What’s up at ARMS?
Alouette River Management Society
24959 Alouette Road, Allco Park, Maple Ridge, BC
Tel: 604-467-6401 Fax: 604-467-6478
Website: www.alouetteriver.org Email: [email protected]
Spring & Summer 2013
Inside this issue:
Page 2:
It’s a Bug’s Life
Hummingbirds at the
Rivers Heritage
Centre
Page 3:
Summer Camps Filling
Fast
Spring Break Fun
Page 4:
Allco Fish Hatchery
Open House
Alouette Fish Passage
Initiative
Page 5:
ARMS at Earth Day
Celebrating 20 years
of ARMS & Rivers
Page 6:
Upcoming Events
RBC Day of Service
Father’s Day Fish
Release
Page 7:
Who are ARMS?
Join ARMS
ARMS Staffing Updates
ARMS’ Board of
Directors would like to
officially welcome
Greta BorickCunningham as
Executive Director
after Amanda
Crowston stepped
down in April and is
working in a new role
as Special Projects
Manger. We are
excited to have Greta
on board.
Schools Adopt-A-Stream
In April and May, ARMS was extremely
busy working with Meadowridge
School, the Laity View Scouts and
Alexander
Robinson
Elementary
removing invasive plant species and
planting native BC shrubs and trees. As
part of phase 2 of the Adopt-A-Stream
program, ARMS coordinated with the
schools to remove large areas of
Himalayan blackberry, scotch broom,
and morning glory.
importance
of
recognizing
the
damage invasive plants have on native
shrubs and trees.
In May at
Alexander Robinson
Elementary School, ARMS and UBC
teaching practicum students teamed
up with 400 school children to plant
native trees and shrubs along the
streambed of Cottonwood Creek. This
area has a large infestation of
Himalayan blackberry and some
Japanese knotweed.
Ecosystem
Restoration
Associates
cleared
1100m2
of
Himalayan
blackberry at Meadowridge School
and then in early April, ARMS, with the
help of 400 Pre-K to Grade 6 students,
planted 726 native wetland plants,
shrubs and trees including vine maple,
red huckleberry, salmonberry, skunk
cabbage, sword fern, spruce, and
western red cedar. In May, with the
help of Fraser Regional Corrections
staff, ARMS and 392 children released
700+ coho fry into Latimer Creek.
Parents, teachers and students all had
a fantastic time. ARMS also teamed up
recently with 16 Grade 6 students from
Meadowridge to remove buttercup Phase 2 of the Adopt-A-Stream
and morning glory from the newly program was made possible with
replanted area and to learn the generous funding from Mountain
Equipment Co-op ($5000), RBC Blue
Water Project ($5000), and Vancity
Community Projects ($10,000). ARMS
has been able to offer environmental
stewardship opportunities to over 1200
school children in two months,
connecting students with the local
environment and learning to care for
the health of the streams in Maple
Ridge.
What’s
up at ARMS?
2
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Spring & Summer 2013
Page 2
Education: It’s a Bug’s Life
ARMS is now flying high with
butterflies and bees this spring! This
year ARMS introduced a brand new
‘It’s a Bug’s Life’ program which has
proven to be extremely popular with
teachers and kids. ARMS’ Education
Coordinator, Nicole Driedger, has
been as busy as a bee buzzing
between different schools in the
Ridge Meadows area delivering a
highly entertaining, educational and
fun program to 300 children from preschool, kindergarten and Grades 1, 2,
and 3.
as the butterflies were released
outdoors. We talked about food, what
would vanish if there were no
pollinators, the different flower parts,
and how fruit and seeds are made.
The older children looked at all the
different shapes of flowers and
designed their own flower, with their
favorite shape, color and smell. Then,
based on the fact that pollinators
include insects, hummingbirds and
bats, they were able to design their
own pollinator to suit their flower.
Butterfly bingo was also a very
educational class favourite, as there
are so many different kinds of
butterflies in North America!
Our new “It’s a Bug’s Life” program
was generously made possible with a
$5000 grant from TD Friends of the
Environment, which enabled ARMS to
purchase butterfly larvae, butterfly
homes, mason bee pupa, bee hive
tools and a large assortment of
teaching materials. This program has
proved so popular that many teachers
have been asking about bookings for
The season started off with the 2014 already! To book this program,
contact
Nicole
at
excitement of ARMS receiving its own
[email protected].
hives with honey bees! Our hives
were purchased through Hives for
Humanity, a fantastic new non-profit
which works with different groups to
bring bees and their beauty into
communities as teaching tools and a
way to experience nature close at
hand.
The kids were fascinated watching
the bees as they fed their young and
they learned honeybees don’t like to
sting and aren’t usually grumpy
enough unless provoked. The kids
tried on the bee suits and had their
pictures taken. They received a class
supply of caterpillars and watched
them turn into chrysalis then emerge
as butterflies. The students celebrated
Hummingbirds visit the
Rivers Heritage Centre’s
Wildlife Garden
Every year in the spring,
hummingbirds
swoop
and hum around the
Rivers Heritage Centre.
This year there have
been more than ever!
ARMS staff are always
happy to look out our
windows and see them
flitting about having a
sip on flower nectar and
from new hummingbird
feeders, thanks to the
Maple Ridge Canadian
Tire.
The new feeders are a
welcome addition to our
Wildlife Garden, which
has native and noninvasive
plants
beneficial to many kinds
of wildlife.
What’s up at ARMS?
Spring & Summer 2013
Page
3 3
Summer Camps Filling Fast
This year ARMS is offering three
fantastic camps. Our first July camp is
already booked solid but we have
another
opening
for
Survivor’s
Amazing Race Camp from July 29 to
August 2. During both Survivor’s
Amazing Race weeks, campers will
participate in orienteering, learning
how to use compasses, GPS location
and maps. Geocaching will be a
daily event, along with a special day
of training on junior first aid course by
St John Ambulance. Campers will also
learn different knots and tying
techniques, fort building, weaving
and other basic survival skills. Games
such as the ever-popular Man Hunter,
Amazing Race and Survivor will be
played as well as team building
exercises.
ARMS has also received funding from
Maple Ridge Kiwanis Club to help
local families send their kids to camp.
This is an amazing donation and we
sincerely thank our local Kiwanis
group for providing this support. The
Pacific Salmon Foundation has also
provided $1462 to ARMS to purchase
a school set of geocache GPS units.
These units will be used in our July
camps and other environmental
education activities throughout the
year!
For more information on these
amazing summer camps, please
contact
Nicole
Driedger
at
[email protected].
From August 19-23, ARMS offers a
Nature Camp. Young children from 612 years will get to explore many
aspects of nature. They will learn
about the ocean with a visit from the
Vancouver Aquarium’s Aqua Bus
giving participants a hands-on, upclose look at the sea life on BC’s
coastline. Daily
themes
include:
predators and endangered species of
the Fraser Valley, what lives in our
rivers, and how animals help our
forests.
Spring Break Fun
Spring Break Camp was fantastic!
Monday’s
theme
was
Scent
Sensations and we made scented
candles, grew crystals, soaps and lots
of other neat crafts. It did not rain on
Nature Photography Tuesday and the
imaginative and creative children
found different perspectives with
many
interesting
textures
and
structures. The pictures were printed
and made into scrapbooks to bring
home. Wednesday we had Savvy
Snack day and we learned all about
the importance of making healthy
snacks fun...they were very yummy!
The rockets we built on Thursday were
rather explosive…the kids shot them
about 30 feet in the air! The parents
were so excited (especially the
dads!) that directions had to be
written out to build them at
home. Friday was Fort Building Day.
Huge boxes were used to build and
decorate forts. We had terrific
volunteers
from
Garibaldi
and
Westview Secondary Schools and we
hope to have them back this
summer!
What’s
up at ARMS?
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Spring & Summer 2013
Page 4
Allco Fish Hatchery Open House
On April 30, ARMS and Allco Fish Hatchery hosted
an open house and environmental education day
to thank the Pacific Salmon Foundation for its
continued financial support to the hatchery over
the last 6 years. In total, the Pacific Salmon
Foundation
has
contributed
approximately
$46,000 in funding to ARMS and the Allco Fish
Hatchery for upgrading the hatchery. The
upgrades enable the facility to continue to
operate as a community fish hatchery for all of
Maple Ridge.
and Oceans), Mike Murray (representative for MP
Randy Kamp), Geoff Clayton (ARMS President),
Ernie Daykin (Maple Ridge Mayor) and Maurice
Weistra (Fraser Regional Correctional Centre) with
ARMS
Executive
Director,
Greta
BorickCunningham leading a tour of the facility.
The Maple Ridge Environmental School also
came out and spent the day at the hatchery. 80
children and six teachers had a great time
participating in a fish release, searching for
geocaches in Allco Park, listening to salmon tales
by wondrous storytellers Naomi Steinberg, Woody
F. Morrison, Jr., and Tarek Rahman of the
Vancouver Society of Storytelling and learning
about our local pollinators.
Upgrades were made to the incubation building
and main hatchery building roof, a new generator
and electric river pump were installed, and a
green roof on the hatchery workshop went in. The
open house was attended by Mike Meneer (Vice
President
for
Development,
Marketing,
Communications at Pacific Salmon Foundation),
Dan Cody (BC rep Office of Ministry of Fisheries
Alouette Fish Passage Initiative
In our latest update, BC Hydro’s Fish and Wildlife
Compensation Program has approved funding of
$20,977 to enable ARMS to write a report which
will synthesize all the scientific data that has been
collected over six years including ARMS’ sockeye
salmon enumeration results. This report builds into
a business case that will be presented in 2014 to
the BC Hydro Compensation Board and, if
approved, to the BC Hydro Board for final
approval.
ARMS also presented a slide show to the Mayor
and Council on May 27 for an update on the
Alouette Fish Passage. Geoff Clayton, ARMS
President, Greta Borick-Cunningham, Executive
Director spoke to the District of Maple Ridge
Mayor and Council with ARMS’ Director Ken
Stewart rounding out at the end inviting those
present to see this as an opportunity of a lifetime,
a legacy for the community of Maple Ridge and
beyond.
What’s up at ARMS?
Spring & Summer 2013
Page
5 5
The Earth without
Art is just ‘Eh’!
The sun shone and the
rain stayed away for this
year’s
Maple
Ridge
Earth Day. The theme
this year was eco-arts
and celebrating the
connection
between
the environment and
artistic pursuits.
Local
environmental
groups
paired up with artists to
create
a
fun
and
exciting
event
for
people of all ages.
ARMS had a great time
at the event with our
partner
artist
group,
Stream of Dreams Mural
Society.
Photo: Amber Light Photography
Stream
of
Dreams
creator and artist Louise
Towell took the children
and parents through a
demonstration of how
storm drains work and
why it was important to
keep
our
streams
healthy and clean by
being aware that “all
drains lead to fish
Celebrating 20 Years of ARMS & Rivers
ARMS is busy getting
ready for the annual
Rivers
Day
event
hosted by the Allco
Fish Hatchery.
This
event is now in its 20th
year and we hope to
make it a memorable
celebration
for
everyone! Come out
and
join
in
the
excitement with facepainting, live music,
environmental
exhibitors! Have fun
with your kids at the
trout fishing pond and
enjoy a BBQ lunch
cooked
by
Fraser
Regional Correctional
Centre staff. The event
is free and proudly
funded
by
Maple
Ridge Pitt Meadows
Parks
&
Leisure
Services, BC Hydro,
Fraser
Regional
Correctional
Centre
and ARMS. Keep the
date marked in your
calendars for Sunday,
Sept. 29th from 11 am –
3 pm.
habitat”. Children also
had
a
great
time
painting wooden salmon
to be installed later on
the Allco Fish Hatchery
fence in east Maple
Ridge where ARMS has
its
interpretive
Rivers
Heritage Centre.
Funding was generously
provided by the Maple
Ridge Royal Canadian
Legion to offer this
creative,
educational
opportunity to young
children.
What’s
up at ARMS?
6
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Spring & Summer 2013
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Upcoming Events
June 16 – Father’s Day Fish Release at Maple Ridge Park, 11am-1pm.
June 16 – Stream of Dreams mural installation at Rivers Heritage Centre.
June 19 – Katzie Slough blind channel monitoring.
June 20 - Zhejiang Shaoxing Chinese Delegation hatchery tour.
June 22 – Webster’s Corners Day. ARMS onsite 11am-3pm.
June 24 – Adopt-A-Stream juvenile fry trapping
July 11 – Kanaka Creek Elementary School Carnival. ARMS onsite 5-8:30pm.
July 22-26 – ARMS Survivor’s Amazing Race Summer Eco-camp at Rivers
Heritage Centre. SOLD OUT!
July 27 & 28 – Country Fest Maple Ridge at Albion Fairgrounds. ARMS onsite
10am-6pm.
July 29-August 2 – ARMS Survivor’s Amazing Race Summer Eco-camp at
Rivers Heritage Centre. Book now as spaces are limited!
July 30 – Katzie Slough blind channel monitoring
August 19 to 23 – ARMS Nature Camp at Rivers Heritage Centre. Book now
as spaces are limited!
September 29 – 20th Annual Ridge Meadows Rivers Day at the Allco Fish
Hatchery and Rivers Heritage Centre. Come celebrate ARMS’ 20
year anniversary. 11am-3pm.
RBC Day of Service
A great job from the crew from RBC on their Day of Service
who cleaned up along the Alouette River! Thanks RBC!
Father’s Day Fish
Release
On ARMS’ fourth year
releasing
Chinook
salmon at Maple Ridge
Park on Father’s Day,
we will have a booth
with a craft for children
and coffee for dads
(and moms) courtesy
of Westgate Starbucks.
What’s up at ARMS?
Spring & Summer 2013
Page
7 7
Who are ARMS?
2013-2014
Board of Directors
President:
Geoff Clayton
Vice President:
Liz Hancock
Treasurer:
Doug Stanger
Directors:
Matt Connolly
Zale Hammren
Gerry Miller
Mike Ilaender
John Kelly
Ron MacLean
Cliff Olsen
Deborah Paddon
Cheryl Power
Gavin Roache
Ken Stewart
Staff
Executive Director:
Greta BorickCunningham
Education & Volunteer
Coordinator:
Nicole Driedger
Special Projects
Manager:
Amanda Crowston
“Proactively protecting and improving the Alouette Watershed
and surrounding areas by creating a healthy environment
connecting parks, trail systems, public centres and waterways”
Join the
Alouette River Management Society
If you would like to become a member of ARMS, please
complete the following registration and return it by mail or drop
it off at 24959 Alouette Road, Allco Park, Maple Ridge.
Name: ____________________________________________________
Address: ____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________
Phone: ____________________________________________________
Email: ____________________________________________________
Annual Membership Type:
 Individual - $10
 Corporate - $100
 Yes, I would like a charitable receipt
Area of Interest:
 Rivers Heritage Centre
 Watershed Projects
 Stewardship Issues
 Nature and Wildlife
 Urbanization Issues
 Environmental Education
 Native Plant Nursery
 Habitat Protection
 Fish and Hatchery Projects
 Other: ___________________
Signature: ___________________________________________________
Date: ___________________________________________________