Gates Creek
Gates Creek Conservation Area (Photo by Fernando Lessa)
Gates Creek is located in the territory of the St'at'imc people, adjacent to N’Quatqua First Nations reserve lands near the town of D'Arcy. This area has a small population but still carries the impact of development and settlement throughout the valley. The Gates Creek Conservation Area provides 130 hectares of protected lands for a wide diversity of wildlife, and safeguards precious freshwater habitats.
Gates Creek sits on a low floodplain that is fed by an underground aquifer. Wetland and riparian areas provide habitat for many rare and important plants, amphibians, birds and mammals. The river that runs through the conservation area supports coho and sockeye salmon, trout, Dolly Varden and mountain whitefish, along with many other types of freshwater-dependent creatures.
In 2024, the Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) began a multi-stage restoration project to restore salmon habitat along the creek. The work aims to enhance rearing habitat, increase the stability of the main creek channel, re-establish the floodplain canopy to shade the stream, and provide more open water wetland area for waterfowl.
This same year, NCC expanded the conservation area by 20 hectares to enhance its resiliency and reach.
This site is one of the few critical linkage areas along a roadway that otherwise fragments two at-risk populations of grizzly bears. Here, bears from the South Chilcotin populations area able to meet and mingle with bears from the Stein Nahatlatch population. Maintaining connectivity between these two grizzly populations is essential for increased genetic diversity and resiliency for both populations.
Gates Creek also provides suitable habitat for 13 other Species at Risk Act-listed species, including olive-sided flycatcher, monarch, western toad, western screech-owl and wolverine.
Partners in Conservation
The Nature Conservancy of Canada (NCC) partnered with the Fish & Wildlife Compensation Program (FWCP) to conserve Gates Creek in 2021 and expand it in 2024. Prior to this partnership, FWCP had provided the funds to purchase the land with the aim of finding a long-term conservation solution for the ecologically important area. NCC was able to step up and assume ownership and long-term management of the conservation area.
FWCP’s Coastal Region contributed to an endowment fund that will enable the long-term stewardship of the conservation area. Additional funding for the conservation and restoration of Gates Creek was provided by the Government of Canada through the Natural Heritage Conservation Program, part of Canada’s Nature Fund, the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service, TELUS Communications, Habitat Conservation Trust Foundation, the Longhedge Foundation and the Pemberton Wildlife Association.
