On the Brink of Conserving Habitat

Environment Minister Barry Penner, centre, is flanked by Mark Angelo, left, representing the Heart of the Fraser initiative and Tom Blackbird, BC Parks area supervisor, on April 13 at a celebration for the designation of the Bert Brink Wildlife Management Area. The celebration took place along the banks of the Fraser River near McGillivray Slough in a 915-hectare area set aside for the preservation of important fish and wildlife habitat located just west of Chilliwack. The wildlife management area is named in memory of the late Dr. Vernon Cuthbert (Bert) Brink, a prominent UBC agricultural scientist and life-long conservationist who died in 2007 after a lifetime of achievements and a distinguished career. The official designation of the Serpentine Wildlife Management Area, a 71-hectare area set aside as a wildlife management area in south Surrey, was also marked at the event on Easter Monday.

At the Heart of the Fraser River

Environment Minister Barry Penner, left, chats with nature lovers attending a celebration for the official designation of the Bert Brink Wildlife Management Area on Easter Monday. The celebration took place along the Fraser River, just east of Chilliwack, at the McGillivray Slough, prime habitat for migratory birds, fish and other fauna. The 915-hectare wildlife management area was named in memory of Dr. Vernon Cuthbert (Bert) Brink who passed on in Vancouver in 2007 at the age of 95. Brink, referred to as “an icon of conservation and sustainability” was best known as the former chair of the University of BC department of plant science, and for his tireless work with numerous conservation organizations. Minister Penner also took the opportunity to recognize the official designation of a 71-hectare piece of land in south Surrey as the Serpentine Wildlife Management Area. Since 2001, the provincial government has established 57 new parks, 143 conservancies, one ecological reserve and eight protected areas while expanding more than 50 parks and six ecological reserves, protecting more than 1.9 million hectares.