Region Archives: Canada West

I watched as Guujaaw, former president of the Council of the Haida Nation, testified at the B.C. Supreme Court. The legendary Haida chief was the Crown’s star witness in a $75 million lawsuit brought by Teal Cedar Products Ltd. against the province of B.C. and the Haida Gwaii Management Council. The suit has been going on for months, but not until Guujaaw arrived did the judge hear an Indigenous perspective on what the forest industry has done to the landscape, and people, of Haida Gwaii. …The matter of sovereignty over Haida Gwaii remains a point of conflict between the Haida Nation and the province of B.C., and that conflict goes much deeper than Teal’s current fight with the province.  …Whether the judge concludes that reconciliation did indeed cost Teal $75 million, and that taxpayers should reimburse them, is something we won’t know until the second half of 2024, when the decision is expected.

…Forests, wildlife and waterways are core to what makes [BC] so special. And with biodiversity declining worldwide at an alarming rate, including here in B.C., action to protect nature has reached a critical turning point. 2023 was a transformative year for commitments to protect nature. Not only are these promises answering the urgent call for change, they recognize the leadership of First Nations as equal partners and decision-makers. We have much to celebrate, and to do to make a difference on the ground. …Next year is a leap year. We urge the B.C. government to take a leap for nature — to bring the words on paper to life and make progress on important conservation targets. Only then can we ensure that nature in all its diversity — the big trees and the straggly ones, the caribou and the salmon, the bugs and the birds — is preserved for generations to come.

Williams Lake, B.C. – Central Chilcotin Rehabilitation Ltd. (CCR), a First Nations-owned and operated company, has been making significant strides in the forest industry through their participation in wildfire risk reduction, stand rehabilitation and fibre utilization projects. CCR is a joint venture between the Tŝideldel First Nation and Tl’etinqox Government, both Tsilhqot’in Nation communities, dedicated to safeguarding the land through traditional Indigenous practices. Over the past few years, CCR has received support from the Forest Enhancement Society of BC, including recently announced funding for three fibre utilization and wildfire risk reduction projects. …One of the projects CCR allows for the full utilization of trees and harvesting debris including tree tops originating from stands of dead trees killed by the mountain pine beetle years ago. …The recovered fibre will help support the Cariboo pulp mill in Quesnel and the Drax pellet plant and Atlantic Power facility in Williams Lake.

Salmon researchers from BC are embarking on a three-year study to understand and help mitigate the cumulative threats affecting the vulnerable species in the province’s watersheds. The Watershed Futures Initiative, which includes researchers from Simon Fraser University, University of British Columbia and University of Montana, has received $1.25 million from the federal and provincial governments to tackle the combined impacts of logging, mining, urban development, agriculture, climate change and other factors on salmon. ….While the devastating effect of these risks are studied in isolation, there is an urgent need to improve both the science and management of cumulative effects in BC,” according to project lead Jonathan Moore. …Researchers will explore ongoing changes in salmon watersheds using remote sensing, synthesize scientific information to inform benchmarks and management targets, help identify potential paths forward, and connect groups working to improve the climate resilience of B.C.’s salmon watersheds.

ALBERTA — In addition to the environmental and aesthetic opposition, and the mayors of now three communities writing letters to the provincial government asking for a moratorium on clearcutting in Kananaskis, a third group has added a new perspective in the fight to have Spray Lake Sawmills reconsider their plans this winter. …SLS maintains they broke no rules and were not required by any legislation to get pre-approvals. An investigation into SLS’s actions was launched by the DFO, but to date, they have not explained why they did so. (West Fraser Timber which now owns SLS).  …CPAWS reached out to West Fraser, inviting them to meet to discuss their concerns. …Communications director Joyce Wagenaar said…“We have begun to set up meetings with stakeholder groups to better understand perspectives, interests and issues pertaining to these important forest lands.”

Richard Hamelin

The CBC Radio Early Edition with Stephen Quinn: A looper moth outbreak in Vancouver’s Stanley Park means thousands of trees will have to be cut down. We’re joined by Richard Hamelin from UBC’s Department of Forest Conservation Sciences for more. —Please click the Read More to listen to this radio interview. 

The Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) is making progress in implementing the 32 recommendations outlined in the Community Wildfire Resiliency Program (CWRP), according to a report by staff to the Dec. 5 Committee of the Whole (COW). The CWRP, which was updated in 2022, identifies issues and suggests solutions to make the community safer in the face of “an ever-increasing threat of wildfire,” according to the CWRP itself. According to the staff report put before the COW, the RMOW has made progress in education, legislation and community planning, interagency cooperation, training (of staff and between agencies and stakeholders), emergency planning, and vegetation management—all of which are six recommended areas of focus of the CWRP.

Dan McMaster

A forester from the Boundary Region is in Japan to highlight the innovation of B.C.’s wood products. Minister of Forests, Bruce Ralston, is leading a delegation from British Columbia’s forestry sector on a mission to Japan that started on Dec. 10, according to a news release. Among the representatives, Dan Macmaster, head of Forestry with the Osoyoos Indian Band (Nk’Mip Forestry), has a significant role representing both the First Nations Forestry Council as a Director and the Osoyoos Indian Band. …One of the key objectives is to showcase the exceptional quality of B.C.’s materials and their potential applications in Japan, ranging from low-carbon homes to mass-timber commercial buildings. …“I am very excited about this opportunity to travel with other forestry sector leaders and senior government officials to Japan,” stated Macmaster.

A group of Shuswap residents are calling for a five year deferral from logging activity in an area southeast of Chase. Residents living in Skimikin, Ptarmigan Hills, Chase and outlying areas have sent a letter to B.C. Premier David Eby laying out their case for a logging deferral for the Skimikin and Ptarmigan Hills range. “The goal of this request is to allow for these updated regulations to become integrated into Forest Management. This area is currently under the jurisdiction of BC Timber Sales, and is at an extreme risk of being irreversibly altered by existing forestry practices, just steps behind the implementation of change,” the letter said. …The letter goes on to list five endangered or at-risk species that reside in the area as well. The at-risk species listed are the fisher, long-tailed weasel, flammulated owl, western painted turtle and the pine grosbeak subspecies carlottae.

I recently came across a paper entitled The Perpetual Forest – Using lessons from the past to sustain Canada’s forests in the future. The authors decided to collaborate on a joint submission to the 1999 Canadian Institute of Forestry’s annual meeting. Authors Mike Apsey, Don Laishley, Vidar Nordin and Gilbert Paille have a wide variety of government , public and private forestry experience. Since it has been 24 years since the publication, I thought it would be valuable to see what changes may have resulted from the papers proposals. …As I suspected, the main emphasis was on the industrial aspect of forestry but it became obvious that increasing public pressure was going to mean more non timber values would need to be considered as indicated in the following statement.

Thousands of trees in Vancouver’s Stanley Park are getting cut down, and the park’s new aesthetic is sparking some mixed emotions from parkgoers. The City of Vancouver says more than 160,000 trees are being cut down in Stanley Park due to a looper moth infestation. According to the city, roughly 25 per cent of trees in Stanley Park have been damaged by the looper moth and the majority of them are Western Hemlocks — the preferred food for the bug. Now that the felling has begun, the tree stumps in Vancouver’s Stanley Park are turning heads. “It’s sad to see the trees on the floor,” one parkgoer said. “This is one of the best things about this park. It’s losing the identity of the park.” “I did notice the trees cut here at Prospect Point and it’s not very enjoyable, to be honest,” another said. “It’s just emptiness.” [You may also want to see the YouTube video version of the story here]

TERRACE, BC / GITANYOW LAX’YIP — The Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs stand resolute, ready to contest any attempts to transfer FLA16882 to a non-Gitanyow entity. This forestry license, deeply intertwined with Gitanyow’s traditional lands, presents an unmistakable and high potential for substantial adverse impacts on Gitanyow’s rights. FLA16882, formerly held by Skeena Sawmills in Terrace, BC, is one of three forest licenses. Despite a Cooperative Harvest Agreement previously in place with Gitanyow, Skeena Sawmills’ recent bankruptcy has put its assets, including FLA16882, in receivership. Gitanyow’s offer to purchase FLA16882 was initially declined, as Skeena Sawmills aims to sell assets as a complete package, including the Terrace Mill and all forest licenses. “The Chiefs have formally alerted the Receiver overseeing the assets of Skeena Sawmills and the B.C. government of our unyielding stance to defend Gitanyow’s constitutionally protected rights,” says Simogyet Malii.

In mid-August, with huge swaths of British Columbia consumed by wildfire, firefighting crews in the province’s North Shuswap region made a hard decision: They would intentionally burn a 26-square-kilometre stretch of forest hours before a major wind event, hoping to slow down the raging Lower East Adams Lake wildfire long enough to limit destruction in residential areas. Officials are now defending that move, as residents of the nearby towns of Lee Creek, Scotch Creek and Celista question whether the planned ignition exacerbated the damage in their communities, rather than lessening it. In the days after the fire, a public workers’ union demanded an investigation, arguing that firefighters’ safety had been compromised. Video and internal wildfire service incident reports obtained by The Globe and Mail show for the first time how elements of the operation went wrong on the ground, leaving a fire crew trapped for hours by flames. [A subscription to the Globe and Mail is required to read this full story]

The Columbia Shuswap Regional District has sent letters to several property owners affected by the Bush Creek East wildfire that consumed 45,000 hectares, much of it in mountainous terrain. Letters, 1,136 of them, advising that their properties or homes are at risk followed on the heels of a presentation to the November board meeting by BGC Engineering, the company hired to perform initial post-wildfire geohazard assessments in the area. Gerald Christie, manager of development services, advised directors that CSRD hired the company in early September, with the initial geohazard assessment completed in about six to seven weeks. “Thanks to them and their team; they knew about the importance of getting it finished in a timely fashion as a lot of residents are waiting for this work to be completed,” he said introducing Kris Holm, BCG principle geoscientist and Hazel Wong, an engineering geologist working directly with the regional district.

There have long been promises of true First Nations partnerships in forestry in BC, and now we’re seeing some action alongside the industry. In the latest move, the Klahoose Nation has signed a landmark deal with forest company Interfor. …In the first quarter of 2024, four other nations on Vancouver Island aim to complete the acquisition of a 34% ownership stake in a new partnership with Western Forest Products. …BC is also pushing amendments to its Forest Act and other laws, to help address First Nations’ interests in how forests are managed. …As First Nations pursue greater economic and land management opportunities in the forestry industry, it remains critical to ensure that new conservation programs truly balance environmental values with economic realities. …Despite positive announcements, the impact of the BC government’s overarching forestry policies on Indigenous and non-Indigenous communities alike has largely evaded public discussion. One wonders when the bubble will burst.

COWICHAN VALLEY, BC …the Six Mountains— Prevost, Sicker, Richards, Maple, Tzouhalem, and Stoney Hill — make up the 5,000-hectare Municipal Forest Reserve. The coastal Douglas-fir forest’s future in North Cowichan remains an open question. The results of the final phase of a parallel public consultation released last March showed 76 percent support for conservation management options. The next step is up to North Cowichan and First Nations. …Halalt Chief James Thomas said he supports selective logging that helps store water, while the timber can be used to create local jobs rather than being shipped offshore as raw logs. Selective logging can have many definitions, from, say, thinning to improve the overall health of a forest, to the slippery slope of logging the best timber for the highest profit. How the Municipality ultimately melds the wishes of North Cowichan taxpayers with those of First Nations is the big outstanding question.

Additional coverage in the Cowichan Valley Citizen, letter by Peter Rusland: Logging losses can be recovered by other means

Stefan Labbé

Seven environmental groups are calling on the Canadian government to adopt a definition of “forest degradation” that includes “any reduction in a forest’s ecological integrity” caused by human activity. The call comes a day after countries of the world signed a new draft agreement to combat climate change and signal an “end to fossil fuels.” The revised global Stocktake stated that achieving the current global goal of halting global temperature rise to two degrees Celsius (ideally 1.5 C) can in part be achieved by “enhanced efforts towards halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation by 2030.” …Jennifer Skene, Natural Resources Defense Council, said there has been unprecedented ambition from policymakers, investors and others when it comes to halting and reversing deforestation and forest degradation around the world.  “Canada has unfortunately been active internationally in opposing these efforts,” said Skene. “The international community can no longer afford Canada acting as a laggard.” 

Nominations are now open for the Lynn Orstad Award, recognizing women working in wildfire resiliency. Lynn was a community leader and a driving force for better wildfire risk management. This award was created in her honour to continually recognize and elevate the female leaders who work hard to make our communities safer. The award recipient will receive a personalized award and a $1000 grant towards furthering wildfire resiliency efforts focused on increasing education and community engagement – fundamental elements of Lynn’s work and achievements. Nominations will be reviewed by a working group made up of representatives from FireSmart BC, FireSmart Alberta, and Co-operators. Nominations will be open until February 27th, 2024 and the winner(s) will be announced during the Wildfire Resiliency & Training Summit in Prince George, BC from April 20th – 24th, 2024.

John Brink

PRINCE GEORGE — A local business owner involved with the forestry industry in British Columbia for over 50 years, is sounding the alarm about the current state of the sector. John Brink is the owner of Brink Forest Products Ltd., and has served as a director of the Council of Forest Industries (COFI), and has also represented Canada in softwood lumber disputes with the United States. He says that the forestry industry “is broken” and the “policy around it is broken.” Brink says that British Columbia needs to “totally from the bottom up, redesign our forest policy.” Brink says that due to lack of access to fibre in B.C., companies are pursuing opportunities elsewhere and major primary manufacturers are going to places like Sweden and the Southeastern U.S. due to access to fibre and being able to plan ahead in terms of fibre availability.