Vol. 1, No. 4
Headline Back Issues Fall 1997
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Wayne Annis' lessons in stewardship bring new meaning to "current events"
Annis says he, his wife Angela, and their four-year-old daughter Alanah also plan to restore fish habitat in the stream behind their house in tiny Burtts Corner, just northwest of Fredericton. But restoration is more than a weekend hobby for this river enthusiast. Vice-principal and environmental science teacher at Nackawic High School in Nackawic, a town midway between Fredericton and the Maine/Canada border, Annis' unruffled, attentive composure is warmed by his earnest zeal for river restoration. Combining his work as an educator with his concern for the health of rivers, Annis has taken innovative steps to involve young people in river restoration projects. He's guided groups of students through every stage of the restoration process, from identifying problems to wading into the water with logs and rocks, strategically placing them to recreate resting pools for migrating fish. Migrating fish habitat lost New Brunswick's stocks of anadromous fish species such as salmon that migrate to and from the ocean have declined over the years as dams have been built, blocking their passage back and forth. Erosion and silt have filled the deep, oxygen-rich pools in which salmon rest during their spawning season. "Left to nature, the rivers will pretty much maintain their natural flows and patterns, but with human impacts and siltation and erosion, they'll fill in so you have a stream that, over time, gets wider and wider and shallower," and is no longer hospitable to fish, says Annis. "I think over the years we've really ignored rivers. They've been convenient garbage disposal units more than anything else," he says. But Annis is encouraged that more New Brunswickers are apparently realizing that they've lost just about all anadromous fish species in the upper parts of some rivers, and are willing to try to restore habitat the fish need to spawn. Annis first began river restoration work about six years ago, when he joined other concerned citizens in forming the Keswick River Society. The group worked with Canada's Department of Fisheries and Oceans to assess and restore fish habitat, and also organized river cleanups and raised Atlantic salmon to re-stock the Keswick. While teaching in Keswick's Valley Memorial School, Annis and some of his colleagues began to explore the possibilities for using rivers as teaching resources. He continued this pursuit after being transferred to another school, about 30 miles/48 kilometers northwest, teaching his seventh-grade science students there to evaluate the condition of a river and to develop a plan to restore it. River becomes classroom
Teachers are already using components of Annis' curriculum to help students understand science, ecosystems, cultural identity, and how to use natural resources without depleting them. Students also learn the satisfaction of collaborating on challenging physical tasks. As part of a project designed to restore fish habitat in McQuarrie Brook, a tributary of the Meduxnekeag, Annis says his students gained "a fairly good understanding of hydrology and meander patterns for streams and rivers" while learning about agriculture management and forestry issues. They first examined the condition of the brook's fish habitat, cataloged species living there, and determined where to recreate resting pools. Then they installed "digger logs" and rock deflectors to re-establish important habitat features, protected the brook's banks from erosion, picked up litter, and cleared away obstructions. "I guess the ideal for me is creating opportunities where kids are so involved in the process of learning that they forget they're learning," observes Annis. As Annis' school district helped pull together more funding, his work in the watershed expanded into an effort called Partners with the Meduxnekeag, a group that also raises 20,000 salmon annually in a Woodstock incubator for release into the Meduxnekeag River. Since Annis left Woodstock, the group has been consolidating its restoration efforts under the new name Meduxnekeag River Association, and the school projects he launched are continuing under the leadership of other teachers, he notes. According to Annis, although communities have undertaken river restoration for some time, involving junior and senior high school students using an environmental curriculum was a new approach when he started it. "Anything environmentally-related at that point was either on the rain forests or something far-removed from something kids in our area could relate to," he explains. And, when environmental issues were introduced, it was usually no earlier than high school, he says. Annis wanted to develop a curriculum to introduce children to the importance of river ecosystems in kindergarten. Bringing students out of the classroom and onto the rivers themselves has been much more effective than using textbooks to teach youngsters about the roles rivers play in the natural and cultural environment, and about their connection with the sea by way of anadromous fish, like salmon, he explains. Backyard issues win attention Annis hasn't limited his educational efforts to young people, however. He also gives technical advice to other groups undertaking river stewardship projects, he says, noting that some maritime rivers have experienced a four-fold increase in their numbers of anadromous fish just two years after restoration work has taken place. Annis' projects have drawn support from government and foundation grants, and the Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine Environment, and from businesses who donate equipment, materials, and services. St. John-based Irving Oil Ltd. replaced a culvert as part of one project. While the demands of his new position as vice-principal and his pursuit of a master's degree have left Annis with little time to "muck around in the water," he says he is grateful he's been able to cultivate in subsequent generations of stewards an understanding of the importance of restoring fish habitat. These young people are also sharing their lessons with their parents. Annis likes to recount a story about a student whose father had taken the young teenager fishing. The boy landed a fish large enough to make tasty meal for two. After watching his son gently remove the hook and return the fish to the water, the father asked why on earth he let such a prize catch go. "Well, Dad," said the boy, "I was thinking about the future." An A+ answer in Annis' book. To order a copy of the videotape on river restoration, River Revival, E-mail Wayne Annis at
anniswaj@nbed.nb.ca or phone him at (506) 575-6020 or write |
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Gulf of Maine Council on the Marine
Burtts Corner, New Brunswick -- Not many people raise Atlantic salmon in their backyards. But given Wayne Annis' devotion to preserving and restoring river ecology, it seems only natural that his family would share their home with a tankful of 1,500 silvery young salmon each year, releasing them into the nearby Keswick River when they are mature enough.
Recognizing the value of Annis' efforts, his school district granted him a two-year sabbatical from the classroom, allowing him to work intensively in the field with students to restore fish habitat in the Meduxnekeag River watershed. Annis also developed an educational curriculum soon to be available to communities throughout the maritime provinces which incorporates rivers as teaching resources for all subjects, in the context of sustainable development. A complementary videotaped program, River Revival, is available to communities interested in undertaking their own stewardship efforts.