Voluntary Land Stewardship

Starting this summer, if you have ecologically significant areas on your property, such as Garry Oak meadows, wetlands, riparian zones,  bluffs, species-at-risk habitats, mature forests, pollinator habitats, shorelines, areas neighbouring conservation areas, or parts of your property you want to restore, you can receive free guidance on how to steward your land!

This entails voluntarily pledging to care for your property’s natural habitats and species. Each property is unique, and GCA Staff can help you determine what conservation steps your property may need.

This program provides landowners with helpful resources, tools, and support, by connecting you with experienced staff to support your land stewardship agenda!

Nature Steward Perks

  • Free stewardship consultations with GCA Staff.
  • 10% off GCA tool purchase: Extractagators for invasive species removal.
  • Access to our small tool library – $5/day for rentals.
  • Detailed maps of your property showing ecosystems, soils, hydrology, topography, tree height, species at risk habitat, sensitive habitat, and more!
  • Biennial check in with GCA Staff to help maintain long-term stewardship goals.
  • One day and night of bird and bat acoustic monitoring. If you are interested, GCA staff can set up bird and bat call recorders and interpret the data to see what species are around.
  • Access and help in locating information and educational resources.

Stewardship Checklist

The following activities are recommended conservation strategies that landowners can easily undertake.

  • Removing Invasive Species – Scotch broom, Himalayan blackberry, Spurge laurel, English holly, Tansy Ragwort, and English ivy 
  • Planting Native Plants in suitable habitat
  • Monitoring for Rare plants and animals – look for species at risk
  • Letting natural processes take place – leave dead trees when possible as they are wildlife habitats, and let trees and leaves decompose
  • Creating deer exclosures – to allow young plants to establish themselves
  • Keeping pets from natural areas
  • Avoid using synthetic fertilizers and pesticides
  • Conserving water –  collect and store rainwater, practice efficient irrigation and minimize the use of impervious surfaces such as asphalt and concrete
  • Adding habitat – build bird and bat boxes, bird baths, ponds for amphibians, decaying logs for small mammals and salamanders, and brush or rock piles for reptiles
  • Fire smarting your property – preserve wetlands, thin monoculture forests, increase tree diversity both species and age. 

The Process

  1. Fill out the intake form below.
  2. Review the free mapping tools.
  3. Next, based on the information provided on your intake form, GCA Staff will visit your property to discuss property-specific conservation.
  4. GCA Staff will draft a voluntary agreement specific to your property and create a map outlining the major conservation features.
  5. Landowners approves the voluntary agreement and we will start your conservation adventure together!
  6. Keep in contact with GCA Staff if any questions arise.
  7. GCA Staff commits to check in on the progress and status of your conservation work by reaching out biennially to Nature Steward participants.

Mapping Your Property

By mapping your property, you will gain property-specific information and understand how your home is connected to the broader Galiano landscape.

Maps can provide information on

  1. Soil Type
  2. Hydrology
  3. Property Boundaries
  4. Ecosystem Type
  5. Sensitive Habitat
  6. Tree Elevations

and many other interesting features!

Maps are used to identify how best to manage your properties unique ecological features.

GCA Staff are here to help you interpret these maps and suggest best practices!

How to Use the Mapping Tools

Click the Map Button below to view the Galiano map!

Toggle through the available menu layers (Bottom Right Box) to open feature layers.

You can move around the map to find your property.

Turn on and off layers by clicking the eye on the right hand side of the layer menu. Some layers have multiple categories. To expand a layer click on the (>) button to open, and select a layer.

Clicking on any part of the map will open a display box explaining that areas features. Multiple map layers can be stacked on top of one another, to see all the hidden layers click through the (< or >) buttons at the bottom left of the display pop up.

After your site visit with GCA staff we can create a more detailed map that accounts for property specific information!

 

MAP

Land Owner Form

Tell us about your property and stewardship goals. This forms helps us understand the ecological context of your property, and how we can help you succeed!

Voluntary Nature Steward Program

Name(Required)
Address of the property you are interested in protecting.(Required)
What features are you looking to protect (select all that apply):(Required)
What measures have you taken already (select all that apply):(Required)

Questions

If you have any questions about this program, please don’t hesitate to reach out!

Resources for Success

If you can’t find information on a specific stewardship activity please reach out and we can help.