| Summary: | Ayum Creek drains through a small, highly disturbed estuary in Sooke Basin, B.C. Ayum Creek and its restoration/protection is the focus of many community members, with its lower section and estuary likely becoming a park in the near future. This estuary was reportedly a candidate for restoration, the result of decades of industrial use by the logging industry. Site investigations and interviews with local residents, including First Nations' people, revealed a severely converted estuary, bearing little physical form or functional status of its former self In addition, the immediately adjacent ecosystems of its receiving waters, Cooper Cove, and its inlet stream, lower Ayum Creek, were found to be significantly altered, dysfunctional ecosystems. Seawater flushing and circulation patterns in Cooper Cove have been severely curtailed by the construction of a causeway, turning what was Goodridge Island into Goodridge Peninsula. Lower Ayum Creek has been confined, trained, and channelized, causing downstream effects on the estuary, apart from its own diminished function. The estuary delta itself was diked and dredged for a mill site and log pond respectively. Thus, what was intended to be a restoration plan for a small estuary or part thereof, became an overview of the major, mainly structural, impediments to natural function of three interconnected ecosystems. Remedies to help mitigate impacts of structural change could include breaching in the estuary and of the causeway, and flow (velocity) control of lower Ayum Creek. However, any restoration efforts need to be undertaken with clear objectives and an understanding of the interconnection of the ecosystems in the area, including Sooke Harbour and Basin. As a result of the scale of habitat conversion and impairment, it will take vision, determination, and patience of First Nations peoples, the local users, elected and non-elected officials, and the restorers themselves for these systems to return to a natural condition on a functional level.
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