ISCMV 2024 Spring Forum & AGM

May 14, 2024 from 10:30am to 1:00pm

Please join the ISCMV Board and staff on Tuesday, May 14, 2024 for our in-person Spring Forum & Annual General Meeting. We will be meeting at the Shadbolt Centre for the Arts, 6450 Deer Lake Ave, Burnaby. Connect with other invasive species practitioners in Metro Vancouver and hear presentations on local projects and species of concern!

The cost for attending the Spring Forum is $26 ($28.35 if paying via Square). Light refreshments will be served. Please r egister to attend here.

Documents:
The following documents will be referenced during the AGM portion of the forum:

Board Nominations:

In advance of the 2024 Annual General Meeting, nominations are sought for members of the Board of Directors for the Invasive Species Council of Metro Vancouver for the 2024-2027 term.

For more information, please visit our Nominations Page. The deadline for nominations is May 7, 2024.

Presentations:

Invasive Resilient Lawn Blends - Brian Campbell - West Coast Seeds

Brian will present his work on “Lawn Solutions”. They are a bridge for people who want a lawn but want to mitigate the negative impacts of traditional lawn ingredients that are not sustainable and do not add to environmental health. Instead, Lawn Solutions need less water, don't need to be fertilized and support biodiversity. Current Lawn Solution developments are integrating more native plants into the blends and are developed to be resilient against invasive species.

A municipal approach to European chafer beetle management for public and private lands - Tracey Tobin - Climate Action and Energy Officer - City of Burnaby’s Planning and Development Department

The presentation will give an overview of what it takes to tackle an invasive turf pest. Tracey will show us the changes in research, development of public rebates, and determining best turf management practices through her experience over a 20 year period of active management of European chafer beetles.

Climate change and the spread of Reynoutria spp. along the Chilliwack River post 2021 flood // Microsite characteristics of Reynoutria spp. along the Chilliwack River, BC. - Sarah Demian & Jaylene Braithwaite – Trinity Western University Students

Knotweeds (Reynoutria spp.) are some of the most invasive plant species globally. The Pacific Northwest flood of November 2021 changed the course of the Chilliwack River and provided new pathways for knotweed to spread. Nearly a five-fold increase of knotweed was observed in 2022 as compared to 2019. Knotweed in densely concentrated areas in 2022 were surveyed again the following year, and 75% of the patches were observed again in 2023. Sixty-three percent of the patches were new in 2023. Various microsite characteristics were measured along the river: soil pH, type, macronutrients, slope, surrounding plant diversity and richness, arthropod diversity and abundance, and channel morphology. Both juvenile and mature knotweed stands had a statistically significant lower soil pH compared to uninvaded control sites. Phosphorus was significantly decreased in the presence of mature knotweed. This study revealed that knotweed can establish within riparian habitats with minimal preference, making habitat prediction challenging.

Eco-art with Invasive Plants - Elena Kirby and Masumi Rodriguez – Artists and Artistic Researchers

Masumi Rodriguez and Elena Kirby will share their experience of collaborative making and their approach to papermaking as a way to build their practice around working with ecologists, researchers and partners outside of their own practice. Papermaking is a tool to expand on notions of material meaning, cooperation, play, and slow process-based practices.

Presenter Bios:

Brian Campbell - West Coast Seeds

Brian Campbell is a certified Master Beekeeper and long time figure at West Coast Seeds. He currently serves as the Purchasing & Production Coordinator and Quality Assurance Officer at West Coast Seeds. In addition to his work with West Coast Seeds, Brian harvests Blessed Bee Honey from his numerous organically raised beehives located around Richmond and Delta, BC. He is also a wasp advocate promoting social and solitary wasp conservation.

Tracy Tobin

Tracey Tobin (she/her) is a Climate Action and Energy Officer with the City of Burnaby’sPlanning and Development Department. Tracey joined the City 17 years ago and has had the opportunity to work on a broad range of environmental programing including waste reduction and diversion, cosmetic pesticides, and invasive species. Tracey coordinated the implementatio of the City’s cosmetic pesticide bylaw, developed and coordinated the City’s chafer beetle management program for public and private residential properties and is currently facilitating Burnaby’s cross-departmental response to the detection of Japanese beetle.

Sarah Demian & Jaylene Braithwaite

Jaylene Braithwaite and Sarah Demian study invasive knotweed as Dr. David Clement’s biology research assistants at Trinity Western University. Jaylene will be completing her Honours B.Sc. with an emphasis in ecology and a minor in chemistry this April. She aspires to be an ecologist. Sarah will finish her fourth year this April studying biology (honours) with a minor in psychology. She hopes to become a physician. They are both extremely passionate about eco-stewardship and are committed to making a positive impact through their research.

Elena Kirby and Masumi Rodriguez:

The collaborative practice between Elena Kirby and Masumi Rodriguez is rooted in curiosity for material, time, and relationality. In 2020, they began Touch Me, Don’t Forget Me exploring invasive / non-native / monoculture plant species as fiber material. In 2023, they spent seven-months at the artist residency Washi+ in Kochi, Japan, where they practiced the entire processes involved in the production of washi [Japanese paper] – from farming, to processing raw fiber, to making paper. This process raised expansive questions of migration and acclimatization of non-native species to their current environment. Their research is tactile, collaborative and process-based, directly engaging them with local craftsmen, artists, ecologists, and raw material farmers. Currently, they are concerned with creating an open-format research collaboration connecting them to people with different disciplines and perspectives. Masumi and Elena are facilitating workshops deconstructing material - in this case paper - to question attachment and care involved in slow-process practices.