Contributor: Community Mapping Network, Glen L. Porter, Shannon Sigurdson and Sara Muir Owen
Location: Lower Mainland, British Columbia
Land Use: Settlement
Habitat Type: Watercourse/Riparian
Project Timeline: completed in 2002
Highlights
Creation of a Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD) habitat atlas using Sensitive Habitat Inventory and Mapping (SHIM) data that will be publicly available on the Community Mapping Network at www.cmnbc.ca.
Bringing project partners together with funding provided by Fisheries and Oceans Canada, the Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD) is participating in a proactive land use planning initiative through shared mapping products of local and senior governments. This information will be used to publish atlases of habitat information for all the local government areas in the FVRD. Each municipality will have access to this watercourse inventory for land use and operations planning.
Through extensive data sharing, new Sensitive Habitat Inventory and Mapping (SHIM) data for these habitats will be integrated with the existing map data of local, regional and senior governments to produce user-friendly, accurate and up to date maps. The FVRD recognizes a need for mapping work of this scale and atlases as part of its long range planning, to ensure that development is socially, environmentally, and economically healthy. Local governments and communities in the FVRD will be able to provide effective land use planning strategies around watercourses, wetlands and other habitats that require special attention.
Project Objectives
Paper versions of the Fraser Valley Habitat Atlas will be available at public libraries and local government offices within the Fraser Valley Regional District. FVRD municipalities will each have customized versions reflecting their jurisdictional boundaries. These will be available for public review.Although most of the mapping sources will be at a 1:5000 scale, hardcopy versions of this atlas, printed on 11”x17” sheets, will be shown at 1:11,000 to 1:12,000 scale.
The Atlas will also be available in an electronic version, which will be revised to incorporate new information as it becomes available. This will be accessible through the Community Mapping Network Website at (www.cmnbc.ca). The CMN will continue to post the most recent data. Partners, of course, must continue collecting data.
Similar atlas products have been published by Fisheries and Oceans Canada for Squamish and communities on Vancouver Island. These are proven products used extensively by local governments. They have been effective tools for informed land use planning and revising Official Community Plans (OCPs). Squamish is now revising its atlas and the Sunshine Coast Regional District and the Capital Regional District are now building new atlases for their planning needs. Similarly, the BC Conservation Foundation (BCCF) and the SHIM partnership are building on this proven method by providing map products to all local governments in the FVRD.
SHIM data, acquired through community partnerships, will be captured and integrated with the maps of local governments and the FVRD. The habitat atlas will be published in limited numbers as 11”x17” binders at project completion in April, 2002. Watercourse classification will be included in the second edition of habitat atlases for high priority areas and agricultural lands, based on available field data.
All of these data including integrated local government data and new SHIM data about watercourse alignment, fish presence and riparian habitat will be made available to the public via the SHIM website (www.cmnbc.ca) on an ongoing basis, long after the term of this project.
By compiling and integrating existing data, the atlas will provide one of the best and most accessible sources of information for fish-bearing streams, storm water systems, watercourse data, local government contour lines, wildlife inventory, and any ecosystem inventory. However, this project will also improve existing information by using SoftCopy Photogrammetry. A unique software program that allows for 3D viewing and ortho interpretation via a computer monitor, SoftCopy is useful for improving the existing data set. It is being used in parts of the FVRD as a quality assurance tool to redefine misaligned streams and rivers where necessary, and is also being used to collect missing ditches and streams. This new technology offers the advantage of 3D viewing for quality assurance, where the image and the line data are superimposed directly into the stereo image.
A variety of uses may be derived from this Regional Atlas project, including public information and planning processes. Because the users will range from highly trained technical staff to concerned members of the public, there is a need to make this information as user-friendly as possible. Smaller communities without GIS departments will also benefit from easily accessible information.
For planning purposes, local governments and communities in the FVRD will be greatly assisted by these atlases of sensitive habitats, based on best available information. They will help to flag the lands around watercourses and wetlands that require special attention during land use planning and operations planning. Accuracy is important, but it is important also to recognize that the product is intended to be used as a planning tool, not a legal document. Its limitations must be explicitly recognized by the project partners.
Because these mapping products are both user-friendly and easily accessible through the SHIM website, they will be of tremendous benefit to diverse users. This point is especially relevant for smaller communities, which may be best served by the user-friendly format of the website service included as part of this project.
Acknowledgements
Thanks to Ted Van der Gulik from the BC Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Fisheries for his assistance in this project.
This case study is based on the pamphlet: Newsletter # 1: “Habitat Atlas, A partnership towards accessible habitat information for all BC residents” prepared by Diana Hall and published by the FVRD.
This case study was prepared by Glen Porter with assistance from Shannon Sigurdson (FVRD) and Katrina Roger (the Cascade Institute) for the ‘Planning Sustainable Communities Workshop’ sponsored by the Community Mapping Network (www.cmnbc.ca) and the Township of Langley. The workshop, held March 15, 2002, showcased examples of mapping as a tool for sustainable planning.
These examples were compiled in the workshop’s summary document ‘Planning Sustainable Communities’ by Glen Porter of G.L. Porter Consulting with support from Brad Mason (Fisheries and Oceans Canada); Rob Knight (Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection); Gretchen Harlow (Environment Canada); and, Kathleen Moore (Environment Canada). These case studies were later added to the BC Stewardship Centre Case Study Library by Sara Muir Owen with support from Rod Silver (Habitat Conservation Trust Fund).
Contacts
Fraser Valley Regional District
Shannon Sigurdson
8430 Cessna Drive
Chilliwack, BC Canada
V2P 7K4
Email: ssigurdson@fvrd.bc.ca
Partners
Supporting partners include:
- BC Conservation Foundation (BCCF)
- Environment Canada/Canadian Wildlife Service (CWS)
- Fisheries and Oceans Canada (DFO)
- Fraser Valley Regional District (FVRD) and member municipalities
- Fraser Valley Regional Watershed Coalition (FVRWC)
- Ministry of Agriculture, Food & Fisheries (MAFF)
- Urban Salmon Habitat Program (Ministry of Water, Land, and Air Protection)
- Sensitive Habitat Inventory & Mapping Partnership (SHIM)
- University College of the Fraser Valley (UCFV)
For more information about community mapping projects, visit the Community Mapping Network at www.cmnbc.ca