The Saint John/Wolastoq Watershed
Le bassin versant de la rivière Saint-Jean/Wolastoq
A Bountiful River Watershed
The mighty Saint John River dominates most of western New Brunswick. Also known by its original name the Wolastoq, which means the beautiful and bountiful river in Wolastoqey, it is a cornerstone of life, sustaining nature, forests and hundreds of towns and cities along its path.
The Saint John/Wolastoq spans over 600 kilometers, beginning in the state of Maine, and flows through the provinces of Québec and New Brunswick before making its way to the Bay of Fundy. It is home to an abundance of forests, marshes, bogs, and streams, including several wildlife at risk such as the Canada Warbler and the Wood Turtle.
What’s the Issue?
Growing development and increasing human activities are putting this important area at risk. The watershed is under stress from habitat loss and fragmentation due to growing human settlements and wide highways, as well as pollution and climate change.
Forestry and farming are the main activities in the northwestern portion of the Saint John/Wolastoq. These activities, when they don’t take care to conserve habitats, make life harder for Species at Risk (SAR) and make the region more vulnerable to the flooding, droughts, and heat stress that we are experiencing due to climate change.
Our Work
CPAWS NB is working in the northwestern portion of the river with local partners, private landowners, and other environmental non-governmental organizations (ENGO’s).
We’re working to create awareness and encourage forestry practices that support resilient and robust forests, rivers and wetlands, at-risk wildlife conservation and recovery, and connectivity for wildlife in the Saint John/Wolastoq watershed.
The wildlife we are focusing on include Canada Warbler, Olive-sided Flycatcher, Little Brown Myotis (bat), Northern Myotis (bat), Black Ash and Wood Turtle.
Our Goals
To sustain habitat for wildlife at risk in the area, we need to:
- Ensure forests are managed to conserve old and mixed forests and healthy stream banks for a healthy wildlife habitat
- Ensure community members in the area (landowners and the interested public) have access to bilingual wildlife habitat information
If you are a private woodlot owner in the Northwest and want to learn more about wildlife at risk or managing forests on your property, please reach out to us!