Parks and Natural Areas Certification Process
STEP 1: Pre-Assessment
Once an initial meeting is completed to determine site eligibility for Salmon-Safe certification, a second meeting is scheduled to begin the pre-assessment process. This meeting provides an introduction to the Salmon-Safe certification process and engages the landowner / developer, any consultants that are working on environmental aspects of the site and the Salmon-Safe staff team.
Following this meeting, a request for further site information will be made (see the Salmon-Safe Parks and Natural Areas Standards Appendix A). This documentation will help inform a Salmon-Safe pre-assessment which highlights site features in alignment with Salmon-Safe standards and areas in need of further improvement.
STEP 2: On-Site Assessment
Once a successful pre-assessment is completed, Salmon-Safe staff will work with the site leads to determine when our assessment team can perform a site visit. The site visit engages a team of 3-4 assessors with expertise in biology, watershed management, stormwater engineering, landscape architecture and integrated pest management.
(*Larger scale development projects may be eligible for fast-track certification where Salmon-Safe is engaged early in the design process or where certain benchmarks are met with respect to stormwater design, construction-phase runoff prevention and planning for post-construction operations.)
STEP 3: On-Site Report
Following the on-site visit, the Salmon-Safe assessment team and staff will complete a report of findings including any conditions for certification, condition timelines and recommendations for continual site improvement. The report will be submitted to site leads for review and signature.
STEP 4: Certification & Recognition
Following the acceptance of the conditions and recommendations cited in the report, certification is awarded. To celebrate this achievement and get the word out, Salmon-Safe staff will work with communications leads for the site to put together a publicity or recognition campaign.
STEP 5: Annual Review of Project Activities
Salmon-Safe’s Parks and Natural Areas certification cycle is 5 years pending the successful completion of any conditions for certification and any progress on recommendations. To follow up on these activities, Salmon-Safe staff check in with site leads on an annual basis.
Interested in learning more about Salmon-Safe certification or beginning the process to certify your site? Reach out to our team at salmonsafebc@fraserbasin.ca