BMN About the Burke Mountain Naturalists

About the Burke Mountain Naturalists

The Burke Mountain Naturalists (BMN) was formed in 1989 by local residents interested in enjoying nature and conserving local green spaces. Most of our members reside in Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam or Port Moody (“the TriCities”), which are located east of Vancouver, British Columbia. BMN is a member club of the Federation of British Columbia Naturalists (FBCN), now re-named BC Nature.

• Contact Information

• Membership Information

We are a registered non-profit society with charitable income status.

Our objectives are

• to promote the enjoyment of nature
• to foster an interest in, and an appreciation of, our environment
• to actively pursue the conservation and preservation of the natural world
• to promote the accessibility and maintenance of natural areas, particularly local areas.

Our activities include

• Monthly Meetings

• Field Trips and Hikes

• Education and Conservation

History and Background

The Burke Mountain Naturalists was formed in 1989 by local residents who called for protection of critical habitat areas such as Colony Farm on the lower Coquitlam River and local mountain slopes referred to as Greater Vancouver’s ‘backyard wilderness’, now Pinecone-Burke Provincial Park. Today, BMN remains as an active group of people interested in enjoying nature, conserving local green spaces and promoting a more sustainable way of life.

Some of our past accomplishments are:

The protection of:

• Pinecone-Burke Provincial Park (1995)
• Colony Farm Regional Park (1995)
• Coquitlam River Wildlife Management Area (1994)
• Douglas Island (part of the Fraser River Islands Regional Park)
• Eagle Mountain (part of Indian Arm Provincial Park)
• stopping logging in Greater Vancouver’s drinking watersheds
• preventing a proposed gravel mine in the remote upper Pitt River

Current objectives and activities include:

• preservation of the historic Riverview Hospital lands and arboretum
• minimizing impacts on wildlife, wetlands and salmon habitat in areas undergoing development
• protection, habitat enhancement and invasive species removal in areas such as DeBoville Slough, Coquitlam and Pitt Rivers
• installing and maintaining bird nest boxes in sites such as Widgeon Marsh Regional Park Reserve, Minnekhada Regional Park, Shoreline and Mundy Parks
• partnering with other stewards and governments to manage protected areas such as Colony Farm Regional Park.
• advocating for effective protection of species at risk
• public education to reduce human impacts on the natural world

BMN actively promotes Naturescape BC, a provincial program to encourage homeowners and municipalities to create gardens and landscapes which appeal to both wildlife and people. In response to appeals from BMN, Port Moody and Anmore were the first two local governments in BC to adopt Naturescape as civic policy.

The club name is taken from Burke Mountain, located in northeast Coquitlam, and was chosen because the mountain is a distinctive natural feature visible from Coquitlam, Port Coquitlam, and Port Moody. The mountain was named after Edmund Burke, a British author and statesman.