Teck Highland Valley Copper wildlife habitat baseline

Challenge

Teck Highland Valley Copper Partnership is proposing a mine expansion and transmis­sion line twinning to support the extension of the mine life through until 2040. This project requires the submission of an environmental assessment under the BC Environmental Assessment Act and the Canadian Environ­mental Assessment Act.

Solution

SLR was retained by Tech Highland Valley Copper Partnership to complete baseline wildlife surveys for the Area Expansion and Transmission line Twinning projects.

Impact

• Completion of wildlife baseline surveys for bats (acoustic recorders), waterfowl, breed­ing birds, American badger, northern goshawk, flammulated owl, western screech-owl, Williamson’s sapsucker, Lewis’s woodpecker, burrowing owl, American pika, western rattlesnake, ungulates (aerial surveys and wildlife cameras), sharp-tailed grouse and wildlife camera deployment targeting ungulates and furbearers.
• Developed habitat suitability and habitat suitability index modelling for key species.
• Detected 14 bat species including the listed little brown myotis, northern myotis, pallid bat, and spotted bat.
• Detections of listed mammal species including American badger and fisher.
• >9,800 unique detections of 46 species of wildlife on the remote cameras.
• Provided mentoring to several First Nation communities for wildlife surveys.