Saving Harewood Plains

Paul Chapman, NALT Executive Director, will be part of a five-person panel looking at the unique natural values of the Harewood Plains, what measures are in place to protect those values and what more might be done. The Panel:

Julia Roberts, moderator
Julia Roberts is a retired environmental technologist and former member of the Nature Nanaimo Board. She fell in love with Harewood Plains on her first visit in 2019 and is delighted to be moderating the panel discussion about this precious place.
Staffan Lindgren
An introduction to Harewood Plains, Nanaimo’s flowering jewel.
Staffan is an entomologist and Professor Emeritus at UNBC in Prince George, and Vice-President of Nature Nanaimo. He has been a naturalist with broad interests since childhood. He is fascinated by the beauty and uniqueness of Harewood Plains, and deeply concerned about the conservation of this unique place.
Wylie Thomas
Wylie will provide background on the rise to fame of Harewood Plains in naturalists and conservation circles and its selection as a priority GOE site by the Garry Oak Ecosystem Recovery Team (GOERT).
Wylie Thomas is a restoration practitioner and conservation botanist based in Victoria, BC. He is active in the restoration and protection of a key biodiversity hotspots in southeastern Vancouver Island, and sits on the board of GOERT.
Scott Black
Vernal Pools and Harewood Plains – “what makes a vernal pool” and “why are they found almost nowhere in BC but Nanaimo”.
Scott is a professional biologist with over 18-years of experience and is skilled in plant identification, plant species at risk surveys, soil classification, ecosystem classification and ecosystem mapping. Scott designs and implements restoration and planting plans, invasive plant management, and wetland health surveys. He has a keen interest in vernal pools and anything botanically related. In addition, Scott is experienced in use of remote sensing and GIS methods for monitoring vegetation, wetlands and modeling habitat suitability using machine learning.
Paul Chapman
How do we protect the Harewood Plains. An introduction to what protections are in place; what the Harewood Plains Working Group is working toward; and how do we get there from here.
Paul Chapman has worked with the Nanaimo & Area Land Trust (NALT) for 15 years, the last 5 as executive director. NALT is best known for leading the community acquisition campaigns that secured part of the Linley Valley and Mount Benson as parkland.

Hope you can make it to the event, May 18th, 7 pm at the Beban Park social Centre – Room 2.