No sooner had the last vehicle crossed the old bridge than the former inhabitants of its western approach moved back in.
Big mammals like the beaver, hoary marmot and muskrat; smaller ones like the shrew, vole, mole, chipmunk, bush rat, and the more secretive mink and short-tailed weasel are all making their homes adjacent to Kelowna’s new William R. Bennett Bridge, along the shoreline that was the approach to the old floating bridge.
Environmental monitor for the project, Paul Christie, with Talisman Land Resource Consultants Inc., admits that while crews from Emil Anderson Construction and Sierra Landscaping have completed moving earth and planting now, how it will all turn out in the end is up to Mother Nature.
Christie envisions the more than a hectare of wildlife habitat constructed along the south side of the new bridge, at the west end, as a series of wetlands, some seasonal.
They will provide diverse habitat along the lakeshore for a wide variety of birds and animals, including grebes, loons and dabbling ducks; turtles, frogs, toads, salamanders and garter snakes.
They’ve also installed a couple of platforms suitable for osprey, and snags for woodpeckers and sapsuckers, bald eagles and other raptors.
Wetland plants such as cattails, marsh grasses and hard stem bulrushes are expected to attract the red-winged blackbirds.
This is intended solely as wildlife habitat, from which people are fenced out, but Christie says those walking along the new bridge will have a “bird’s eye” view of all the creatures who decide to make the restored wetland home.
Its restoration is required by the federal Department of Fisheries and Oceans, to help mitigate the environmental footprint left by construction of the new bridge.
More than 7,000 shrubs native to the Okanagan have been planted, including fescues, wheatgrass, Oregon grape, sumac, red osier and willows.
Although temporary, irrigation has been installed but it will only be used until the plants are established.
The new storm water system for the west causeway has been routed through two large man holes with separators which remove oily products and coarse sand from the runoff before emptying into a newly constructed channel.
It runs into the western-most wetland cell which will serve as a bio-filtration pond before the storm run-off enters the lake, explained Christie.
Large boulders and woody debris have been strewn throughout the habitat to provide diversity and offer protection to amphibians, reptiles, small mammals and birds.
Christie would like to also raise the funds to add some more “extras,” such as bat houses and swallow houses to help control insects.
The other end of the old bridge is a bit of a different situation, although Christie says they will be restoring another hectare of riparian habitat along Mill Creek between Harvey Avenue and the old bridge abutment.
Because it’s adjacent to the new footpath and the tunnel under the bridge, people walking by or cycling will be able to view this habitat as it develops.
It’s not intended for people, but they won’t be fenced out as on the other side.
Christie is even exploring the possibility of periodically training one of the bridge cams on the osprey nesting platforms at the west end wetland, should a family of hawks or eagles choose to start a family there in the next few years.
*************************************************************
No comments:
Post a Comment