Funded Projects

Comox Valley Project Watershed Society (CVPWS) is partnering with the K’ómoks First Nation (KFN) to restore the ecological and cultural values of a former industrial sawmill site in the heart of the Comox Estuary to its pre-development state, while strengthening partnerships and land repatriation. The site was once a tidally-influenced forested riparian area adjacent to the Courtenay River that provided habitat resources for fish and wildlife and was culturally significant to the KFN peoples, but was damaged by a sawmill that operated on the area from 1949 to 2006. The project objectives are to complete the restoration and monitor effectiveness of restoration activities to date. This will include measuring vegetation success, health and diversity, and comparing habitat usage by wildlife within the restoration site to a local reference site (Hollyhock Flats) to gauge restoration success and any future actions needed. Once restoration is complete, land will be rematriated to KFN in perpetuity.

“We’re so grateful for the leadership and partnership of K’ómoks First Nation and the City of Courtenay as we progress through the final stages of this historic project. Celebrating the success of the work so centered in climate and community resilience with our community, donors, volunteers and supporters is something we can all be proud of.”
– Caitlin Pierzchalski, Executive Director, Comox Valley Project Watershed Society

“K’ómoks peoples have lived in villages on both sides of the estuary since time immemorial. We have harvested and managed salmon using our fish trap complex here for millennia. We look forward to the full remediation of this former mill site, and the repatriation of the lands, restoring crucial Chinook habitat and our rightful relationship.”
– Nicole Rempel, K’ómoks First Nation Chief