Sustainability - Ecosystems

Sensitive Habitats

Sensitive habitats are any area in which plant or animal life or their habitats are either rare or especially valuable. Sensitive habitat areas include, but are not limited to, riparian corridors, wetlands, marine habitats, and habitats supporting rare, endangered, and unique species. The SCRD has embarked on several projects to consider these habitats during development processes on the Coast.

The SCRD has adopted Development Permit Areas along all watercourses on the Coast. These areas are to address Provincial Riparian Areas Regulation. The intent is to protect riparian fish habitat, while facilitating rural/urban development.

The SCRD has also compiled a habitat atlas. The Sunshine Coast Habitat Atlas is a web-based mapping tool that accesses information and inventories on watercourses and environmentally sensitive areas found within the SCRD’s aquatic and terrestrial ecosystems. The database provides up-to-date information to planners, developers, government organizations, municipalities, First Nations, community organizations and local businesses, enabling them to make informed land use and stewardship decisions in support of the protection, enhancement, and restoration of fish habitat and sensitive ecosystems.