The Mermaid Creek Salt Marsh Restoration project, aimed at revitalising the delicate salt marsh ecosystem of Roberts Bay, has been regrettably cancelled due to complications surrounding riparian property rights infringement. The decision comes after extensive deliberation and consultation with the project's funders, partners, stakeholders, and regulators.

For more information please see the Roberts Bay Cancellation Press Release Statement

Background

The Mermaid Creek Salt Marsh is a small pickleweed (Salicornia pacifica) and salt grass (Distichlis spicata) dominated delta located at the mouth of Mermaid Creek on the southeast end of Roberts Bay, Sidney, British Columbia in the Traditional Territories of the Tseycum Nation. This regionally rare coastal ecosystem is small but mighty in terms of its ecosystem productivity as well as provision of ecosystem services. Salt marshes provide blue carbon sequestration, important nutrients, water filtration, productive habitats for fish and wildlife, and natural protection for upland areas from strong storms through the buffering of wave energy. 

Why Restoration?

These important coastal ecosystems are often the most desirable for agriculture, fishing and hunting, industrial practices, transportation infrastructure, habitation, and development. As a result of this, these critical coastal ecosystems are under threat as they have been disproportionately lost, degraded, or modified over the past century (some estimates put this loss upwards of 70% in the Salish Sea). The Roberts Bay Blue Carbon Study commissioned by SeaChange Marine Conservation Society (SeaChange) and Peninsula Streams and Shorelines (PSS) completed in 2021 by Coastal and Ocean Resources Institute (CORI) found that the Mermaid Creek Delta marsh had experienced a significant decline of over 70% over the last 60 years. The past two years have seen a significant acceleration of erosion rates with ~30% of marsh area eroding annually (CORI 2022).  To better understand the causes and dynamics of this and to provide a concept for a solution, we commissioned another study completed by DHI’s coastal engineers in 2022. 

The DHI study (2022) provides a summary of wave conditions in Roberts Bay and highlights several likely contributing factors to the decline of the Mermaid Creek Salt Marsh including 1.) the historical modification of natural sources and conduits of sediment being delivered to the marsh, both from Mermaid Creek itself as well as from the marine environment 2.) increased forces of erosion driven by climate change including intense storm surges and Sea Level Rise (SLR). Importantly, the burial and incorporation of Mermaid Creek into the Town of Sidney’s stormwater system cutoff sediments delivered by Mermaid Creek to the delta. Additionally, modified shorelines, including shoreline hard armouring, disrupt the dynamic nature of coastal sediment processes including erosion, transport, and wave structure in the bay. The report concluded that if action is not taken there is a large likelihood this important ecosystem and habitat will be lost with ecological consequence to Roberts Bay including loss and diminishment of the ecosystem services such as stormwater filtration, blue carbon sequestration, shoreline stabilization, sustainable beach nourishment,  shoreline protection, pollination, aesthetic and cultural values and the productive habitats for fish and wildlife.