Mackay Creek Ecology Community Art Project

The Project intents to encourage the community to participate in habitat restoration events and in a multi-cultural community art project with the aim to create awareness of sustainable environmental practices in North Shore Watersheds and underline these values with the creation of a community public art project. Workshops will be held to develop ecosystem-related images and concepts that will be used to create an installation/mural on an existing site in Heywood Park. The created artwork will be a symbol that supports the concept of protecting the long-term health of the Mackay Creek ecosystem.

The following image is of the Mackay Creek Watershed in North Vancouver, BC. and a description of it's characteristics

                                                      Drainage Area = 7.8 km² 
                                                       Length = 8.1 km 
                                                       Orientation: North-South 
                                                       Elevation Range:180-1105 m

MacKay Creek originates at about 2800 ft. near the top on the southwest slope of Grouse Mountain and flows through second growth coniferous rainforests. Further down the mountain, MacKay flows through residential areas in the District of North Vancouver. Below the Upper Levels Hwy., MacKay enters the City of North Vancouver, and then flows under Marine Drive and back into the District of North Vancouver where it flows through the commercial area into MacKay Park, and through a re-aligned channel into Burrard Inlet.

A BRIEF SYNOPSIS OF PROJECT AND IMAGES OF THE MINI HATCHERY AND PROJECT SITE

NSSK will introduce or help facilitate the introduction of this community art project to local schools and community groups and arrange for workshops where various guest artists will demonstrate and inspire participants to form personal representations of native plants species and the functioning ecosystem in the form of images or ideas. These 'works' can then be used to create a larger community project centered on an existing site in Heywood Park /Lower Mackay Creek; a mini hatchery ( operated by the North Shore Fish and Game Club in conjunction with The City of North Vancouver and Fisheries and Oceans Canada) that is situated on the bank of Mackay Creek and used for Salmon Enhancement, raising aprox. 30,000 unfed Chum fry to be released in the creek every spring.

The mini Hatchery is situated beside Mackay Creek in Heywood Park just North of the urban corridor of Marine Drive

This location is also a NSSK test site for riparian habitat restoration consisting of the removal of invasive plants and reintroduction of native plants.

SEVERAL ARTIST IMPRESSIONS OF PROPOSED PROJECT

Example of stencil technique that may be used to transfer image ( in this instance a First Nations Coho motif) onto site.

Example of painted graphic applied on cinder block surface.

A few examples of Mackay Creek riparian area

Community members participating in a fish count survey

A number of wild inhabitants of the Mackay Creek Ecosystem

For more information on the Mackay Creek Ecology Community Art Project please contact Ron at:

ecosystem@shaw.ca