History
Tourism
Kelowna, in the heart of the beautiful Okanagan Valley, is a prime tourist destination all year round. Tourists travel from various parts of Canada, Europe, Australia and other countries to take advantage of Kelowna’s “Four Season Playground”, which includes skiing, boating, hiking, wine and spirit tasting and, of course, golfing.
The Central Okanagan tourism industry is worth $2B per year, generates $204,000,000 in tax revenue and over $443,000,000 in direct spending at local businesses, and generates 13,000 jobs within the Central Okanagan region. In 2022, more than 1,000,000 passengers travelled through Kelowna International Airport, which is well on the way to returning to its pre-COVID-19 number of over 2,000,000 passengers annually.
Kelowna Springs
Part of the Kelowna Springs has been housed by a championship golf club for the last 33 years. It occupies 43 hectares (106-acres) and is bordered on the north, east, south and northern half of the boundary by agricultural land.
The Springs has over 600 trees that are roughly 35 years old. These trees are in their prime for sequestering carbon which is important in countering climate change. The soils, grasses and trees are important as the carbon sinks and the trees release oxygen as they take up the carbon dioxide.
The Springs is an important greenspace as it provides a buffer to the surrounding land. It is closely interconnected to the adjacent wetland (as explained below) and is heavily treed and vegetated which is important for countering climate change.
Wetlands
The bordering land of the golf course is in the Agricultural Land Reserve (ALR). As the golf course is a green space, it offers a buffer to the surrounding land, which is a wetland, Simpson's Pond. As it is a designated wetland, it requires special consideration due to its environmental sensitivity. Species that rely on wetlands include migratory birds, amphibians, insects for birds, bats, and a wide variety of plants.
Wetlands provide critical ecosystem services including flood control, groundwater recharge, water purification, nutrient cycling, and carbon
sequestration. The Springs includes 7 ponds that provide wildlife
habitat and water to irrigate the golf course so it is a closed system (does not rely on outside water for irrigation).
Most golf courses in the Okanagan require off-site water for irrigation so this one is unique in that regard making it more environmentally self-sufficient water wise and more sustainable. The wetlands butt up to the western boundary so it logically feeds into the water-table of the golf course so the wetland and the golf course are “interconnected through the water-table.”
Wildlife
Over the years many species of wildlife have been observed by local nature enthusiasts, in the surrounding areas and on The Springs. There have been turtles, foxes, owls, muskrats, ducks, geese, fish, ospreys, bald eagles, hawks, herons, bats and other animals on the course. In addition to these animals making this area their home, the following birds have also been spotted:
American Coot
American Crow
American Goldfinch
American Kestrel
American Robin
American Wigeon
Bald Eagle
Bank Swallow
Barn Swallow
Belted Kingfisher
Black-billed Magpie
Black-capped Chickadee
Blackbird
Bohemian Waxwing
Brewer’s Blackbird
Brown-headed Cowbird
Bufflehead
Bullock’s Oriole
Cackling Goose
California Gull
California Quail
Canada Goose
Cedar Waxwing
Chipping Sparrow
Cinnamon Teal
Common Nighthawk
Common Merganser
Common Raven
Common Yellowthroat
Cooper’s Hawk
Dark-eyed Junco
Downy Woodpecker
Eastern Kingbird
Eurasian Collared Dove
European Starling
Gadwall
Golden-crowned Kinglet
Goose
Gray Catbird
Great Blue Heron
Great Egret
Great Horned Owl
Greater White-fronted
Greater Yellowlegs
Green-winged Teal
Hooded Merganser
House Finch
House Sparrow
Killdeer
Lesser Yellowlegs
Mallard
Marsh Wren
Merlin
Mourning Dove
Northern Flicker
Northern Harrier
Northern Rough-winged
Northern Shoveler
Orange-crowned
Pacific-slope Flycatcher
Peregrine Falcon
Pied-billed Grebe
Pine Siskin
Red Crossbill
Red-breasted Nuthatch
Red-tailed Hawk
Red-winged Blackbird
Redhead
Ring-billed Gull
Ring-necked Duck
Ring-necked Pheasant
Rock Dove
Rough-legged Hawk
Ruby-crowned Kinglet
Ruddy Duck
Sandhill Crane
Savannah Sparrow
Sharp-shinned Hawk
Snow Goose
Solitary Sandpiper
Song Sparrow
Sora Rail
Spotted Sandpiper
Spotted Towhee
Swallow
Tree Swallow
Turkey Vulture
Violet-green Swallow
Virginia Rail
Warbler
Warbling Vireo
Western Bluebird
Western Meadowlark
Western Tanager
Western Wood-Pewee
White-crowned Sparrow
White-faced Ibis
Wilson’s Snipe
Yellow Warbler
Yellow-headed
Yellow-rumped Warbler