Click on map to enlarge.
Stein River Valley
Among the major valleys and watersheds in Southwestern British Columbia, there remains only one that is still fully intact and un-logged: the Stein Valley. A stunning 110,000ha watershed that contains a plethora of flora and fauna, as well as pictographs and other artifacts belonging to 7000 years of Native occupation, its very existence is evidence that dedication and dreams can indeed save Wilderness areas.
The Stein campaign is a successful example of cooperation between First Nations, Environmental groups like the Wilderness Committee, individuals like Dr. David Suzuki and the energy and skills of many to save a wilderness area from clear-cut logging. Innovative tactics were used. The organization of the Stein Fests on lower and higher(Alpine!) elevations with performers like Bruce Cockburn and Gordon Lightfoot drew in the support of the public to see the Stein protected. In 1993-1994, protests in Clayoquot sound reached a climax with ~800 environmental protestors arrested. Seeking to heal the rift between itself and a large constituency of environmentalists, the NDP government at the time (1995) doubled the provincial park land-base in BC. As a result the Stein Valley Provincial Park was created as an area to be co-managed by the Lytton First Nation and BC government.
First nations
Traditionally belonging to the Lytton and Mt. Currie First Nations, the Stein’s fate had been under debate for fourteen years when the BC government decided to impose unsustainable logging onto the pristine area in 1987. This was in direct defiance of the Wilderness Advisory Committee’s report in 1986 that a formal agreement would have to be made with the Lytton Band before any activity was to occur in the Stein.
Stein vision quest cave with pictographs.
Organizations taking action
Enraged that the last opportunity to study and experience an unsullied watershed of this kind would be extinguished, First Nations and environmental groups, including the Western Canada Wilderness Committee, embarked upon a campaign to fully preserve it. Unshaken by the government’s decision in 1987 to build a road into the Stein despite the fact that the Stein Valley is integral to Native culture and spirituality, the First Nations continued The Stein Rediscovery, a program meant to put Native youth back in touch with their sacred territory.
United Nations
The First Nations even brought the issue to the United Nations in 1988, claiming that road-building in the area violated their religious rights. Meanwhile, the Wilderness Committee continued to upgrade the spectacular, 90 km Stein Heritage Trail, published newsletters on the issue, handed out free Stein posters in Downtown Vancouver, lobbied the government, and partook in the Stein Fests. Finally, these efforts paid off. In 1988, the BC forest minister met with the Lytton and Mt. Currie bands and promised that no road would be built into the Stein in the absence of formal Native consent. The meeting also yielded a proposal for a seven-month moratorium on logging. The First Nations adamantly refused to allow a road, which pushed out industry and sealed the final fate of the valley. In April of 1989 Fletcher Challenge imposed a 1 year moratorium on logging in the Stein so that native land claims could be resolved. On November 22, 1995 the Stein River Watershed was protected in it’s entirety.
Future
Today, the Stein remains an undamaged wilderness space, a relic of watersheds of its kind, of harmonious Native occupation, and of the ability for dreams to come true.
Geography
As a type, the Stein River Valley is extremely rare: Very few rivers in BC traverse such a wide range of landform, climate and vegetation in such a short distance. The valley is a relatively young landscape, having been shaped in the glacial periods. With the passage of time however, erosion has carved a V-shaped gorge at the river’s mouth with steep walls and a narrow bottom. Pecipitation within the valley itself varies greatly. Over 200 cm falls in the headwater lakes area each year, while only 45 cm falls at the mouth of the river. The Stein River Valley is composed of 6 distinct Biogeoclimatic Zones, from Alpine Tundra at the river’s head to Northern Ponderosa Pine – Bunchgrass where the Stein River meets the Fraser. Each zone and within the zones different sections have their own characteristics, wildlife and vegetation.
Ecosystem
The headwater lakes are only ice-free for 2-3 months/year and do not support fish populations. Instead, they harbour communities of invertebrates adapted to cold, rigorous conditions. This part of the Basin is called the Alpine Tundra (AT) zone where few trees survive and those that do look more like shrubs than trees. During the Summer months, lush bunches of colourful flowers such as heather, glacier lilies, anemones, buttercups, Indian paintbrushes, lupine, daisies, and alpine sage bloom. This portion of the valley is the summer or permanent home to many species of animals, including the grizzly bear, moose and deer, marmots, pikas and mountain goat. In the last and lowest section of the river, the river opens out into the rolling benches and terraces that border the Fraser River. Pink salmon spawn only in this portion of the Stein River. The forest is mainly composed of Ponderosa Pine, which are widely spaced and have extensive root systems to collect water. This is the Ponderosa Pine-Bunchgrass (PPBG) zone, the driest and hottest in the province. Douglas firs are also present. This part of the valley is the most valuable winter and spring range for mule deer, mountain goats, black and grizzly bear. The mature Douglas Fir and Ponderosa Pine provide habitat for a large variety of birds such as blue grouse, Clarks nutcrackers, woodpeckers, nuthatches and chickadees.
