Join us online for Rivershed’s AGM with guest speaker Coree Tull on watershed security in BC.

We hold the AGM online each year to make it easier to take part. This year’s meeting will include a presentation from Coree Tull, Chair of the BC Watershed Security Coalition. Coree will share an update on watershed security efforts across B.C., including current priorities, progress, and opportunities to strengthen investment and coordination in the years ahead. Rivershed is a member of the Coalition and contributes to this shared work.

Thursday, June 18, 2026
7:00 PM (Pacific)

Please RSVP your attendance by filling out the form below.

Each year, as summer comes to an end, salmon leave the ocean to make their way up rivers and streams to spawn. Their journey will take a few weeks, on average, and the salmon’s bodies undergo incredible physical changes to function in freshwater and prepare for mating. The fish transform from their silvery ocean bodies to shades of olive, red, and green. Many develop humped backs and hooked jaws with canine-like teeth.

As the salmon migrate to their natal rivers, all their energy is put into the journey and within a few days after spawning, the salmon die. This is a process called semelparity, where an organism has a single reproductive episode before death.

Here are the five species of Pacific salmon that migrate in the Fraser Watershed:

Sockeye Salmon

Sockeye salmon are one of the most iconic and well-known species of salmon. While in the ocean, sockeye are sleek and silver-grey. As they migrate upriver to spawn, they become red and green, with males forming a hooked nose and humped back. Each sockeye salmon population in B.C. have different conservation statuses according to the Committee on the Status of Endangered Species In Canada.

The Fraser River has seen serious declines in sockeye salmon populations. Historically 50 million Sockeye salmon returned annually to the Fraser River, but in 2019, fewer than 400,000 returned and in 2020, only 288,000 returned.

In 2022, what was expected to be a peak year, pre-season forecasts predicted 9.8 million sockeye. By late August, that estimate had been reduced by nearly half to 5.5 million, with warmer water temperatures and drought delaying the return.

In 2025, the story is more hopeful. The Pacific Salmon Commission now estimates that 9.6 million sockeye are returning to the Fraser, the largest run since 1997 outside of the unusually strong 2022 cycle year. Much of this increase comes from the summer run, particularly late Stuart and Chilko sockeye, which are returning in numbers far above expectations. After years of decline and uncertainty, this year’s return is a reminder of both the resilience of salmon and the importance of protecting the rivers that sustain them.

Chum Salmon

Chum salmon have a unique spawning colouration. These salmon turn a dark brown with red to purple vertical stripes along their sides. Like other salmon species, they develop a hooked snout with canine-like teeth, earning them the nickname “dog salmon”. Chum are the poorest jumpers of the Pacific salmon, which is why many chum prefer to spawn in small streams and intertidal zones. Within a few days or weeks of hatching, chum salmon will migrate to the ocean, where they will remain for 3 to 5 years before returning to their natal spawning grounds.

Chinook Salmon

Spawning chinook become olive brown, red, or purplish in colour. When they hatch, most juvenile chinook will stay in freshwater for a year as they grow. Chinook salmon are also known as spring salmon because they return to some rivers much earlier than other Pacific salmon. Chinook are the largest salmon species in the Pacific Ocean and are incredibly important to people and wildlife along the coast. In the ocean, they are essential prey for predators, especially the endangered Southern Resident orcas, and make up 80% of the whale’s diet.

Pink Salmon

Pink salmon are the smallest and most abundant of the Pacific salmon species. When they return to rivers to spawn, male pink salmon develop a large humpback, making them easily distinguishable from other salmon species. Pink salmon’s colouration also shifts from silver to olive brown with a white belly. Juvenile pink salmon do not remain in freshwater for as long as other salmon species, usually migrating to marine waters and estuaries as soon as they can. This species also grows the fastest of all the pacific salmon and matures at 2 years.

In 2025, the Fraser is expected to see an exceptionally large pink salmon run, with forecasts of nearly 27 million fish, a potential record if realized. 

Coho Salmon

Coho salmon spawners can be identified by the bright red coloration on their sides with dark green heads and backs. Spawning males also develop a hooked snout and sharp teeth. Coho tend to remain closer to the ocean when they spawn, opting for streams and tributaries along the coast. Juvenile coho will stay in fresh water for as long as 3 years before they journey to the ocean.

Coho salmon are a focus of the Foodlands Corridor Restoration Program’s work on the sc̓e:ɬxʷəy̓əm (Salmon River), where we have created wetted off-channel habitat for overwintering coho. We are thrilled to report that juvenile Coho have been spotted utilizing the restored habitat during effective monitoring visits to the site.

Despite challenging conditions brought on by snow, ice, permits, and seasonal flooding, we recently completed effectiveness monitoring along the sc̓e:ɬxʷəy̓əm (Salmon River)* Foodlands Corridor!

This monitoring happens twice a year—once at the end of winter and again in the summer—providing data to track how restored sites respond to seasonal shifts and ensuring we meet permit reporting requirements.

‘We’ refers to a team of three people from three collaborating organizations working together to carry out this monitoring. A BIG thanks to the Lower Fraser Fisheries Alliance and Kerr Wood Leidal Consulting for being right there with Elise from our Foodlands Corridor Restoration Program, doing the important monitoring work along the corridor.

“sc̓e:ɬxʷəy̓əm” is the hən̓q̓əmin̓əm̓ word for the Salmon River. Translations provided by Knowledge Keepers and language learners from Kwantlen and Katzie Nations.

Day One

Heavy rains the day before left parts of the sc̓e:ɬxʷəy̓əm Corridor partially flooded when we arrived, but the team forged ahead. Waders were a must, with water reaching knee-deep across several sites. We trudged through these conditions to complete photo point monitoring—taking photos at set locations to document changes at each restoration site—along with water quality testing, and setting live fish traps.

Rest assured, our work was well supervised by a few locals (the llamas 😉).

Day Two

By the second day, water levels had receded, leaving behind a muddy landscape. We retrieved the fish traps to identify and count the species using the site’s off-channel habitat. Among our findings: lots of three-spine sticklebacks and a couple of coho!

We also measured the width and depth of the off-channel and installed two dissolved oxygen loggers. Dissolved oxygen levels can fluctuate with changing conditions, directly affecting how fish can use the restored habitat. Tracking this data helps us better understand how oxygen levels are shaping habitat conditions and inform future stewardship.

Final Thoughts

The high water we encountered during this round of monitoring highlighted how seasonal flooding shapes the sc̓e:ɬxʷəy̓əm Corridor. These natural processes are exactly why this restoration work matters. The plants and wetlands we’ve helped establish stood strong—absorbing water, slowing flows and creating space for the river to move through its cycles.

As the waters receded, the landscape felt renewed. Birds were singing, plants were soaking up the sun, and early flowers were beginning to open— small but important signs of resilience.

We’re excited to keep sharing updates as the season progresses. Stay tuned on our social media accounts for more from the Foodlands Corridor Restoration Program.

Join us to reflect on the accomplishments of 2024, preview 2025, and take part in a special screening of the film The Spirit Who Swims.

We are honoured to be joined by Bev Sellars, former chief and councillor of the Xatśūll (Soda Creek) First Nation for a virtual screening of her award-winning film, The Spirit Who Swims.

Co-directed with Garry Tutte and produced with the late Hemas Kla-Lee-Lee-Kla (Chief Bill Wilson), the film is framed as a love manifesto to salmon. It highlights their spiritual and material importance to Indigenous peoples along the Fraser River, brought to life through vivid underwater cinematography and sweeping aerials. It’s a powerful call to rethink our relationship with the natural world.

We’re proud to share this important work with communities across the Fraser Watershed in conjunction with our AGM.

June 26, 2025
7:00 pm

The meeting is virtual, so you can attend from anywhere with an internet connection — just register using the form below.

Everyone is welcome to attend, but you must be a member to vote.
Sign up to become a member or renew your membership.

We look forward to connecting with you on June 26!

To begin the project, logs were driven into the streambed in order to build the bank back out. More logs were then placed in a criss-cross fashion overtop. Video by Chris Jenkins.

Marsh Connectivity

Bank erosion and flooding of low-lying areas are common challenges in the sc̓e:ɬxʷəy̓əm Corridor. The team was thrilled this year to begin work on a new property, expanding the corridor.

On this property, three ponds in the floodplain collected water over the winter but only one was properly connected to the sc̓e:ɬxʷəy̓əm year-round. There were two problems that the team was looking to address: the risk of young salmon getting stranded in the ponds in drier seasons, and the flooding of the whole lower section of the property for several months each year.

To address both these issues, the team came up with a design that involved connecting all the ponds together with channels and grading them so that there would always be a connection between the ponds and the river. A fourth pond was also excavated and connected to the rest to increase the potential for holding water.

As the ponds and channels were excavated, excess sediment was used to build up the floodplain to make it higher and more resistant to collecting water. In addition, large woody debris was brought in and placed in the ponds to provide habitat for insects, fish, and birds. In particular, large woody debris is a critical habitat component for the at-risk Pacific water shrew.

Bringing it all Together: Planting

Fall is the best time for planting native plants as it is the beginning of a wet season, providing the plants plenty of time to get their roots established before the next summer drought. In October, the team spent a week planting at the two new restoration sites, working hard to get more than 2000 plants in the ground! The plants were a mixture of trees, shrubs, and live stakes. Immediately after construction a restoration site can look quite bare, so the final stage of planting is critical. Early root development ensures that new food plants have a greater chance of establishing to outcompete the invasive species that were there before the restoration work. As time goes on, these plants will flourish to shade out invasive Reed Canary Grass, help stabilize the riverbanks and provide shade and food for aquatic and other species.

Teamwork makes the Dream Work

Throughout these months of habitat restoration, the team encountered many challenges ranging from difficulties in sourcing materials to unexpected heavy rainstorms in August. Which is just to say that projects often don’t go as smoothly as they appear! Luckily, the Foodlands team is made of professional, dedicated and passionate collaborators who took all the challenges in stride and ultimately completed these two ambitious projects.

This project was undertaken with the financial support of the Government of Canada through the federal Department of Environment and Climate Change. Additional support provided by the Pacific Salmon Foundation’s Community Salmon Program, Dr. Bronner’s and the Healthy Watersheds Initiative; a program that was funded by the Government of British Columbia and delivered by Real Estate Foundation of BC in partnership with Watersheds BC.

Join us to celebrate the accomplishments of 2023 and get a look at what we have planned for 2024.

June 6, 2024
7:00 pm (PST)

The AGM will feature a compelling presentation by the Nature-Based Solutions Foundation (NBSF). Hania Eve Peper, NBSF’s National Programs Manager, will delve into NBSF’s mission to safeguard Canada’s most endangered ecosystems through innovative conservation financing. This approach bridges critical funding gaps and empowers communities closely connected to their local lands to spearhead conservation efforts.

The meeting is virtual, so you can attend from anywhere you have an internet connection.

Everyone is welcome to attend, but you must be a member to vote.
Sign up to become a member or renew your membership.

Interested in making a difference as a member of our Board of Directors?
Learn more and apply

Please register for the AGM by filling out the form below.

We look forward to connecting with you on June 6!