Snapshots of a Celebration: PRPA feature highlights the Grand Opening for the Seal Cove Salt Marsh

The official party participating in the opening of the Seal Cove
Salt Marsh as part of Saturday's event
Joanne Finlay, Hereditary Chief Alex Campbell,
Ken Veldman, Reid Sketon-Morven
(Photo from the PRPA)

The wet weather of Saturday did not deter many Rupertites from exploring the newest recreation area in the city, with an enthusiastic number of residents making their way to the Seal Cove Salt Marsh for this past weekend's Grand Opening.

The project which was an initiative of the City of Prince Rupert and Prince Rupert Port Authority was the showcase for the three hour Saturday event which has been chronicled by the PRPA communications team with a large volume of photos and some video of the Big Day.

The Prince Rupert Port Authority invested 4 million dollars towards the project on land provided by the City of Prince Rupert, the work on the Salt Marsh project that of remediation of sorts towards development of port facilities between Fairview Terminal and Ridley Island.

In their overview of the Saturday event, the Port provides for a bit of a history lesson on the site that now hosts the recreation area, charing its past and the process of making it a new focal point for the community.

Over the past century, industrial and other human activities have caused severe degradation to the Salt Marsh, depleting it of the natural aquatic vegetation that once thrived in the area. With the aim of restoring the ecosystem, the work at Seal Cove centered on regrading intertidal areas and transplanting eelgrass and other underwater plants to create new habitat for fish and other aquatic species. An existing creek, once hidden in a culvert, was exposed and additional shoreline vegetation was added to develop more places for birds and other wildlife to forage, breed, and nest. 

The remaining work focused on installing a new lighted pathway and pedestrian bridge, picnic tables and seating areas for the benefit of Prince Rupert residents and visitors to the community. Designed to be used year-round, the 600 metre walkway encircles the Salt Marsh and links directly to Rushbrook Trail, enhancing connectivity and offering a new destination for trail users.

PRPA President and CEO Shaun Stevenson made note of the transformation in remarks as part of the Saturday Grand opening.

“The measures undertaken to revitalize the Seal Cove Salt Marsh are a clear example of the Prince Rupert Port Authority’s commitment to minimize the environmental impacts of port activity and share the benefits of our trade gateway with the community that enables it. 

It is incredible to see the transformation that has taken place in Seal Cove in regard to addressing ecological sustainability, while simultaneously meeting the community’s call for greater waterfront access and recreational opportunities.” -- Shaun Stevenson, President and CEO of the Prince Rupert Port Authority. 

Mr. Veldman, along with Joanne Finlay, Hereditary Chief Alex Campbell, and City Councillor Reid Skelton-Morven who stepped in for Mayor Lee Brain who was absent,  all were part of the official opening statements and Blessing for the site.

Along with the officials, Port and City staff members along with the members of the North Coast Ecology Society hosted a number of stations and events to commemorate the family friendly day on the city's Far East side.

For those that have now made the site a favourite location for a stroll, a fun fact from the port provides note on the transit around the circumference of the site.

The North Coast Review asked Katherine Voigt for an estimate of how many metres on lap of the Salt marsh would be. 

For walkers or runners looking to mark a personal best, one lap of the marsh makes for approximately 600 metres.

You can review many of the items of note from the afternoon from this review from the Port Authority.

We took a tour of the location prior to opening, you can review our observations here.

More notes of interest on the Salt Marsh can be explored here.