Preparing your project

1. You become aware of an environmentalproblem involving a lake or watercourse and related components. What exactly is at issue?

• blue-green algae
• shoreline erosion
• loss of riparian and aquatic biodiversity
• intensive agriculture
• new urban development
• other

• Obtain and analyze information from shoreline residents, community representatives or specialists who reveal situations involving poor water quality and the degradation of the aquatic ecosystem at one or more target sites.
• Read and understand Quebec’s Protection Policy for Lakeshores,Riverbanks, Littoral Zones and Floodplains (PPRLPI) (MDDEFP, 2007a)
• Visitthesite to confirm initial concerns. Takephotosandnotes.
• Discuss the problem with regional specialists (DFO, MDDEFP and MRN representatives, university researchers) to validate or refute the issue.
• Assess municipal bylaws governing riparian strips (contact the person responsible for watercourses at the RCM). Only projects in riparian areas not covered by municipal bylaws are eligible for funding under the program (11.3).
• Read and understand Environment and Climate Change Canada’sofficialguideforthetargetedfundingprogram. Contact the program officer if necessary (7.3).

2. Ask yourself whether the riparian strip is degraded.

• Is the environmental problem completely or partially connected with a degraded or non-existent riparian strip (11.1) ?
• After preliminary analysis, determine what might have caused thedegradation of the aquatic environment (11.2 and Gagnon, 2007)
• Draft an initial description of the environmental problem and the issue, ideally a one- or two-page summary (3.1).
• Would the revegetation project include stabilization works below the high water mark? If so, make sure you are aware of the complexityand high cost of such work (soil bioengineering, riprap, etc.) (11.3).

3. Is your project eligible for funding under EnvironmentCanada’sfunding programs (EcoAction, Community Interaction, etc.)?

• Does the long-term environmental restoration of the target ecosystem involve one or more of the objectives of the project (3.2) ?
• Contact a program officer two to three months before the projectsubmission deadline to discuss the environmental problem, the restoration objective and the planned activities (7.3)
• Study the program officer’s recommendations and incorporate them into your funding application.

• If a site visit shows there is no eroding shoreline or floodplain, go to question 5.
• If signs of erosion are visible, but only in small areas on the shoreline, and no intervention is required, go to question 5.
• If the erosion observed requires stabilization work below the high water mark, describe the environmental problem caused by the shoreline erosion and the riparian vegetation (11.3).
• Determine the relevance of revegetating the shoreline if there is asubstantial risk of erosion on the lower part of the bank. Riparian revegetation is probably not the right solution for controlling erosion (11.3).
• Is the project on a floodplain? If the project is located on a plain that is flooded fairly regularly in spring, locally appropriate sustainableintervention is called for (11.3).

• Locate the watershed and target the sources of disturbance as wellas the project area on a map (Google Earth) (5).
• Characterize the riparian strip to expand upon the environmental problem using valid data. Measure the areas to be revegetated. Locate the project in the context of the watershed. Prepare fact sheets for each project site (6).
• Identify vegetation in undisturbed riparian strips near the project area in order to select species for the revegetation work (6).
• Locate areas to be revegetated on a map and identify priority riparian stretches, indicating why they were selected (5).

• Draft a summary of the project including the following four elements: 1) the environmental problem, along with the origin or causes of the problem; 2) the objective of project; 3) the activities required to implement the project; and 4) a realistic schedule. Later, once the characterization is complete, provide data in support of the project (3.1 to 3.4).
• Identify potential partners and draw up a list (7).
• Selectatleastoneoftheenvironmentalindicators in the list provided as part of the target program andquantifytheenvironmentalbenefitsof your project (4).
• Refer to the appropriate Environment and Climate Change Canada guide to ensure you comply with administrative aspects of the funding application.
• Have the summary reviewed by appropriate area specialists andthe program officer, ideally at least one and a half months before the application deadline.

• Contact your potential partners and forward the project summaryto them (7.2).
• Make every effort to obtaina maximum number of letters confirming partner participation. Obtain in writing the value of their contribution and a description of the goods and services they will contribute to the project.
• Obtain written authorization from riparian landowners (7.5).
• Follow up personally with partners and landowners to confirm that they submitted their partnership letters.
• Conduct a realistic assessment of the proponent’s contribution. Ensure it accounts for the organization’s actual capacity to contribute to the project and presents fair market and cash value of contributions in goods and services, specifically the salaries paid to employees by the proponent (7.4).

• What needs to be done to achieve the project objective? Select anddescribe the project activities. Provide a detailed description ofrevegetation activities (see example in guide) (3.3).
• Prepare a project schedule in table format. Be careful to ensure theproject start-up date coincides with a realistic date for the signing of the financial contribution agreement (3.4).
• If necessary, design an awareness program that is adapted to the target area and clients, supports the project objective and ensures the sustainability of revegetation efforts (7.6).

• Prepare an activity-specific budget, placing the focus onrevegetation-related activities (the most important section). The project budget is primarily based on the following items:

1. Revegetation approach (8.1, 8.2, 8.6, 9.1 and 9.2)
2. Difficulty accessing project sites
3. Plant purchases (quantity, size and type) (8.3 to 8.5)
4. Cost of awareness campaign (7.6)
5. Budget for maintaining and replacing dead plants in the years following planting (9.3 and 9.4)
6. Other project-related costs (administration, communications, environmental precautions, etc.) (7.6 and 9.6)

• Indicate all amounts in cash and in kind (goods and services).
• Balance revenues and expenses both in cash and in kind.

Estimate the total cost of the project. Does the budget respect the maximum funding limit set by the program and requirements regarding additional funding from other partners (7.6) ?

• If so, go to the following question. If not, there are three possible solutions for setting up the project:

1. Find moreefficientandlesscostly ways of carrying out the project by redesigning the activities (see question 5).
2. Find more financial partners (cash and in-kind contributions) (see question 5).
3. Subdividetheproject into several separate funding phases (see question 6), for example, by targeting smaller areas. In this case, describe the general plan and the various phases, and specify which ones are covered by the current funding application (3.2).

• Determine the level of volunteer participation (7.5).
• Prepare a detailed revegetation work plan, step by step (9.5).

• Present external sources of information (documents, studies, etc.) (10.)
• Prepare a photo album and fact sheets on degraded riparian strips, indicating their location.
• Prepare a diagram and cross-section for the revegetation work (9.5).

• A few weeks before the application deadline, have the preliminary proposal reviewedbya program officer, who could point out potential areas for improvement (7.3).
• Takenote of the application deadline for the selected program.
• Submit your funding application along with the appendices and partnership confirmations.
• Immediatelyforwardanylettersofpartnershipconfirmation received after the project application is submitted.

• Project schedule (Table 1)
• Performance indicators (Table 2)
• Plant mortality rate (Table 4)
• Planned plant purchases (Table 5)
• Revegetation maps (Maps 1 and 2)
• Sample revegetation cross-section and diagram (Figure 2)
• Sample revegetation work plan (3.3)
• Revegetation strategy (9.5)

• Identify native plants in a non-degraded riparian area near the site to be revegetated (8.6).
• Establish a selection of native plants based on the previously identified species (suitable for riparian strips).
• Assess the planting parameters (density, area and plant size) (8.2, 8.4 and Appendix 3).
• Determine the quantity of the plants (8.3).
• Evaluate the cost of the plants (8.5).

• Prepare a revegetation strategy in keeping with the specified requirements (8.1 and 9.5).
• Prepare an efficient revegetation method (9.2).
• Determine tools and materials requirements (9.1 and Appendix 2).
  
  
• Provide any required plant protection equipment (9.3).
• Determine the planting period (Appendix 1).
• Provide a budget for replacing dead plants (9.2).
• Plan for the removal of invasive plants, if necessary (9.6).
• Propose environmental protection measures, if necessary (9.6).