Project Profile

Sheep Paddocks Trail, located within Colony Farm Regional Park in Coquitlam, BC, provides a multi-use hiking and cycling link between the regional Traboulay PoCo Trail and the Mundy Creek Trail. ISL was engaged to provide design, tendering, and construction services for the 1.4 km trail. The trail is located in an ecologically sensitive wetland adjacent to the Coquitlam River. Trail development work included bank stabilization, invasive plant removal, riparian habitat restoration planting, and a 1.5 ha constructed wetland.

The focus of the wetland was to provide a habitat for species at risk of western painted turtles. Site work also included public amenities such as fencing, benches, and interpretive signage at the new wetland.

The trail lies in the floodplain of the Coquitlam River, requiring a balance between floodplain relief and trail infrastructure flood protection. ISL designed the trail to be located on a berm at elevations that allow for 1:10 year storm flooding. Culverts at the trail berm also limit disruption to existing stormwater and wildlife movements.

Environmental regulations limited the length of annual in-stream construction work requiring project implementation to be phased over multiple years.