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BackgroundIngram-Mooto Rainforest Under Siege!
Background on the Ingram-Mooto Watershed
"If a rainforest as vast and diverse as the Great Bear Rainforest can have a heart, then this region must be it. The forests that surround Roscoe Inlet, Yeo Island, and the Ingram, Mooto and Ellseslie lakes lie at the center of the largest contiguous block of intact temperate rainforest in the world."
The Great Bear Rainforest - Canada's Forgotten Coast. Ian McAllister
"... I faced the lake. I had never been in such full country and it felt strange to stand before it so empty. The lake was vast, so still, so clear, that I could read the constellations of the night sky on the surface of the water as clearly as by looking above."
Terry Tempest Williams.
Located in the traditional territory of the Heiltsuk First Nation at the head of Spiller Inlet, the Ingram-Mooto is a primary watershed situated approximately 30 miles north of Bella Bella on the West Coast of British Columbia. Four major elements characterize the Ingram-Mooto watershed which covers an area of approximately 109 square kms. First, a series of small lakes, which receive water from rain and snow-melt from the high ridges, flow into Mooto Lake, the largest lake in the watershed, and the second major element of the watershed. Mooto Lake flows into Ingram Lake, the third element, which then empties into Spiller Inlet via Ingram Creek. The final element of the watershed is the Pollallie Valley and Pollallie Lake, which drain into Ingram lake.
The Ingram-Mooto watershed is characterized by a rich mosaic of microclimates and habitats. Semi-alpine areas dominated by granite escarpments extend down steep slopes to lowland forest. This unique combination provides optimum habitat for mountain goats, an abundance of raptors and large numbers of black bears in the semi-alpine fringe. The valley floor (less than 7% of the landscape) supports highly productive low-elevation rainforest and several marshy inflows provide essential habitat for migrant waterfowl. In addition, the tailed frog and the marbled murrelet, two species classified as vulnerable to extinction have been observed in the Ingram-Mooto watershed. All pristine valleys have extremely high biological value, but the health of the Ingram-Mooto watershed is critical to the general ecological health of the entire Spiller Inlet ecosystem. Spiller Inlet is home to a rich and plentiful run of herring and a favored fishing ground of the Heilsuk First Nation. Herring are a primary food source for coastal salmon and another link in the web of life essential for salmon survival
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Deryk Wenaus
FAN works to replace industrial clearcutting
with community-based ecoforestry.