Denman Island's 1200 residents and many visitors treasure the natural environment of the island. At the Conservancy we focus our efforts on its protection. We have had some success and we have much more work to do. Explore our site for an understanding of our island's ecology and our work to preserve it.
Denman Island's 1200 residents and many visitors treasure the natural environment of the island. At the Conservancy we focus our efforts on its protection. We have had some success and we have much more work to do. Explore our site for an understanding of our island's ecology and our work to preserve it.
Denman Island is located in the Strait of Georgia, British Columbia, Canada. It is a small rural gulf island near the east coast of Vancouver Island south of Courtenay.
The Denman Conservancy Association was founded in 1991 by a group of volunteer community members who came together with the goal of preserving unique, environmentally sensitive and historically important parcels of land on Denman Island, B.C.
Denman Island is one of the few remaining places where visitors can experience the quiet grandeur of an original forest in the Coastal Douglas fir (CDF) biogeoclimatic zone. Less than 1% of the CDF zone remains in its natural state; of that 1%, only a small fraction is protected. The rest, including remaining stands on Denman and other Gulf Islands in the Strait of Georgia, is perennially under the threat of logging and/or development.
Until 2006 about 5% of Denman Island was set aside for park land and nature reserves. Since then, in substantial part due to initiatives of DCA this percentage has been increased to almost 25% by the addition of conservation covenants and acquisition of land for conservation.
As a result of the settlement of DCA's legal case against 4064 Investment Ltd. significant additional land has been set side for conservation on Denman Island. For more about the legal case see Press Release & Case History.
A 60 hectare block in the middle of Denman Island was purchased in September 2006. This land is adjacent to Denman Road, the major thoroughfare across the island. Central Park is the southern anchor to a chain of conservation properties and Crown Land that stretches northwest for 5km to the shore of Chickadee Lake. See 'Vision' map & Newsletter.
A 51 hectare block of young forest and wetland, adjacent to Boyle Point Park has been donated to Islands Trust Fund, to be preserved in perpetuity for its conservation values. DCA holds a conservation covenant on this land and has been appointed manager of the Reserve for the Islands Trust Fund Board. See also Times Colonist article.
The Islands Trust Fund of BC has acquired the 54 hectare Lindsay-Dickson forest for preservation. It is a rare remaining fragment of the ancient forest ecosystem that once covered coastal British Columbia. Conservancy holds a conservation covenant on this land and been appointed manager of the Reserve for the Islands Trust Fund Board. Description and Photos here.
Conservancy purchased a key 2.4 hectare parcel on Lake Road on November 30, 2000. It is a mature forest at the southwest corner of Chickadee Lake. The land is bisected by Lake Road and is surrounded by lands acquired by BC Environment in 2010 for a new Provincial Park. To the East it joins the 80 acre Chickadee Lake foreshore parcel which the Conservancy worked hard to purchase but was unable to reach agreement with the owner. DCA is grateful to those whose efforts led to the lake and its entire foreshore being preserved as part of the new Provincial Park.
In 1992 the Conservancy acquired the 10-hectares comprising Inner Island Nature Reserve and donated the land to Islands Trust Fund. This property connects to an existing 23-hectare nature reserve around a large beaver pond, creating a sanctuary for over 60 species of birds as well as beaver, mink and river otter. DCA holds a conservation covenant on the Inner Island Reserve and manages it for ITF.
Homepage Slideshow photos by Andrew Fyson
