A time line of known events around the CRD and Island View Beach

  • 1858  First survey of the Saanich Peninsula.  The surveyor's notes in the area the CRD thought was a salt marsh were described by the surveyor as grass and low rushes, and in several places he mentioned 6" crab apple trees.
  • 1892  Henry Puckle purchases what is now called Puckle Farm.  The farm is described as having "some 30 acres of good land near the sea."   Again the area the CRD thought was a salt marsh.
  • 1906  A description of the farm in 1906 said "Below the ridge facing the sea 18 acres have been usually cropped with oats which yeilded 33 bushells an acre in 1906.  East of this 3 fields of about 9 acres each are in pasture hitherto fed by sheep."  Once more, the area the CRD thought was a salt marsh.
  • 1914-18  Military construct a drainage ditch on the Tsawout land so they can train there.   Again an area the CRD thought was a salt marsh.
  • 1936  A replacement flapper gate is put on the Tsawout ditch, and a new drainage system is constructed to the south by the District of Saanich with funding from the Federal Government, for  control of the mosquitoes that had been ravaging the countryside.   This area now described as a salt march, and with a new flapper gate needed for the Tsawout ditch that suggests the  Tsawout flapper gate had failed and allowed salt water to flood up the ditch and create the appearance of a salt marsh.  See 1936 details here
  • 1937  Reports from area residents and Federal Government Entomologist that the drainage ditches were a great success and had controlled the mosquitoes.
  • 1950's   Chinese market gardeners are farming on the flat lands of Puckle farm so it is clearly not a salt marsh as claimed by the CRD.
  • 1989 CRD park bylaw:
(i) The CRD Parks Department will cooperate with the Municipality of Central Saanich in preparing a drainage plan for the park. The purpose of this plan is to identify ways of improving the drainage system for purposes of alleviating flooding of private lands and controlling mosquito breeding sites 

(iii) The Regional Parks Department will keep all ditches in the park clear of debris. This will be included in the annual maintenance program.
  • 1990's  The Tsawout flapper gate fails again, and salt water comes up the ditch flooding the interior Tsawout lands and Puckle farm with salt water.  CRD does not check source of sea water and make the mistaken assessment this is a salt marsh where in fact it is made man.
  • 2006 CRD begin talks with Tsawout that leads to 5 years work and costs the CRD more than $18,000 for the Cordova Strategy.  Senior CRD Board member says the CRD Board knew nothing of the Cordova Strategy and had not approved it, and that it was "suddenly there" in 2011
  • 2008   Terrible mosquitoes from Island View Beach.  Central Saanich Council passes resolution calling on the CRD to clean ditches.  CRD do not reply to letter and do not clan the ditchs.
  • 2009      Provincial government researcher is told by CRD Parks the drainage ditches are not for mosquito control. This was false.
  • 2010  Cordova Strategy report comes out - it was managed by CRD Parks staff - it calls for filling in the mosquito drainage ditches, and opening up the sea wall to allow the park and surrounding lands to be flooded with salt water.
  • 2011  January CRD park staff announce they are just beginning the park management plan although having already spent 5 years working towards this secretly with the Cordova Strategy.
  • 2011 March 16   The first and only public meeting is held.  The public tell CRD park staff to leave the park alone.  They are ignored.
  • 2011 May 19  – area resident calls on CRD parks to clean the ditches.  Not done.
  • 2011 June 1 – significant correspondence between area resident and CRD parks.  Resident calls on CRD to clean the ditches.  Staff say not going to happen.  Staff also claim they don’t know how the ditches relate to the mosquito problem!!
  • 2011 June 10 – Meeting at Puckle Farm with Mayor, MLA, area residents and businesses and CRD.  The CRD promise to clean ditches but don’t.
  • 2011 June 15 – The CRD Regional Parks Committee ask the CRD Parks staff to clean the ditches – they don’t.
  • 2011 June   The CRD park staff engage a surveyor.  The CRD procurement policy is not followed, no authorization is obtained.  Cost $13,045.
  •  2011 July 20 – letter from Central Saanich Council to CRD calling on them to clean the ditches.  Letter given to CRD staff by Mayor of Central Saanich.  Staff do not give the the letter to the Parks Committee & do not  clean the ditches.
  • 2011 July 20 – an 800 signature public petition calling for the cleaning of the ditches is also given to CRD staff by Mayor of Central Saanich.  CRD Staff do not give the petition to Parks Committee and do not clean the ditches.
  • 2011 August 19  Resident letter to CRD demanding ditches be cleaned as required by the park bylaw.  "The arrogance and the lack of accountability have been appalling".   Ditches are not cleaned.
  • 2011 September 13  Resident letter to CRD  “Please stop messing around and clean the ditches.”
  • 2011 September 21  CRD Park staff tell the Regional parks Committee a long list of misleading and false stories why they can’t or should not clean the ditches – all misleading or false
  • 2011 September 21 The Regional Parks Committee instructs Parks staff to clean the ditches.  They don’t
  • 2011 October 3   Another resolution by Central Saanich Council to CRD to clean the ditches
  • 2011 October 4  Residents write to Regional Parks Committee detailing the misstatements on September 21, and reporting that the  ditches are still not cleaned
  • 2011 October 6 The CRD asks Central Saanich to clean the ditches'as CRD Parks have not done them
  • 2011 October     Central Saanich cleans the ditches
  • 2012  January     The drainage system is working perfectly.  Areas that were previously flooded through most of the summer are dry.
  • 2012    Tsawout commision first repair attempt to fix their flapper gate.  Partly successful and flow of sea water continues but at a reduced rate.
  • 2012  May    Usually the start of the heavy mosquito season.  For the first time in 20 years there are no mosquitoes now the ditches are cleaned!
  • 2012 June 18  CRD park staff put before the Regional Parks Committee 2 pages from a students school project even though they were notified had major errors in, and that a CRD parks staffer had involvement in it.   They do not inform Parks Committee of these.  Say instead they have “not studied it”.
  • 2012 June 19 Letter from Central Saanich Council  to clean ditches.  CRD park staff do not clean the ditches in the mosquito areas despite calls to do so.
  • 2013 January 14  Public (mis)“information” session held in middle of winter, in Sidney, 12 km from park.  Most of information shown is inaccurate.   No information is given about the feedback from the public and Central Saanich about the drainage ditches and mosquitoes, or that Central Saanich cleaned the ditches, or that ditch cleaning solved the mosquito problem.
  •  2013 March 20  CRD park staff give two recommendations to Regional Parks Committee about fixing berm – one outrageous, the other not to fix.  They do not give information on cost to fix berm
  • 2013 April 8  Senior CRD staffer grossly exaggerates to Central Saanich Council the little work done by CRD parks at Island View
  • 2013  May  This is the second year after the ditches were cleaned by Central Saanich and again no mosquitoes!
  •  2013 July   CRD park staff put to the Regional Parks Committee a draft interim management plan.  Plan that has many exaggerated and questionable claims about the environment and other matters.
  • 2013 August  The Regional parks Committee pass the flawed plan on to the CRD Board
  • 2013 September   The CRD Board release the flawed plan on to the public.
  • 2013 September   No public meetings are held on plan.  Only two sessions and there the CRD parks staff control the flow of information – a beach walk and drop in at the Tsawout gym.
  • 2013 September   Display boards at the Tsawout drop in do not match the content or intent of the draft plan.
  • 2013  September  Draft plan written in a manner that the public are not able to determine its intent.
  • 2013  October 16 Residents are denied the opportunity to address the Regional Parks Committee
  • 2013 November 13   CRD abandon the 2013 draft plan because of the errors in it.
  • 2013 November 20  CRD Regional Parks Committee "reconfirm the CRD commitments in the 1989 park management plan with respect to the maintenance of the drainage system in island View Park and the mosquito abatement program." 
  • 2013 November 20  CRD Regional Parks Committee reject staff attempt to use results of response forms because they are not statistically valid. 
  • 2013 December 24  Regional Parks Chair writes to resident agreeing the few response "findings cannot be represented as a poll result."   
  • 2014  CRD park staff ignore Regional Parks Chair and post exaggerated claims on the CRD website based on the handful of response forms.
  • 2014 February 19  Residents again denied opportunity to address the Regional Parks Committee
  • 2014 May  Parks Committee give staff direction that a new environmental study is to be done to: "Provide factual technical and scientific information about the natural environment found in the park.          
                           >        Regional Geographic setting      ·     
                                    >·               Natural features of the Park:
·                                               - Regional geographic setting
                                                - Terrain, hydrology
                                                - Species at risk (flora and fauna)"
  • 2015 January    Eights months later, the CRD releases environmental presentation, that grossly exaggerates the species at risk in the park and doe snot disclose the likely effect of climate change and sea level rise on the park environment.   Other errors of fact in the presentation.
  • 2015 January    The Friends of Island View Beach call on the CRD to postpone the scheduled public hearings because there is no factual information about the park to put before them, and to do a proper environmental review.  Also call for the formation of a Parks subcommittee to  make inquiries, and present recommendations to the Regional Parks Committee on how to move forward.