Comox Valley Naturalists Society

April

Sunday, April 20, 2008
7:00 p.m. at the Florence Filberg Centre
Invasive Plants

The regular monthly meeting of the Comox Valley Naturalists Society will be held April 20, 2008, at 7:00 pm at the Florence Filberg Centre, 411 Anderton Avenue, Courtenay. The featured speaker will be Mrs. W. Tyrrell, coordinator of the Coastal Invasive Plant Committee.

Invasive plants are a serious problem in BC. They often lack natural predators, and thus tend to “run wild”, crowd out native species, and become ecological and/or economic nuisances. Some, such as “Giant Hogweed” (as in the illustration) are toxic. Many of these invasive plants are escapes from home gardens.

If the CVNS had not been actively removing invasive plants from the Courtenay River Estuary, you would be looking at a field of purple loosestrife surrounded by broom and Himalayan blackberry. The CIPC is a non-profit society, which facilitates the effectiveness of invasive plant management in the Georgia Strait region by promoting collaboration and coordination amongst stakeholders and providing education and outreach.

Wendy Tyrrell is the Coordinator for the CIPC, she holds a B Sc in Ecology and has been working in the field of restoration and invasive plant management for more than five years. Wendy will be presenting on the topic of invasive plants in Coastal BC. Her presentation will encompass the status and impacts of invasive plants in coastal BC, activities of the CIPC, best methods for removal of invasive plants, and some gardening alternatives to the commonly available invasive plants. Please come and join us to become better informed about this problem, and how you can help.

There will also be a short presentation by Mr. David Stapley, "The Comox Valley Conservation Strategy”. Mr. Stapley is the facilitator of a working group of local environmental groups and professionals who are promoting a regional conservation strategy for the Comox Valley. One of the key findings of a report released by the Comox Valley Land Trust is the loss and fragmentation of 36% of rare and threatened sensitive ecosystems from 1991-2002.  The proposed Conservation Strategy outlines critical ecological areas that need to be protected or restored for biodiversity and species protection.

Click on a link below to view descriptions of previous guest speakers.