What happens when you let the land lead? On Yaqan Nukiy territory, millennia of Indigenous knowledge is guiding one of the most ambitious wetland projects in Canada—transforming not only ecosystems, but the broader understanding of how restoration can be approached.
The Yaqan Nukiy Wetland Project, located on 517 hectares of Lower Kootenay Band reserve lands near Creston, B.C., began in 2018 with a vision: to return the landscape to how it once functioned. Now in its eighth year, led by the Yaqan Nukiy People (Lower Kootenay Band), the project continues to evolve; shaped by Indigenous knowledge and supported by a network of partners committed to ecological renewal.
These wetlands are an essential part of Yaqan Nukiy’s resources, providing food, medicine, and materials for everyday living. Their rich biodiversity once supported these needs and played a vital role in seasonal harvesting and land stewardship practices.
In the early 20th century, much of the Kootenay River floodplain was diked, drained, and altered to support agriculture and settlement. These changes disrupted natural water flow, degraded habitat, and cut off the wetlands from the Kootenay River and nearby tributaries like the Goat River.
Today, renaturalization efforts aim to reverse these impacts by restoring hydrology and re-establishing the ecological functions that once sustained this landscape.
“The way First Nations people lived before contact was deeply connected to natural systems,” says Norm Allard, Community Planner and project lead. “Our ancestors had intricate asset management programs in place. We had our own environmental specialists who understood how these systems worked.”
For Allard, the goal is not simply restoration, but renaturalization. Rather than imposing isolated ecological or economic outcomes, the project focuses on reviving the natural processes that once sustained the landscape as a whole.
Working in tandem with traditional knowledge and historical research, the project also draws on scientific and technical expertise. “Taking everyone’s perspective—hydrology, biology, engineering—and turning it into one holistic project that benefits everything has been a huge puzzle to put together,” Allard says.
The B.C. Wildlife Federation has been proud to support this work in partnership with the Lower Kootenay Band, providing assistance and expertise across various stages of the wetland project on Yaqan Nukiy territory, including maintenance, monitoring, and support with aspects of design and construction.
“I thought I had pretty extensive knowledge of the land going into this,” Allard reflects, “but working on these projects really opened my eyes to just how complex and powerful wetlands are.”
What began as a vision rooted in community values gained new momentum in 2018 when Allard partnered with Neil Fletcher, BCWF’s Director of Conservation Stewardship, and restoration ecologist Tom Biebighauser. Together, they began building a multi-year strategy grounded in both Indigenous knowledge and applied science.
“The B.C. Wildlife Federation has supported this project every year while maintaining a respectful partnership,” says Allard. “They’ve been involved since the beginning and have provided enthusiastic support whenever asked, without overstepping.”
Since then, the Lower Kootenay Band and its partners have excavated 243 new wetlands, covering 87 hectares and ranging from 50 centimetres to 3.8 metres deep. An additional 105 hectares of wetland basins have been reconnected. The South Goat River channel has also been restored, giving fish access to vital spawning habitat for the first time in decades. Water is flowing freely again across a landscape once cut off by dykes since the 1980s.
“If you want wetlands to function a certain way, you have to maintain that design forever,” says Allard. “That’s not what we’re doing. We’re looking at historical photos from the 1920s and putting the land back as close to what it was doing before. That way, we don’t have to keep coming back and shaping it into what we want. It becomes self-sustaining.”
No other wetland project in Canada has matched this scale and impact. It’s a powerful example of what’s possible when Indigenous leadership, community vision, and ecological expertise come together.
The project’s value lies in the habitats it supports—wetlands are among the most diverse ecosystems on Earth, providing essential refuge for mammals, birds, amphibians, fish, invertebrates, and plants. To restore a wetland is to revive an entire, interconnected web of life.
This emphasis on interconnectedness is central to the work. “Nature knows how to sustain itself better than humans can,” Allard explains. “This project aims to restore conditions where nature can take over. We’re helping, but nature already knows what it’s doing.”
The design also keeps long-term maintenance low. By reviving the land’s natural functions, the project reduces the need for future intervention and allows ecosystems to thrive on their own.
In 2024, the team completed 11 weeks of intensive fieldwork, supported by additional heavy machinery. In 2024 alone, the Yaqan Nukiy Wetland Project restored a total of 720,600 square metres (72.06 hectares) of wetland habitat.
In September, participants from the BCWF’s Wetlands Institute joined Norm Allard on-site for two days, walking the land, learning from his experience, and witnessing the depth of the work firsthand.
A six-week construction period is planned for September 2025, strategically timed to avoid peak wildfire season. At least two more years of work are expected through 2028, including targeted excavation, ongoing monitoring, and maintenance.
Looking ahead, the Yaqan Nukiy team is already planning to expand beyond the current 517-hectare area. Renaturalization efforts are expected to extend northward across additional reserves, in collaboration with the Creston Valley Wildlife Management Area and other partners.
“We’re looking to partner with those who are willing to listen to our ideas and incorporate them, and us, into future plans,” says Allard. “It’s important for us to work with organizations that respect and value our knowledge, culture, and heritage.”
“These ideas come from millennia of people living within these systems,” he continues. “We moved across the land and knew how to take care of all these things.”
As the Yaqan Nukiy Wetland Project expands, it continues to demonstrate the strength of Indigenous-led renaturalization. Grounded in cultural knowledge and a nature-knows-best approach, the project reflects a thoughtful, holistic way of restoring land, water, and habitat for the benefit of all living beings.
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Event Cancelled — Please check Norman Allard’s LinkedIn profile for rescheduling updates in the coming weeks.
Upcoming Event: Virtual Tour of the Yaqan Nukiy Wetland Project
Discover how Indigenous knowledge is leading one of Canada’s largest wetland restoration efforts. Join Norman Allard of the Lower Kootenay Band for a live virtual tour and Q&A session showcasing this powerful example of community-led ecological renewal.
- When: June 20, 2025 | 12:00–1:00 p.m. PST
- Where: Reconnect Experience YouTube channel
- What:
- Live virtual tour of the Yaqan Nukiy Wetland Restoration Project
- Hosted by Norman Allard, Community Planner, Lower Kootenay Band
- Includes Q&A and a behind-the-scenes look at the site
Details and livestream link: https://bcwfwatershedteam.ca/2025/06/09/yaqan-nukiy-livestream-2025/
BCWF Watershed Team 
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