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What's new // Backgrounders

Backgrounders

Materials to provide context, establish facts, and aid understanding.

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Backgrounders
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  • A SARA fact sheet floats over top of a single SRKW killer whale breaching with some branches seen in the foreground.
    Backgrounders

    Why Canada needs SARA’s jeopardy test

    2026 September 42026 September 4

    The jeopardy test is a legal line: a project cannot be authorized if it threatens the survival or recovery of a species.

    Read More Why Canada needs SARA’s jeopardy testContinue

  • Fact sheet floast on top of a swarm of juvenile herring are surounded by bright blue waters and rich yellow and brown kelp.
    Backgrounders

    Herring eggs can’t get away from disaster

    2026 September 42026 September 8

    Don’t build new risks into herring’s nursery. Robert’s Bank Terminal 2 and West Coast Oil Pipeline would add different pressures to the same nearshore waters. Pacific herring should not have to absorb both.

    Read More Herring eggs can’t get away from disasterContinue

  • Wolf with a fish in the mouth runs through shallow water and pups following behind.
    Backgrounders

    The roles of wolves in healthy ecosystems and how their presence benefits other species

    2026 August 112026 August 11

    Protect wolves, protect entire ecosystems.

    Read More The roles of wolves in healthy ecosystems and how their presence benefits other speciesContinue

  • Aerial view of a cutblock with a forest and creak to the right.
    Backgrounders

    Endangered caribou, wolves, and ecological integrity

    2026 June 32026 June 3

    Killing wolves to protect caribou may accelerate ecological decline and ultimately diminish long-term caribou survival prospects.

    Read More Endangered caribou, wolves, and ecological integrityContinue

  • Slide 2: An ecotype is a population within the same species that has developed unique genetic traits over time in response to the specific environment it lives in, such as local climate, available prey, or habitat type. Two primary wolf ecotypes are recognized in BC.
    Backgrounders

    Wolf ecotypes in BC

    2026 May 292026 May 29

    Understanding the ecotype of recovering wolves is critical for conservation, as distinct ecotypes carry adaptations that influence habitat use, diet, and ecological function.

    Read More Wolf ecotypes in BCContinue

  • On the left is a coastal rainforest ecotype of wolf, with dark fur, and the left is a Northern Rocky Mountain forest ecotype wolf, in a snowy scene with light grey fur and a larger head.
    Backgrounders

    Genetic legacy and ecological differences of grey wolves (Canis lupus) in southern British Columbia

    2026 May 272026 July 27

    Understanding the ecotype of recovering wolf populations is important for conservation and management.

    Read More Genetic legacy and ecological differences of grey wolves (Canis lupus) in southern British ColumbiaContinue

  • An illustration of pink salmon filets with some chopped lemons and seasoning.
    Backgrounders

    So you live in B.C., but you’re mostly finding Alaska-caught salmon in stores. Why?

    2026 May 222026 August 13

    We need to talk about cost, complexities, what “sustainable salmon” really means.

    Read More So you live in B.C., but you’re mostly finding Alaska-caught salmon in stores. Why?Continue

  • A group of three killer whales swim, the one in the centre peeking their face out above the surface, bordered by the dorsal fins of the other two.
    Backgrounders

    Clues to help you tell Southern Resident and Bigg’s (transient) killer whales apart

    2026 April 162026 April 15

    Raincoast CSI: Cetacean Species Identification.

    Read More Clues to help you tell Southern Resident and Bigg’s (transient) killer whales apartContinue

  • A Southern Resident killer whale smashes its tail down on the water.
    Backgrounders

    Letter in support of the proposed increase of a 1,000m approach distance for Southern Resident killer whales

    2026 March 232026 April 1

    The Government of Canada is seeking public feedback on proposed amendments to the Marine Mammal Regulations that would strengthen protections for endangered Southern Resident killer whales.  The following is the formal submission by Raincoast. Letter: March 19, 2026 To: Marine Mammal Regulations inbox dfo [dot] ncrfmmmrconsultation-consultationrmmgprcn [dot] mpo [at] dfo-mpo [dot] gc [dot] ca. Heather…

    Read More Letter in support of the proposed increase of a 1,000m approach distance for Southern Resident killer whalesContinue

  • A group of wolf pups sit together in a lush green forest, looking at and playing with one another.
    Backgrounders

    Seasonal shifts in a wolf’s life

    2026 March 172026 March 17

    What does a wolf’s development look like?

    Read More Seasonal shifts in a wolf’s lifeContinue

  • A crew members works in the Fraser River Estuary preparing a small marsh.
    Backgrounders

    Letter: Urgent recommendation for the renewal and expansion of the British Columbia Salmon Restoration and Innovation Fund (BCSRIF)

    2026 March 102026 March 13

    Letter to Honourable Joanne Thompson, Minister of Fisheries.

    Read More Letter: Urgent recommendation for the renewal and expansion of the British Columbia Salmon Restoration and Innovation Fund (BCSRIF)Continue

  • Two forest workers walk through the largish trees of the Gulf Islands with sunny yellow skies in the background.
    Backgrounders

    The Islands Trust Policy Statement, and how it’s veering off-course

    2026 March 92026 March 13

    A lot can happen in seven years.

    Read More The Islands Trust Policy Statement, and how it’s veering off-courseContinue

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