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NANAIMO — BC’s Forests Minister Ravi Parmar didn’t mince words while addressing highly challenging times for the province’s forestry sector. Parmar toured Nanaimo’s Vancouver Island University on March 13, ,meeting with industry representatives and local reporters. Parmar said “unacceptable” United States-imposed tariffs and duties applied to B.C. forest products represent the most significant barrier impacting the sector. “It is very uncertain the path forward for forestry and for many it is very rocky as well as we deal with more closures and curtailments; it’s not just duties and tariffs, it is the impact of low lumber prices, it’s the complete collapse of the U.S. housing market.” …Parmar pointed to recent work done by the new Forestry Innovation Investment, a provincial Crown corporation chaired Rick Doman. …Alongside Parmar was Nanaimo-Gabriola MLA Sheila Malcolmson, minister of social development and poverty reduction. Malcolmson expanded on a $70.4 million dollar fund announced by the Federal government to assist tariff-impacted forestry workers in B.C. 

The provincial government is being accused of ignoring recommendations from a panel of experts urging protection of old growth forests. As Kylie Stanton reports, the province maintains it is trying to strike a balance between protecting industry and jobs and the environment.

Woodlots BC’s latest Woodlots Weekly highlights opportunities for learning, connection and professional development across the province’s woodlot community. Applications are now open for the Woodlots BC Bursary, a $5,000 award supporting individuals pursuing goals that benefit forestry and their communities, with submissions due May 1, 2026. Planning is also underway for the 2026 Woodlots BC Conference and Workshop, scheduled for October 1–4 at the Tigh-Na-Mara Resort in Parksville. The event will feature the association’s AGM, field tours and presentations, with a theme focused on strengthening communication, collaboration and the long-term resilience of BC’s woodlot sector. The newsletter also promotes an upcoming Woodlot Talk featuring COFI’s Jim Costley on engaging youth in forestry, upcoming BC Forest Safety Council training courses, and updates from the Boundary Woodlot Association. Readers will also find notices about surplus seedlings seeking new homes and a calendar of upcoming forestry conferences and industry events.

Ecologists Rachel Holt and Karen Price, landscape analyst Dave Daust, veteran forester Garry Merkel and economist Lisa Matthaus, members of a former panel the British Columbia government appointed to identify old-growth for potential protection in 2021 now says they’re concerned about continued logging in those same rare and “irreplaceable” forests. In a document sent to Premier David Eby, Forests Minister Ravi Parmar and Resource Stewardship Minister Randene Neill they say the proposed old-growth deferrals were meant to be an interim measure to reduce the risks of logging, allowing time for long-term planning. But the process has not worked as intended says the document provided to The Canadian Press. Instead, the B.C. government continues to approve logging in forests the panel identified, while long-term plans have yet to be finalized, Holt said in an interview.

Fire raptors mid-renovation are just one modern move for the generational Vancouver Island Helicopters Aviation Group based at the Victoria International Airport. Residents are long accustomed to seeing Sikorsky’s come and go, the workhorse helicopter of VIH Helicopters, the original business of the group. Jen Norie is at the helm of that operation … founded from the first fledgling business decades ago under Jen’s grandfather, Frank Norie. …VIH Aerospace, with Jen’s brother Jeff Norie at the helm, does helicopter manufacturing, maintenance, repair and overhaul services and recently received official approval as a Sikorsky-authorized customer support centre for the S-92A. One of eight in the world, the designation by Sikorsky reinforces VIHA as a premier global hub for S-92A support, specifically tailored to meet the evolving needs of offshore, search and rescue and the emerging utility and firefighting markets.

Woodland Almanac from the Federation of BC Woodlot Associations is now available, offering a look at the people, programs, and practical tools shaping woodlot management in British Columbia. This issue highlights the Charles Bloom Forestry Program, a hands-on training initiative that introduces high school students to forestry skills and careers while working on a real operating woodlot. The newsletter also features the Executive Director’s report, details on the 2026 Woodlots BC bursary program, and an invitation to attend the Woodlots BC Annual Conference and Workshop in Parksville, October 1–4. Readers will also find updates on value-added opportunities for woodlot licensees and revisions to the Commercial Thinning Guide, along with two “Meet a Woodlotter” profiles featuring the Zemanek Family and Garrett Ranches. Together, the stories showcase the innovation, stewardship, and community connections that continue to define BC’s woodlot sector.

The fungus responsible for white-nose syndrome in North American bats has been detected in a bat guano (droppings) sample collected in the Metro Vancouver area. The fungus was first identified in B.C. in guano found in the Grand Forks area in 2022. White-nose syndrome is a fungal disease that disrupts bats’ winter hibernation. Infected bats wake more often and use up the energy they need to survive the winter, leading to starvation and death. While this is B.C.’s second detection of the fungus in guano samples, there have still been no confirmed cases of white-nose syndrome in bats in B.C. …Members of the public can help support bat conservation by reporting sightings of bat roosts, dead bats or unusual bat activity in winter to the BC Community Bat Program.

Fears of a wildfire devastating a drinking water source for up to 80,000 people in the North Okanagan are bringing local Indigenous and non-Indigenous governments together to protect their shared watershed. Last month, leaders of Okanagan Indian Band (OKIB), the District of Lake Country and City of Vernon declared that protecting the crucial North Aberdeen Plateau watershed goes far beyond just preventing or mitigating wildfires. “We can’t let it go back to what it was,” Lake Country Mayor Blair Ireland told fellow members of the Okanagan-Similkameen Collaborative Leadership Table at the Feb. 20 meeting. …In November, a North Aberdeen Plateau Guidance Plan was signed by Ireland, OKIB Chief Dan Wilson, and Vernon Mayor Victor Cumming. The plateau, near Kalamalka Lake in the North Okanagan, includes four smaller watersheds that provide water for homes and farms across Lake Country and the greater Vernon areas. 

Sunshine Coast Community Forest (SCCF) is now a Canada Revenue Agency (CRA) qualified donee, making it eligible to apply for funding programs reserved for registered non-profit groups. SCCF has operated as a non-profit since its creation in 2006 and applied to the CRA for the donee designation last year. …Executive director of SCCF Sara Zieleman said the CRA status is welcome, given the 25 per cent reduction in the firm’s timber harvest levels agreed to as part of its implementation of Ecosystem Based Management. Lower cut volumes are expected to curtail revenues and affect the amount of profit it has available to reinvest into the community. “While timber revenue remains SCCF’s primary funding source, the organization has increasingly pursued partnerships and grant funding to support projects related to forest resilience, ecosystem restoration, and recreation,” according to a statement the company released March 10.

Taan Forest, the forest management enterprise owned by the Council of the Haïda Nation, is leading the way under the Forest Stewardship Council Verified Impact program. This milestone marks the first Verified Impact project in Canada and one of the first globally to be verified for enhancing Indigenous cultural values, showcasing how FSC certification can credibly demonstrate positive outcomes for biodiversity, cultural heritage, and community-led stewardship.  Taan manages two forest licences spanning more than 190,000 hectares on Haida Gwaii, the ancestral homelands of the Haïda Nation. Prior to Taan, the forest was managed under high-intensity industrial logging practices. Following the Haida Gwaii Land Use Objectives Order (2010) and Taan’s FSC certification in 2011, management shifted toward a values-based stewardship model. Verified ecosystem services impacts now provide thirdparty confirmation, under the FSC’s framework, that Taan’s management approach is delivering measurable ecological and cultural benefits.  …verified outcomes include more than 44,000 hectares of conservation area and improved habitat conditions for species such as Taan Haida Gwaii Black Bear, Ts’allang.nga  Marbled Murrelet, and Stads K’un  Northern Goshawk.  

Whistler’s forests are home to one of the region’s most elusive birds of prey: the northern goshawk. Bob Brett, a local biologist and co-founder of the Whistler Naturalists, says Whistler is almost uniquely positioned among southern B.C. communities to support the at-risk forest hawk because of the remaining old-growth forests scattered along the valley’s lower slopes. “[Goshawks] hunt inside the forest, so they need wide-spaced trees, they need big branches to nest on and they need access to the forest floor for hunting,” Brett said. “They’re in big trouble on the coast of British Columbia because of all the logging and the lack of old-growth suitable habitat,” he added. “…And our challenge is to make sure that Whistler continues to have habitat for them.” Brett said that challenge extends to the protection of connected ecosystems—particularly the Rainbow Wildlife Corridor, identified as the 21-Mile Creek corridor.

City of Powell River councillors were provided an overview on March 5 of Tla’amin Nation’s negotiations to repatriate access to forest lands currently held by Western Forest Products (WFP). Adam Culos, general manager of Thichum Forest Products, said that Tla’amin had announced a milestone agreement, where Thichum Forest Products, through Tla’amin, is working on an agreement with WFP to acquire Tree Farm Licence 39 block one. Seanna McConnell, Western Forest Products vice-president, Indigenous partnerships, said Qwoqwnes Forestry Holdings Limited Partnership, wholly owned by Tla’amin, will be purchasing 100 per cent ownership of WFP’s Stillwater forest operation for $80 million. …Culos said the acquisition … supports Thichum’s long-term success through investment in their business and the future of the community, [adding] that almost all the wood supplies domestic mills, so there are three fibre supply agreements. One will be WFP, supporting the company’s five coastal mills, along with Mosaic Forest Management and Domtar.

Alison Nicholson

2026 was intended to be the final year of the joint effort by the province and Cowichan Tribes to heal the Xwulqw’selu/Koksilah watershed — bringing back summer river flows, restoring fish habitat, and reducing damaging winter floods. …it is clear we need more time. …Research shows that industrial forestry practices — specifically clearcutting — increase the frequency and severity of winter floods, which directly degrades instream habitat and worsens summer droughts. This tells us that while reducing water extraction in the lower watershed is necessary, it isn’t enough. …we cannot have a healthy river without addressing how the land is treated. …On Feb. 25, Mosaic Forest Management …announced a pilot to test new watershed stewardship approaches in the Koksilah Watershed. While welcome, it must be more than a private initiative. To succeed, the community needs assurance that it will be integrated into the planning process, with public access to data, independent review, and clear timelines.

Quesnel City Council has endorsed the “Forestry is a Solution” campaign. Erin Robinson, Forestry Initiatives Manager at the City, talked about the “Forestry is a Solution” campaign at the most recent Council meeting. “It was launched in January at the BC Natural Resources Forum in Prince George.  The “Forestry is a Solution” campaign is led by a coalition of forest sector organizations, community leaders, workers, and industry advocates to demonstrate strong public support for British Columbia’s forest sector. The initiative highlights forestry’s role in: supporting affordable housing, reducing wildfire risk through active forest management, sustaining family-supporting jobs, generating public revenues, and contributing to lower carbon construction.” Robinson said it is in line with Council’s concerns over the current state of the industry.