LEO Network

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The LEO Network is a worldwide network of observers and experts that share their observations of environmental change.
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Observations

Debris Flow Event
The debris flow event at Ring Creek FSR highlights the importance of monitoring due to its potential impact on downstream communities, despite the presence of a debris flow barrier.
Ring Creek FSR

Major B.C. routes including Coquihalla Highway closed due to wildfires
Wildfires forced closures of the Coquihalla Highway between Hope and Merritt and Highway 20 east of Bella Coola in B.C., as the Mine Creek fire grew rapidly and jumped Highway 5. Evacuation orders and alerts were issued, and air quality degraded across the province.
Coquihalla Highway corridor (Hope–Merritt), British Columbia, Canada
CBC News

Rare recreational opening on Lower Fraser due to huge sockeye run
Fisheries and Oceans Canada authorized a rare recreational sockeye opening in the non-tidal Fraser River from Mission to Hope (Aug. 22–Sept. 1, 2025) after unexpectedly large sockeye returns; retention is two sockeye per day and four pinks per day, with restrictions to avoid impacts on non-target stocks.
Lower Fraser River (Mission to Hope), British Columbia, Canada
Lake Cowichan Gazette (Black Press Media)

Mountain biker suffers minor injuries in cougar attack near Squamish, B.C.
A mountain biker was attacked by a cougar near Squamish, B.C., suffering minor injuries before scaring the animal off with rocks.
Squamish, British Columbia, Canada
CHEK News

RCMP investigating as Squamish, B.C., wildfire doubles in size
A wildfire near Squamish, B.C., has expanded to over 50 hectares, prompting the evacuation of Alice Lake Provincial Park as crews battle the Dryden Creek fire.
Squamish, British Columbia, Canada
CTV News

Bird flu in B.C.: Teen infected with H5N1 stable but remains critically ill
A teenager in British Columbia has tested positive for H5N1 avian influenza and remains in critical condition, with health officials unable to identify the source of exposure despite extensive contact tracing.
Fraser Valley, British Columbia, Canada
Vancouver Sun

VIDEO: Chum salmon make triumphant return to B.C. creek for 1st time in 75 years
Chum salmon have returned to Chilliwack Creek in British Columbia for the first time in 75 years, thanks to a riparian restoration project led by local First Nations.
Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada
Lake Cowichan Gazette

Avian flu detected on poultry farm in Chilliwack, B.C.
The H5N1 strain of avian flu has been detected on a poultry farm in Chilliwack, British Columbia, marking the first confirmed case in the province this fall and prompting increased precautions among poultry farmers.
Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada
CBC

Drought in B.C. has salmon running 'a marathon in a sauna,' foundation warns
British Columbia's prolonged drought risks damaging the salmon population for generations and has led to a series of emergency, rapidly deployed projects in an effort to intervene. In the Comox Valley, aerators have been installed in the Tsolum River to maximize salmon survival by increasing dissolved oxygen levels, and work has started at the mouth of the Tranquille River to re-establish water flow between the upper and lower sections so salmon can migrate upstream to their spawning grounds. More than 80 per cent of the province is at Level 4 or 5 drought conditions, the highest possible rankings, after months of little or no rain.
Merritt, British Columbia, Canada
British Columbia

Salmon run disrupted by trench dug across Coquihala River
There were alternatives for Trans Mountain Corporation to digging a trench in the river to lay pipe during the time the salmon were running.
Hope, British Columbia, Canada

Atmospheric river dumping rain on overflowing rivers raises flood alarm
It's coming up to peak flood season in BC with extra thick snowpack melting into rivers. On top of that, an atmospheric river is coming.
Chilliwack, British Columbia, Canada
Daily Hive News

Frac-out of Trans Mountain pipeline expansion project drilling under Fraser River
This happened about 250 m from the shore of the Fraser River in a creek at Colony Farms.
Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada

Wild day for hundreds trapped by double mudslides on B.C.'s Highway 7
All 275 people were expected to be rescued by the end of Monday, said B.C. Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth, adding that there had been no reported fatalities. The Agassiz fire department was credited with saving 12 people Sunday night in “treacherous conditions,” as their vehicles filled with debris and water.
Agassiz, British Columbia, Canada
vancouversun
Glenda Luymes, Tiffany Crawford, Sarah Grochowski, David Carrigg

A timeline of how once-in-a-century flooding unfolded across B.C.
Extreme rain swamped rivers and farmland across southern B.C. and triggered mudslides that blocked every major highway connecting the Lower Mainland to the rest of the country in November 2021. This is a timeline of the first week of the crisis.
Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada
A Timeline of How Once In a Century Flooding Unfolded Across B.C.

Mass stranding of pink salmon
It happened Thursday night and into Friday morning, when the Crown corporation reduced the spill release from the Daisy Lake Reservoir into the river, stranding fish who had moved closer to the banks.
Cheakamus River
Global News

‘Our poor little town’: Village at center of Canada’s heat wave devastated by wildfires
Lytton, British Columbia, broke successive Canadian heat records early this week, with temperatures peaking at 121 degrees on Tuesday. Then the fires swept in.
Lytton, British Columbia, Canada
Anchorage Daily News

For 3rd straight day, B.C. village smashes record for highest Canadian temperature at 49.6 C
Lytton, B.C., has broken the record for the hottest temperature ever recorded in Canada for a third straight day, hitting a scorching 49.6 C on Tuesday.
Lytton, British Columbia, Canada
CBC

Heat wave linked to sudden deaths in western Canada as temperature hits 121 in B.C. town
Environment Canada said the weather system shattered more than 100 heat records across British Columbia, Alberta, Yukon and Northwest Territories.
Lytton, British Columbia, Canada
Anchorage Daily News

COVID-19: Outbreak declared at Fraser Valley mink farm
Minks have been discovered to be susceptible to SARS-CoV-2, the virus that causes COVID-19. A coronavirus outbreak has been declared at a Fraser Valley mink farm after eight people at the site tested positive for COVID-19.
Fraser Valley, British Columbia, Canada
Vancouver Sun

Northern anchovy blooms bring more sea life to Burrard Inlet
Northern anchovy are becoming more comment perhaps due to warmer temperatures. A 10-centimetre-long fish represents an anchovy that's about a year old suggesting that the fish are spawned locally in the pelagic zone, or upper, warmer zone of the seawater.
Port Moody, British Columbia, Canada
CBC

Two North Shore ski mountains, Buntzen Lake closed because of rain
A couple of North Shore ski hills and Buntzen Lake in Anmore were closed Friday because of heavy rainfall, as Metro Vancouver prepared for another deluge Friday night.
Anmore, British Columbia, Canada
Vancouver Sun

Blue Jay (Cyanocitta cristata) Invasion of Cascadia
The Cascadia Bioregion, including Montana, Idaho, Oregon, Washington, and British Columbia, is outside of [the historical range of the Blue Jay *(Cyanocitta but they have been increasingly sighted in the region since the first one was sighted in Montana in 1958.
Cascadia Bioregion
Twitter

Squamish volunteers opening up man-made dams stopping pink salmon
Don’t treat the river like a personal bathtub. It’s a message Squamish conservationists are putting forward after they found man-made dams blocking pink salmon from their spawning grounds.
Stawamus River, British Columbia. Canada
Squamish Chief

B.C.'s salal shrubs are dying and extreme weather could be the culprit
One of B.C.'s most abundant plants is in trouble: patches of hardy salal plants are turning up brown, crispy and dying.
coastal British Columbia, Canada

Fraser River is now so warm it may kill migrating sockeye salmon
Sockeye salmon are migrating up B.C.'s Fraser River right now, but the water is so warm the fish may die before they have the chance to spawn.
Fraser River, British Columbia, Canada

Hatzic Lake closed following reports of dead fish, discoloured water
Swimmers have reported feeling nausea, itchy skin and irritated eyes after vising the popular lake.
Hatzic Lake, British Columbia, Canada
CTV News Vancouver

16 temperature records broken around B.C.
Agassiz broke a record that goes back more than 100 years
Agassiz, British Columbia, Canada
Lake Cowichan Gazette

Water rising in Interior
With warmer temperatures in the forecast, the province has issued a high streamflow warning for streams and rivers across the Interior. Currently, Nicola Lake is about one metre below the minor flooding point, and it's forecast to continue climbing over the next 30 days.
Castanet

Pacific sardine (Sardinops sagax) in Port Moody Arm
Port Moody Arm, British Columbia, Canada

Clumps of Foam Noticed Floating on the Fraser River
Agassiz, British Columbia, Canada

Second year of unusual seasonal temperatures: affects black bears and native plant growth?
Whistler, British Columbia, Canada

Japanese Knotweed in Remote Area
Tipella, British Columbia, Canada

Best sockeye return in 100 years
Fisheries Minister Gail Shea is crowing about the opportunities with the 2010 return of sockeye to the Fraser river, calling it a  banner year for Fraser River sockeye salmon. This year's return is currently set at just over 25 million fish, one of the highest returns in the last hundred years. Several fishery openings for Fraser River sockeye have already occurred in 2010 and more are planned, she said.
Fraser River, British Columbia, Canada
Ha-Shilth-Sa Newspaper

B.C. Interior communities hunker down for next atmospheric river
Interior communities are shoring up dikes and roadways in preparation for another atmospheric river system expected Tuesday and into Wednesday. Officials say they are making progress helping displaced residents access services and are taking steps to save homes from further flood damage.
Abbotsford, British Columbia, Canada
vancouversun

'We have nowhere': B.C. First Nations, rural residents say storm permanently changed the land
"For our grandchildren and their children, now the devastation has left them nothing": Shackan First Nation Chief Arnold Lampreau.
Merritt, British Columbia, Canada
vancouversun

Dispersed across B.C., the Lytton First Nation aims to come back strong
Like many people in Lytton, council member John Haugen's not sure when he'll be able to settle back home. One thing he is certain about is that his people, those of the Lytton First Nation who have lived in the area for about 10,000 years, will continue living on their ancestral lands.

Ancient white sturgeon caught in Canada
The fish measured 56 inches in circumference and weighed 800 lbs. Its age is not known, but it could be more than 100 years old, given its size. The monster sturgeon had never been tagged before, so this may have been the first time it was caught.
The Irish Times

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