlings, the muskrats and otters looking for an easy meal, the tireless beaver working into the late evening sunsets. All of these creatures and more expressed their generational ownership of this small piece of the world. In return each was given my utmost respect and admiration…As I listened to the loons at the end of each day and the owl and the wolf in the night, I felt blessed to be witnessing such beauty. “On September 20th, join Comox Valley Nature and Save Our Forests Team for an afternoon of storytelling about this remarkable time spent living on a remote British Columbia lake.The event is being held at the Comox United Church Hall. (250 Beach Drive, Comox) Admission is by donation. Doors open at 2:30; the event begins at 3:00 p.m. There will be time for Q&A after the presentation, as well as books available for purchase. Tea/coffee and cookies - including forest-themed cupcakes - will be available for a donation.Join us, and prepare to fall in love.
🎟️ Get your tickets to the Project Watershed 2026 Keeping It Living Dinner today! projectwatershed.ca/2026-keeping-it-living-dinner/Every ticket holder makes a difference. 💙 🎟️ Get your tickets to our 2026 Keeping It Living Dinner today! projectwatershed.ca/2026-keeping-it-living-dinner/When community and local businesses invest in conservation, our entire ecosystem benefits. Ticket sales directly support habitat restoration, scientific research, and environmental education, while the generosity of our sponsors helps offset event costs, ensuring that more of the funds raised can go directly toward this important work. Thank you to our incredible sponsors and dinner attendees for believing in the power of community-led conservation. Odlum Brown Community and Northwest Hydraulic Consultants, 40 Knots Winery, CNB Together, we're keeping our watersheds living. 🌿 Hope to see you September 12, 5 - 8 pm at 40 KNOTS Winery #KeepingItLiving #ProjectWatershed #CommunitySupport #Conservation #ComoxValley
The City of Courtenay is developing a long-term vision for Bill Moore Park and Dogwood Park to guide future improvements. To help guide these decisions, three initial concepts have been developed, and there is an opportunity for you to offer your input.The latest survey on the City website engagecomoxvalley.ca/bill-moore-and-dogwood-park asks for feedback on three concept plans and specifically which concept you prefer. The three concepts present a range of recreation possibilities and there is room on the survey for your comments.Dogwood Park is a 2.32‑hectare nature park featuring mature forested areas, natural habitat and a small wetland. Only Concept A will maintain the intact forest areas in Dogwood Park. Concepts B and C propose increased recreation in the park including an off leash dog park, disc golf course, pump track (a purpose built track for children’s cycling) and nature play areas. While the planners may say that no trees or few trees will be taken down to accommodate this, the under-story will not survive this level of trampling and fragmentation. The trees as well as all the wildlife who now call that area home will disappear over time. For those of us who value this forest, Concept A is the only option that makes sense.Dogwood Park is one of the few islands of green for many, many blocks. It provides habitat for wildlife, shade, retains water and acts as a carbon sink. On the architect's base plan of current conditions it is now characterized as an "underutilized space". The City has heard from sports enthusiasts but not nature lovers. Let them know why you value an intact forest and your connection to it. The survey is open until Sept 15.
The Canadian Coalition for Invasive Plant Regulation (CCIPR) wants the federal government to establish a regulatory body for the horticultural industry and create a national database identifying invasive plants and their risks in different regions. "Even if we don't prohibit them, we need to let the public know when there is potential harm," said CCIPR co-founder Cathy Kavassalis. "We do this on other products, and we should do it on plants too. It's just common sense."In July, Nanaimo council passed a motion to pursue a bylaw amendment restricting the sale of plants on a list maintained by the Invasive Species Council of B.C. A week later, Surrey moved to ban sales by businesses including nurseries, large retail chains and florists. Kavassalis said a problem that could be addressed at higher levels of government is being pushed down to municipalities."These are all patchwork solutions that, in some ways, just waste a lot of resources," she said. The CCIPR says a national database could give provinces, territories, retailers and gardeners a shared source of information about which plants pose risks in different regions. Kavassalis also wants invasive plants removed from shelves or clearly labelled.For more on this story visit www.cbc.ca/news/science/invasive-plants-sale-federal-regulation-9.7312362 or see our link in bio
Category Archives: Shoreline and Marine
Herring in the Salish Sea: Webinar Series Feb 22-26
One of the first signs of spring in the Salish Sea is the arrival of spawning herring, and they are almost here! Comox Valley Nature has organized a series of online talks concerning Pacific herring and other fish in the … Continue reading
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Learn about genetic risks of hatchery enhancement for Pacific salmon
Comox Valley Nature is pleased to host a free online lecture by Dr. Carrie Holt. The lecture entitled “Genetic risks of hatchery enhancement for Pacific salmon.” is on Sunday February 21, 2021, 7:00 pm PT and is open to the … Continue reading
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Recording available for shoreline restoration talk
CVN’s guest speaker on January 17 via webinar was Dr. Jason Toft whose topic was Restoration Effectiveness of Living Shorelines in the Salish Sea. The talk was well-attended and stimulated a variety of questions from the audience. If you missed … Continue reading
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Learn about the restoration effectiveness of living shorelines
Comox Valley Nature is pleased to host a free online lecture by Jason Toft. The lecture entitled “Restoration Effectiveness of Living Shorelines in the Salish Sea.” is on Sunday January 17, 2021, 7:00 pm PST and is open to the … Continue reading
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Invasive green crab
From an email by Randal to the Shoreline Group on July 25. This story of the European green crab has been in the news lately because it is sneaking up through the Salish Sea area. According to the DFO: “The … Continue reading
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K’omoks estuary in bloom
From an email by Jocie Brooks to members of the Botany Group on May 26. This week, I’d like to draw attention to our amazing estuary, which is full of fascinating plants, many of which are now in bloom. Experience the … Continue reading
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Weekend shoreline wonders
From an email by Randal Mindel to members of the Shoreline Group on May 13. Last weekend saw the passing of a strong tide cycle that took the group out to lots of nearby beaches. Below are some photos and … Continue reading
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Interesting tides and reads
This post is by Randal Mindell, leader of the CVN Shoreline Group, from an email to members of the group on April 15. Hope this finds you all well. We just passed through a great set of spring tides over … Continue reading
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Shoreline Outing: Trent River Estuary, Sept 26th 2019
The next shoreline outing will be our first estuarine outing. When: 9:30-11:30 am, Thursday, September 26th. (3.5 foot low tide is 10:15) Where: Meet at the the end of Carey Place in Royston What: Surveying the algae, plants and invertebrates … Continue reading
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Shorline Outing: Seal Bay Park August 28th 2019
The last good tide of summer hits next week. Ian and Dianna suggested Seal Bay sensu stricto as a summer destination, so lets give that a try. Where: Seal Bay Park, Seabank Road Entrance (link to google map). Meet at entrance. … Continue reading
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