Environmental Services
Environmental Services supports the protection and stewardship of Syilx lands, waters, and cultural values through:
Fisheries Management
Cultural Heritage Protection
Environmental Monitoring
The Indigenous Guardian Program
The department works to ensure that tmixʷ (all living things) and culturally significant places are protected for future generations.
Fishery Management
The Fisheries Management Program supports the protection, restoration, and stewardship of fish populations and aquatic habitats throughout syilx territory. Program activities include:
Monitoring creek and watershed flows
Cultural heritage protection
Assessing habitat conditions
Supporting the reintroduction and recovery of salmon within the Okanagan watershed
Through science, traditional knowledge, and partnerships, the program works to ensure healthy fisheries for future generations.
Cultural Heritage
Cultural Heritage Field Reviews identify and assess cultural values, traditional use areas, and heritage resources before development activities occur, helping to protect places of cultural importance to the syilx people.
Archaeological Monitoring
Archaeological Monitoring provides on-site oversight during ground-disturbing activities to identify, protect, and appropriately manage archaeological sites, artifacts, and ancestral resources in accordance with syilx stewardship responsibilities.
Environmental Monitoring
Environmental Monitoring ensures that land and resource activities are conducted responsibly by assessing and monitoring potential impacts to water, wildlife, vegetation, ecosystems, and syilx values.
Cultural Monitoring
Cultural Monitoring ensures that syilx cultural values, knowledge, practices, and interests are respected during project activities by providing Indigenous oversight, guidance, and field-based observations throughout project implementation.
Guardian Program: BC Hydro Reservoir
The BC Hydro Reservoir Guardian Program supports the stewardship and monitoring of reservoir systems within syilx territory, including the Arrow Lakes, Whatshan Lake, and Sugar Lake reservoirs.
Guardians conduct environmental and cultural monitoring, document land use and ecological conditions, support fisheries and wildlife observations, and help protect cultural values impacted by hydroelectric operations.
Our program combines syilx knowledge with field-based monitoring to support long-term ecosystem health and informed management of reservoir lands and waters.