MCA Department of the Environment-Beaver Deceiver Project

Last Wednesday August 25th Beaver Deceivers Int. came to Akwesasne for a presentation at the Tsisnaihne Recreation Center and was followed by the building of a beaver deceiver structure on Thursday August 26th. The presentation and building workshop was performed by Skip Lyle, owner of Beaver Deceivers Int. The beaver deceiver was constructed on Chapman road where a culvert is constantly blocked by a beaver dam.

In his presentation Skip stressed how important beavers are to the environment as a keystone species and that they should be kept around. In the long run, beavers help ecosystems through the process of creating a lush environment full of life.

Fascinating as this process is, sometimes it could be overdone and damaging effects are caused. Areas get flooded or dammed as beavers build their dams. Some affected areas could be seen in the culverts around Chapman Road in Tsisnaihne or the bridge near Whoville on Wade Lafrance Memorial Road. These culverts get dammed up and block waterways for fish and turtles. Dams create a change in water levels on both sides of the road which leads to flood hazards.

Repeatedly digging up the dams made at these sites can be time consuming, costly and continued disruption to local wildlife occurs since the beavers will continue to rebuild the dams. The beaver will continue to rebuild the dam because the sound of running water compels them to do so. Also Skip stated “to the beavers, the culverts look like dams that need fixing.” Killing the beaver is inhumane and useless in the long run since new beavers will always show up and maintain the habitat.

The beaver deceiver is a pipe system device that will allow water to pass through without the noise of running water. Community members were able to help during the workshop on Thursday and learn from experience the process of making a beaver deceiver. Overall it was a great presentation and workshop and a great learning experience for those who participated.