The Colquitz River is home to both coastal cutthroat trout (Oncorhynchus clarkii clarkii) and coho salmon (Oncorhynchus kisutch). In recent years, the number of coho spawners has declined, however, even a few spawning salmon give us hope that with proper habitat restoration, these fish can recover and succeed in urban watersheds with their incredible resilience.

For decades, dedicated volunteers and community stewardship groups have worked to rebuild fish populations and improve the health of the Colquitz Watershed. Since 2019, Peninsula Streams has been partnering with the District of Saanich every summer to restore and enhance Colquitz River habitat with the help of community volunteers. To date, we have restored over 400 metres of important salmon habitat.

The Colquitz River watershed has extensive urban and suburban landscapes and land uses that impact the natural environment. These include lower flows during summer, higher flows in the winter due to impervious surfaces, poor water quality, increased sedimentation and bank erosion, loss of riparian vegetation, higher water temperatures, and an overall reduction of habitat.

Despite these human-caused impacts, the watershed offers remarkable opportunities for restoration and conservation efforts. This is largely a result of the foresight of District of Saanich staff for keeping the river channel out of pipes and open within a park trail system.