Climate Adaptation Research Lab (formerly The Mt Maxwell Watershed Project)
In 2021 Transition Salt Spring secured $100,000 in federal funding and other support to initiate this groundbreaking research around fire risk intervention and resilience in the Maxwell Creek Watershed. This watershed project was chosen because of its importance in providing water to 5,500 residents of Salt Spring Island, and the existing fire risk to farms, homes, and wildlife habitat.
The objective of the project is to develop a better understanding of the status and current condition of the forests and local hydrology around the lake, notably, the potential for fire and the spread of fire, and to develop a strategy to reduce these risks.
In just two years, the Maxwell Creek Watershed Project has evolved into the Climate Adaptation Research Lab (CARL), a collaboration between North Salt Spring Waterworks and Transition Salt Spring to build resilience in the natural systems our community depends on. As of September 2023, CARL has begun a five-year research program to identify methods for fuel management (fire risk reduction) and resilience to drought. As a community project, you can watch for opportunities for students, volunteers, and knowledge holders to participate.
With four full-time young professionals joining the CARL team this September, we will be able to expand our data collecting within the watershed. Our aim? To identify areas of high restoration potential:
- Notably, biologically important riparian and wetlands areas that could enhance the water holding capacity within the watershed to improve resilience to drought.
- Areas that can function in fire risk reduction and reduce the spread of fire.
- Areas subject to flooding and erosion which affect the quality and quantity of water recharged into the Maxwell lake.
- Areas to increase native plant and species diversity.
Treatments and restoration are emphasizing priority areas, and strategies designed to improve the health of the overall watershed (eg., ground-surface water storage), enhance native biodiversity, reduce vulnerability to catastrophic canopy fire, and promote fire resilience. Protecting public and private lands in Coastal Douglas Fir dominated watersheds was identified as a top priority in Transition’s Climate Action Plan.
This project has expanded from a two-year study developed in partnership with North Salt Spring Water District, SSI Fire and Rescue, and the two key covenant holders in this watershed, the SSI Conservancy and the SSI Water Preservation Society, into a five-year stewardship project that considers fire risk and water.
Throughout the year you’ll see the project teams’ vehicles along Maxwell road as they continue their fieldwork.
Thank you to our local collaborative team members, the SSI Conservancy, the SSI Water Preservation Society, Local Trust, SSI Fire and Rescue, and North Salt Spring Water District.
Climate Adaptation Lab in the News
Call for Native Plant Donations for CARL!
We are hosting a community restoration planting on October 17 & 18, and we’re looking for donations of native plants to help restore and strengthen our local ecosystems. Here’s our target plant list: Ocean Spray (Holodiscus discolor)Red Elderberry (Sambucus racemosa)Pacific Willow (Salix lucida)Baldhip Rose (Rosa gymnocarpa)Red Alder (Alnus rubra)Blackcap Raspberry (Rubus leucodermis)Osoberry (Osmaronia cerasiformis)E. Huckleberry…
Wildhaven and Transition Salt Spring: C.A.R.LY. Stewardship Immersion Program
Wildhaven and Transition Salt Spring have partnered to create an early eco-literacy nature immersion program on Salt Spring Island. This video shares from the first 6 months of our pilot project, which is a weekly hands-on immersion experience. We are focused on forest restoration and experimental regenerative methods on Hwmet’etsum and other ecological opportunities around…
Nature’s Classroom: Wild Haven Kids Learn How Forests Can Defend Against Wildfires
On June 14th, 2023, a group of students from the homeschool group Wild Haven spent the day in the field with our lead scientist Ruth Waldick, restoration ecologist Grace Fields, and botanist/restoration ecologist Angeline Emmott. The students learned how to spot a healthy forest and how those characteristics can act as natural firebreaks. Toward the…
Students Learn the Role of Native Plants in Wildfire Protection
During the May Victoria Day long weekend, Transition Salt Spring’s Climate Adaptation Research Lab (CARL), together with restoration ecology students from UVIC, UBC, and the Gulf Islands Secondary School (GISS), worked on restoring the forest understory to create a fire-resistant environment and reduce wildfire risks on the island. The high school students were excited to…
Protecting What Makes Salt Spring Unique: Our Forest Biodiversity
Salt Spring is home to a wide variety of ecosystems and habitats that are intricately interconnected. Nutrients from the Salish Sea — carried inland by birds of prey, otters, and other predators — feed the forests, which in turn help regulate the freshwater systems that sustain life across the island. From the multi-layered canopies of…
When Fire Meets Water: Healthy Watersheds as a Solution for the 21st Century
Rethinking Fire in Our Watersheds In the first webinar of the Fire Files series, “When Fire Meets Water: Healthy Watersheds as a Solution for the 21st Century,” experts explored how wildfires, water, and watershed health are deeply interconnected. Moderated by Dr. Ruth Waldick, lead scientist at our Climate Adaptation Research Lab (CARL), the panel brought…
Raincoast Conservation Foundation: CARL Field Files
The Field Files series documents CARL project progress by engaging with different experts who have contributed to project work and publicly sharing their expertise and contributions. This will aid in future project replicability.
Coastal Douglas Fir Forest & Associated Ecosystem Portal
See our Educational Portal: Salt Spring Island’s Coastal Douglas fir (CDF) forests are part of a globally rare ecological zone found almost exclusively on BC’s south coast. These forests and associated ecosystems are critical to the health of island communities – watershed health and freshwater availability, resilience from drought, flood and fire, and mitigation of impacts of…
Brochure: How Do Healthy Forests Reduce the Risk of Wildfires
Trees are working for us! How do forests support our drinking water? When we protect forest cover and native plants, we preserve soil health and keep water where it lands.
Ecological Monitoring and Data Analysis Intern Wanted
Job Title: Ecological Monitoring and Data Analysis Intern Application Deadline: Nov 22nd Description/Opportunity Transition Salt Spring Society’s Climate Adaptation Research Lab (C.A.R.L.) is a long-term experimental watershed restoration program based in the Maxwell Creek watershed on Salt Spring Island, B.C. We are currently looking to add a new team member in the Winter 2025/26 season…
Celebrating 2,000+ Native Plants Planted!
🌿A heartfelt THANK YOU to everyone who joined us in the field for our spring and fall planting days this year – and to all who donated plants, offered support, or helped behind the scenes. Together, we planted over 2,000 native plants! Your efforts are helping to restore ecosystem functioning (erosion control), reduce wildfire risk,…
Dr. Ruth Waldick on Extreme Heat, Fire, and Climate Resilience in the Coastal Douglas-Fir Region
We’re proud to share that Dr. Ruth Waldick, Lead Scientist with Transition Salt Spring and head of the Climate Adaptation Research Lab (CARL), is featured in a new University of Victoria podcast exploring how our communities can better respond to extreme heat and wildfire risk. Ruth appears in Episode 3: “Ruth” of A Hot Topic:…
Project Partners
Salt Spring Island Fire Rescue, North Salt Spring Waterworks District (NSSWD), Salt Spring Island Water Preservation Society (SSIWPS) and the Salt Spring Island Conservancy (SSIC).
The project is being funded by a $100,000 commitment from Environment and Climate Change Canada’s EcoAction Fund, $25,000 from a private donor on the island and work-in-kind offered by NSSWD.
