Forty years of watershed stewardship
In 2003, SSIWPS acquired 272 acres (110 hectares) of the St. Mary Lake watershed through an agreement with Channel Ridge Properties and the Island Trust. SSIWPS has established a conservation covenant (held by the Salt Spring Island Conservancy), and allows public access to hiking trails on the watershed lands.
Since (WHEN?) SSIWPS has organized the Fresh Water Catalogue, a citizen science project that is collecting data and informal information in support of improving our understanding of the quality of our surface and groundwater.
Today, SSIWPS continues to pursue its founders’ vision: to serve the public interest in clean, fresh water through stewardship, research, education, and advocacy.
In 1982, five SSI residents — Sidney Filkow, Tom Gossett, Michael Larmour, Gail Secor, and John Crofton — founded SSIWPS to protect the sources of drinking water, promote research into water resources, and increase public awareness of the value of water resources.
SSIWPS quickly achieved prominence as an effective advocate for the island’s four main reservoirs: St. Mary, Maxwell, Cusheon and Weston Lakes.
In 1992, SSIWPS won a case in the BC Court of Appeals that established the right of communities across Canada to prohibit the use of gasoline motors on potable-water-producing lakes. The Supreme Court of Canada denied leave to appeal, effectively affirming the court’s decision.
In 2002, SSIWPS helped raise a significant portion of the total funds ($1.2 million) to purchase the primary and secondary watersheds of Maxwell Lake from Texada Land Co.