The population of the Lower Mainland is now more than three million people, and 91原创 has almost 200,000 between the City and the Township.

That's a lot of people, buildings, cars, industrial sites, trash, old paint, used motor oil, poorly-stored manure, and other potential threats to our local rivers and streams.

Think of rivers in 91原创, and the first that comes to mind is the Fraser.

But there are countless other small streams, ranging from seasonal trickles of water that run through the low spots of fields, up to some fairly major salmon bearing streams, including the Salmon River, Nicomekl River, Little Campbell River, and creeks like Yorkson, Bertrand, and Nathan.

Rivers in 91原创 flow south into the United States, west towards Surrey's Serpentine River and the Strait of Georgia, and north into the Fraser River.

All of these streams have fish, many with salmon runs, along with trout, dace, and the endangered Salish sucker. In addition they host crayfish and provide water sources for local wildlife.

We haven't always been kind to our streams. Smaller ones were plowed under or channelized into ditches by turn-of-the-century farmers and lumber mill operators. Others have been paved over in places.

However, dedicated volunteers are working to protect and, where possible, to restore our local streams. For every major creek system in 91原创, there's a streamkeeper group that is cleaning up trash, watching out for pollution or illegal fishing, and advocating for the continued preservation of the natural environment.

Now that it's spring, a time to get outdoors and enjoy our community, try to familiarize yourself with our local streams. Most of 91原创's major parks were created around a stream, and it's not hard to get up close and personal with a creek.

Preserving our natural environment provides practical benefits. Areas with significant tree cover can moderate temperatures, something we need more of in this era of climate change and heat domes. They give us cleaner air and scrub away some of our CO2 emissions.

They're also good for our mental health. Time spent in nature is good for people, to the point that some doctors have begun writing prescriptions for nature walks to reduce stress.

This spring, visit your local stream, especially if you've never done so. Protecting our natural world is good for us all.