Studies show that Lake Windermere now has more disturbed shoreline than natural — a situation not seen in any other surveyed lakes in British Columbia's (BC) Columbia Basin. Read the full blog at: https://wildsight.ca/2025/09/16/shaping-water-stewardship/

This week is National Forest Week in Canada. B.C. harbours some of the world's most ancient and vibrant forests — home to species not found anywhere else on the planet. We'd love to celebrate by seeing some of your favourite forest images, or hearing about your favourite forest memories.

Thank you, Andrea, for taking action. You can send your own message for the ITR using Wildsight's online letter writing tool — craft your own, like Andrea's, or send a pre-written letter that we've drafted for you. https://secure.wildsight.ca/ITR

We're currently raising money to keep our environmental education programs running, and a generous donor has stepped up to match every gift given until September 30, up to $5,000! vist.ly/46zs6 📸s by Julie-Anne Davies, Jenny Rae Bateman and Bailey Repp

Old forests are the cornerstone of our forested ecosystems, and BC’s government is failing them. This map highlights how much of the EK landscape is in a very high risk scenario, with all areas in red containing less than 10% old forests. 📸 by Bailey Repp

Excerpts shared with permission from another of the more than 900 messages that have been sent so far calling for the protection of the old and ancient forests being cut down in B.C.'s Inland Temperate Rainforest. Send your own here: https://secure.wildsight.ca/ITR 📸 by Bailey Repp

Excerpts from a message by Spence, a Kimberley resident who spent almost a decade working in the forestry sector after graduating from Castlegar's Forestry Technologist program. Spence's letter is one of over 900 that have been sent so far. Send your own here: https://secure.wildsight.ca/ITR

The International Elk-Kootenay Watershed Study Board's interim report is live and open for public comment until September 14. This report outlines the efforts made to date, and the plan for moving forward. Provide your feedback here: vist.ly/44wuw

The controversial Record Ridge magnesium mine proposed for just outside Rossland, B.C., might not be getting an environmental review. But we're not done yet trying to protect the endangered mountain holly fern. Read more: wildsight.ca/2025/08/27/b...

Last month, B.C. decided the proposed Zincton ski resort, in the central Selkirks, wouldn't get an environmental assessment. While it's not a green light for 5,500-hectare development, it'll definitely speed things up. So what's the process from here? Read more: vist.ly/44mxf

Our YCC crew worked with the Great Divide Trail Association to help them with a 3 year project to redirect the trail route along Mt. Erris. We cut brush, felled trees, set tread, and connected with the wonderful volunteers that care for this landscape.

Watershed Matters is a new WIldsight program, developed in collaboration with Living Lakes Canada, that's connecting high school students with the complexities of watershed management 💧 Read more: vist.ly/43dtp 📸 Jenny Rae Bateman

This year’s five-day Go Wild! trip drew 11 participants from across the Kootenays to hike in the central Purcell's Jumbo Valley near Invermere, BC.

Did you miss our webinar on the old-growth logging currently happening north of Revelstoke and its impacts on caribou earlier this month? The full recording is now up on our website for your viewing pleasure! Watch the webinar via the link below: vist.ly/3zrkp

In southwestern Alberta, one 29-hectare wetland downstream of an abandoned coal mine has been removing dangerous pollution from the water for decades. It begs the question: could wetlands help treat the Elk Valley's own selenium pollution problem? 📸 by Siobhan Williams vist.ly/3zk7b

Join our team — from anywhere in Canada! We're looking for a Communications & Fundraising Technology Specialist to help us maintain and improve our database and WordPress websites, and make data-driven decisions. https://wildsight.ca/2025/07/24/techjob/

HELP OUR LOCAL BADGERS: If you come across a badger this summer (dead or alive) report it at vist.ly/3z9s8 ! Passable culverts will be placed where badgers are most likely to be killed by vehicles, but public input is needed to determine the best places to install them in B.C.'s interior.

Little has changed at the heart of the revised project description for an expansion to Elk Valley Resources' Fording River coal mine, which is already the largest coal mine in B.C. More details: vist.ly/3z7g7 📸s by Siobhan Williams.

Over the past month, our Youth Climate Corps West Kootnay crew has been helping out with planting and maintenance at the Monarch Way Station in Rosemont, created by the @kootenaynativeplants to support monarch butterflies on their incredible migration journey.

Wildsight's Reanne, Harvey recently witnessed old-growth logging in person for the first time, and she found it hit home on a different level. In her most recent blog, Reanne reflects on what she saw, and how, in 2025, this is still permitted to happen. vist.ly/3yxg9

Thank you to the Sinixt Confederacy for welcoming the West Kootenay Youth Climate Corps to help strip bark for tipi poles in Kp̓iƛ̓l̓s (Castlegar). It was a day of satisfying pulls and hard work, and as always, it was a pleasure to work alongside and learn from these incredible people.

Step out of your routine and into an immersive learning opportunity this fall with our first-ever public field tour to explore the Columbia River watershed. 🍁 Learn. Reflect. Connect. 🗓️ Early bird registration extended to July 31 🔗 Register today: https://vist.ly/3n8x7ji 📸: David Moskowitz

The West Kootenay Youth Climate crew spent a week getting their hands dirty and their minds inspired at four incredible farms in Creston. They got to learn from local farmers leading the way in sustainable and innovative practices, while lending support to these passionate and inspirational folks.

Our East and West Kootenay Youth Climate Corps crews had mounds of fun working together recently on a hugelkultur project for the Kimberley Community Garden. Hugelkultur beds require less frequent watering and low maintenance efforts that avoid soil disturbance.

Tomorrow, 6-8pm MT! Join the International Joint Commission’s Elk-Kootenai/y Watershed Study Board for a webinar in which they’ll listen to public concerns about water pollution leaching into waterways from Elk Valley Resources' mines. Register: vist.ly/3n8s5nx 📸 Alec Underwood / EcoFlight

Both our Youth Climate Corps teams came together to learn essential water monitoring skills in the East Kootenay recently! Thanks to the guidance from @livinglakescanada, our crews are now trained in water quality and quantity assessments, as well as biomonitoring techniques.

For her lifetime of work in the field of ecology, Wildsight recognized Dr. Suzanne Bayley with the 2025 Ellen Zimmerman Award. 🌟 Read the story: vist.ly/3n8kih8

Join Wildsight Conservation Specialist Eddie Petryshen and Wildsight Revelstoke’s Reanne Harvey to learn about the old growth logging still occurring north of Revelstoke — and explore what it means for some of the region’s last remaining caribou. Register: vist.ly/3n8htcz

Walk the land where stories unfold this fall. Join Wildsight's immersive field tour as we connect the dots between ecology, history, politics through the past, present and future of the Columbia River watershed. Field tours are running in Revelstoke and Castlegar: vist.ly/3n8f9c8

The East and West Kootenay Youth Climate Corps crews joined forces to tackle a project in Creston's Goat Mountain. They spent hours cutting, piling, chipping and burning woody debris. As a bonus, the chipped material was then used by local farms. vist.ly/3n87fkr

Our Youth Climate Corps crew picked up right were last year's crew finished in Kimberley's Lois Creek, working to maintain the native species like Thimbleberry, Pearly everlasting and Larch trees planted by last season's YCC team.

This September, camp in the heart of the watershed, connect with a diverse group of curious citizens to learn about the past, present and future of this region. This fall, slow down. Dig deep. Join an unforgettable journey through one North America's most important landscapes. vist.ly/3n7mmb8

One of Faro Burgoyne's core memories is when he and group of peers were told by an elder they had the responsibility to carry on their people’s culture and traditions, and to take care of the land. Read his story: vist.ly/3n7ac7t Photo: Pat Morrow

Mother nature - flying the OG rainbow flag and showing us that diversity makes for a richer, more interesting world 🏳️‍🌈 Happy #PrideMonth everyone.

With support from @loki.tree, our Youth Climate Corps teams recently completed a surface fuel reduction project in the @crestoncommunityforest to support wildfire risk mitigation efforts and community safety.

When you first set eyes on Kimberley artist Sam Millard’s vibrant painting of the Elk Valley, it looks to be one of joy. But peer more closely, and you’ll realize there’s more to it than initially meets the eye. vist.ly/3n67yv7

DYK that BC is home to half of the world’s mountain goats? Many of them live in the southern Rockies, Purcells and Selkirks, but the degradation and fragmentation of these places threatens their future. Help protect the wild that mountain goats depend on. ⛰️🐐 secure.wildsight.ca/civicrm/cont...

While non motorized recreation on the water is a great way to connect with nature in a low-impact way, that many users can still leave a heavy footprint on the landscape. In a 7-km stretch of the Columbia River, more than 52,000 users were counted over a five-year study! vist.ly/3n63b9k

The East and West Kootenay Youth Climate Corps teams came together in Creston to complete training to equip the crew with skills for a wildfire risk reduction project, as well as skills for future environmental careers!

May 30 is the last day to ask B.C. to implement better standards for water quality in the Elk Valley. Read our blog for key messages to include in your email, then take action to safeguard the future of the Elk Valley's aquatic life. vist.ly/3n5j36y

It’ll come as little surprise to locals that across the Kootenay-Columbia region, snowpacks are below normal again for this time of year. On top of that, the snowpack is melting almost twice as fast as normal province-wide. So what does this mean for the summer ahead? wildsight.ca/2025/05/20/w...

Last week, Wildsight adding its voice to the chorus of outrage at the BC government’s Bill 14, the Renewable Energy Projects (Streamlined Permitting) Act, and Bill 15, the Infrastructure Projects Act. Read our full statement on our website: vist.ly/3n5ejvf

Revelstoke area — come join Wildsight for a fun 5km run and visit some rare stands of ancient Inland Temperate Rainforest! Register at https://wildsight.ca/events/old-growth-run-revelstoke/

Connect with other teachers, spend time in nature and take your learning to a whole new level with Wildsight’s Teach the Columbia field course. Early bird registration closes June 23. Learn more: vist.ly/3n55rrk

🐢🐢Happy World Turtle Day! 🐢🐢We’d like to celebrate by sharing some important work being done by community groups who are protecting turtles locally. Visit vist.ly/3n5377d. You can also help support by donating to TCR via Wildsight Revelstoke. Photos by Courtney Celley

Protecting biodiversity is at the heart of what we do at Wildsight. From rare lichens in the Inland Temperate Rainforest to endangered grassland ecosystems in the Elk Valley, we fight to retain as much biodiversity as we possibly can. Happy International Day for Biological Diversity.

BC is currently seeking public input on their ‘Elk Valley Water Quality Plan‘, which will outline acceptable levels of selenium, and how contaminants from the region’s mines should be mitigated. Email [email protected] before May 30. More info here: vist.ly/3n4w4ig

In an email to Wildsight, BCTS committed to no new development in core caribou habitat (that is, habitat that's been identified as essential to a herd's survival) in the Revelstoke-Shuswap area. This win will help safeguard the future of the Columbia North caribou herd.

This year's Youth Climate Corps in both the East and West Kootenay has begun! To start off their season, the West Kootenay Youth Climate Corps installed an interpretive sign at the Salmo Ski Hill to highlight the wildfire risk reduction project completed by last year’s crew. vist.ly/3n4nkk7

Students from a Cranbrook school got up close and personal with the world of carnivores and omnivores in their recent Wildsight Classroom with Outdoors trip. Want to learn more about the resources this class was using? Join our free workshop. 📸: Jenny Rae Bateman vist.ly/3n4eh5q