Collaborative Angler Access Management Plan

Year 2008
Project type Engagement
Project type Fisheries
Project type Engage First Nations
FSWP funding source Living Rivers
Grant amount $30,000
Total project cost $47,100
Other project funders

Freshwater Fisheries Society of BC and Chehalis Indian Band

ID number 08 PG LR72

Location: Fraser Valley, Harrison River

Project Summary

The recreational angling access to the Chehalis River was effected by a 200+ year flood event in 2004 that diverted the Chehalis river through Band reserve, obliterating the old access trail and causing anglers to tresspass on reserve. As a backdrop to new salmon fisheries emerging in the Harrison River, this project involves relationship building activities (i.e. protocol and trail access around sensitive ecological and Reserve lands) while engaging broader access disucssions associated with commercial salmon fisheries development in the watershed by the Chehalis Band. The access trail is trargeted for completion (first phase) in the fall of 2008. A sport fishing dialogue is proposed late in the fiscal year involving braodeer angling interests, First Nations and managers. In addition to lead partners the BC Federation of Driftfishers and the Freshwater Fisheries Association of BC, the BC Ministry of Tourism and Trade are partners in the project and are considering modifications to the parking area to accomodate better/greater parking access. The Chehalis Band who administers the park site is considering extended opening periods to accommodate the winter fishery.


Final Results

This project represents a collaboration between the Chehalis Indian Band and the local recreational fishing community to share access to the local salmon fishery in the Harrison River.  A project committee was stuck involving DFO, BC MoE, The Nature Trust, BC Federation of Drift Fishers and the Chehalis Indian Band to develop the access management plan, which outlined project scope and development, access protocol agreements between resource users and legal access agreements between land title holders.  The timeline for project completion was extended due to the complexities of addressing the rights and interests of the various land titles within the proposed trail alignment. Once the legal access issues were addressed, trail construction was completed.  The Chehalis Indian Band was able to leverage additional funds to build a parking lot and to build informational kiosks to educate users on the fishery and salmon management, the trail & access protocols, and culture and traditions of the Chehalis community.

Please see final report posted on the right hand side of this page under ‘Resources’.