B.C. family donates land for conservation on Saturna Island

A heron is pictured in the Money Creek Conservation area of Saturna Island, B.C. (the Nature Trust of B.C.)

A new conservation area will be established on Saturna Island in the Southern Gulf Islands region of British Columbia, thanks in large part to a generous family donation to the Nature Trust of British Columbia.

A portion of the land, which measures 58.1 hectares in total, was donated by the Money family, which has owned the land since 1945.

The remainder of the property, all located in the southwest corner of Saturna Island, was purchased with the help of fundraising and donors.

"I hope that there will be other people coming after me that will enjoy rambles over these lands as much as I have throughout my life," said John Money in in a statement.

"I felt that the Nature Trust of British Columbia was the best way to enshrine these lands and keep the trails maintained for future generations to walk through and enjoy," he said.

The Money Creek Conservation area of Saturna Island, B.C. (the Nature Trust of B.C.)

The Nature Trust of British Columbia says the donated land protects the homes of rare and threatened species, and connects different wildlife habitats that span the length of the island.

"Due to increased fragmentation from roadways, agriculture, forest harvesting and development, the connectivity of ecosystems in B.C. is dwindling," said the nature trust in a statement Thursday.

"Conserving this property will increase connectivity within this rare biogeoclimatic zone and expand protected habitat for plants and wildlife that depend on this land, thereby potentially increasing their resilience into the future," said the trust.

LOCATION

The new Money Creek Conservation area sits adjacent to part of the Southern Gulf Islands National Park Reserve, falling in the Coastal Douglas-fir biogeoclimatic zone (CDR zone), the smallest and most at-risk zone in B.C. and is of conservation concern, according to the nature trust.

"The mild, Mediterranean-like climate [of the CDR zone] allows for rich and rare flora and fauna to survive," said the nature trust in a statement Thursday.

"The rain shadow of Vancouver Island and Olympic Mountains creates optimal conditions for multiple rare ecological communities," the trust added.

Additional funding for the purchase of The Money Creek Conservation area was raised in memory of Patrick Oswald and his wife who both passed away recently.

"Patrick Oswald was a uniquely charismatic leader of philanthropy in B.C.," said Jasper Lament, CEO of the Nature Trust of B.C. in the release.

"He loved nature, especially birds. We were fortunate at the Nature Trust to have him on our team for over a decade," said Lament.

This latest purchase of land for the Nature Trust of British Columbia contributes to the 72,000 hectares of wilderness that the trust has acquired in its 50-year history.