Healthy waters for a thriving city

Uplifting False Creek will transform Vancouver’s future

We call for False Creek to be included in Canada’s 30 by 30 conservation goals through designation as a National Urban Marine Park with Indigenous co-governance.

Here’s why

Lack of jurisdictional clarity: 22 government agencies overlap in False Creek! None of them are in charge, there is no one agency with senior responsibility.

Unsafe waters: There are impacts from historic industrial pollution in the sea floor, derelict boats, urban runoff and combined sewage overflows

Insufficient public awareness of the waterway's ecological significance and existing habitat values

Historic disregard for Indigenous ecological knowledge and land/water stewardship

Significant flood risks for downtown due to rising sea levels, climate-related storm surges, and an over-hardened shoreline

What are the issues?

False Creek is alive!

(but it could get even better)

We are just beginning to understand how many creatures call False Creek home — a community bioblitz with the Hakai Institute has identified over 500 different species, and counting!

We want False Creek to become a Living Lab where community science helps us to know, love, and grow the life in these waters.

This includes ongoing volunteer opportunities like our Light Trapper project, and a greater ambition to have all sorts of scientific data continuously collected by small sensors.

Taking the Plunge

Our highest ambition is to see False Creek become a place to safely swim, and someday even to harvest food. We believe it could be the eco-cultural hub of Vancouver — a place where all life is celebrated.

As the catchment for much of the urban watershed, False Creek’s water quality is symptomatic of Vancouver’s relationship with water in general. The movement to care for False Creek is necessarily holistic and reciprocal: we are all Waterbodies.

Come Onboard

Imagine what False Creek could become

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