Lillooet River Watershed Management Planning

• Main Author: Woodruff , Veronica
• Format: Article in Journal/Newspaper
• Language: unknown
• Published: University of Victoria 2011
• Subjects: Fraser River; First Nations
• Online Access: https://journals.uvic.ca/index.php/ecorestoration/article/view/20904

The Lillooet River Watershed is a vast and beautiful place encompassing 602 000 hectares in southwestern British Columbia. As the smallest sub-basin of the Fraser River, with its mountainous nature and coastal weather patterns, the Lillooet-Harrison watershed contributes the second highest flows making it a critical component in the late summer health of the Fraser River System. Despite its size, only about 14000 people consider this area home. Currently, several bodies govern this area, including First Nation, municipal, regional, provincial and federal governments. Often planning initiatives consider political boundaries, but in reality, we do not reside in silo’s and downstream effects come from upstream actions. For a plan to be successful, it must be stakeholder-driven, creating a platform for identifying issues and instilling responsibility for implementing the resulting strategies. However, this kind of planning also needs cooperation from local or regional governments to assist in the plan's facilitation, funding and implementation. The Lillooet River Watershed would be an ideal area to undertake this process given its crucial geographical location and environmental attributes, as well as a demonstrated interest in stakeholder cooperation, as was seen at the initial meeting to discuss this project held in April 21, 2011. Over 50 participants attended from First Nations, industry, government, and non-profit organizations. With stakeholder interest clearly demonstrated, the following steps include pursuing funding options, contacting local and regional governments to gauge their interest in partnering, and maintaining contact between stakeholders within the watershed.