Chrystal Creek Watershed

From Ridgeline to Shoreline

The 26 hectare Chrystal Creek watershed lies at the heart of the Millard Learning Centre.  Contained entirely within the property boundaries, it was historically exploited for timber, agriculture, and pasturage.  Generations of settler occupation reduced what were once native, old-growth forested wetland ecosystems to a series of degraded fields, littered with garbage and dilapidated structures.

Since acquiring the property in 2012, the Galiano Conservancy has embarked on an ambitious program to restore forest and wetland ecosystems throughout the watershed, from ridgeline to shoreline.

Target Species

Restoring forest and wetland ecosystems creates high-quality habitat for numerous species.  Target species for our project include:

  • Northern red-legged frog (Rana aurora):
    This Blue-listed species requires intact native forest and wetland ecosystems to thrive.  We have observed red-legged frogs breeding in newly-constructed wetlands in the watershed within 6 months.
  • Western redcedar | X’pey (Thuja plicata):
    This cultural keystone species expected to decline in our region due to climate change.  We believe that by restoring wetland ecosystems that used to support massive, old-growth western redcedar trees, we can help to ensure their persistence into the future on Galiano Island.
Be a Part of this Project!

Volunteer Opportunities

If you’d like to get involved in helping to restore the Chrystal Creek watershed, the Restoration Team holds weekly volunteer days:

Check out our volunteer opprortunities for more information, and to sign up for our volunteer list.

Volunteer
Project History

The Story So Far

The Cedars for the Next Century project is a decades-long commitment to the recovery of a single watershed.  Click below to learn more about the evolution of the project.

This painting by Sylvie Hawkes is the artist’s rendition of what the Chrystal Creek watershed will look like 100 years in the future.

Learn More
Painting of the Chrystal Creek watershed in 100 years, by Sylvie Hawkes

Media Gallery

The Chrystal Creek watershed project continues to evolve, and so many people have contributed along the way. You can explore this transformation through media.

Video

Cedars for the Next Century – Part 3

This mini-documentary showcases the effort to restore the south branch of the Chrystal Creek watershed through a series of time-lapse and aerial drone videos taken during in November, 2023.

Video

Cedars for the Next Century – Part 2

This mini-documentary showcases the effort to restore the east branch of the Chrystal Creek watershed through a series of before-and-after aerial drone videos.

Video

Cedars for the Next Century – Part 1

This mini-documentary showcases the effort to restore the west branch of the Chrystal Creek watershed through a series of time-lapse videos taken in October, 2021.

Video

Building a Liner Wetland

In October 2020, we transformed a former parking loop into an educational wetland at our Millard Learning Centre. This time-lapse video shows the process from start to finish.

360 Tour

Chrystal Creek watershed virtual tour

Explore the evolution of the Chrystal Creek watershed restoration project through this interactive, time-traveling virtual 360 tour.

360 Tour

Liner wetland construction virtual tour

Explore the creation of our liner wetland at the Millard Learning Centre classroom through this interactive, time-traveling virtual 360 tour.

Thank you!

Funders and Partners

This project is made possible by the contributions of our generous funders and partners.

Rewilding Water and Earth, Inc.

Knowledge Hub

Additional Resources

Explore the following resources to learn more about the Chrystal Creek watershed restoration project.

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