Category Archives: Forestry

Mike Flannigan

Continuing drought conditions in Western Canada, a relatively mild start to winter across much of the country, and the lingering effects of El Nino threaten to create ideal conditions for wildfires to ignite this coming spring, as the country contends with lessons learned from the most destructive fire season in its history. “El Nino is generally milder and drier for many parts of Canada, and if that persists, we’re going to start off with drought conditions in spring. If that’s the case, it doesn’t absolutely mean we’re going to have an active spring fire season, but it loads the dice,” said Dr. Mike Flannigan, B.C. Innovation Research Chair in Predictive Services, Emergency Management and Fire Science. …“The bottom line is there will always be fire in the landscape. How we manage it to minimize the impacts, but allow fire to take its role when and where possible, is the way forward,” said Flannigan. 

John Horgan

VICTORIA — During the long standoff over old-growth logging at Fairy Creek, Premier John Horgan often reminded protesters that the local First Nation had asked them to leave. He quoted a statement from the Pacheedaht First Nation discouraging “third party activism” on its traditional territory and asking to be “left in peace.” …Horgan’s office had advance knowledge of the Pacheedaht statement on the Fairy Creek protests. The premier’s staff may even have had a hand in strengthening the wording of the statement, judging from the recent release of a document obtained under freedom of information laws. One reason for suspecting the premier’s office is because the New Democrats fought long and hard against the release of the document. The full story of the long-delayed release is set out in an article in this month’s issue of the Walrus magazine by B.C.-based freelance reporter Jimmy Thomson.

The province’s worst wildfire season on record in terms of area burned was recorded in 2023, a destructive season that stretched from early spring all the way into fall, and now winter. Now, the B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) says it’s stepping up preparations ahead of the spring to deal with holdover fires — colloquially called “zombie fires” that lay dormant under the ground before re-igniting in hotter conditions. …Pedro Roldan-Delgado, a fire information officer for the Prince George Fire Centre, says holdover fires tend to penetrate deep into the root systems of trees… and active suppression is often not the first choice given many contracted firefighters have returned to university. …Pete Laing, superintendent of fuel management for the BCWS, said giant fires in the north will require careful fuel management and monitoring to ensure resources are on hand if and when they spark again.

Peter Rusland

Dear North Cowichan mayor and councillors: We respectfully request council follow Qualicum Beach council’s wise lead and take steps toward a UNESCO biosphere designation for our eco-rare Six Mountains and publicly owned municipal forest reserve. …We submit our Six Mountains and precious forest reserve are great candidates for UNESCO designation due to their provably rare ecology, plus priceless cultural, educational and recreational qualities. …Coupled with looming completion of our biodiversity study, sturdy environmental bylaws, plus pending membership in the Coastal Douglas Fir Conservation Partnership, we anticipate council’s due diligence toward Cowichan’s first, exemplary UNESCO designation.

PRINCE GEORGE – The provincial government has bestowed protected area status on a stand of old growth forest west of Ancient Forest-Chun T’oh Whudujut Provincial Park. The 83-hectare site was previously part of a reserve for the Ministry of Transportation’s Driscoll Creek gravel quarry but with the designation, quietly approved in July via an order in council, it should remain untouched by industrial activity in perpetuity. The step was taken largely in answer to the work of Darwyn Coxson, a biology professor at the University of Northern B.C., and Nowell Senior, a noted member of the Prince George hiking community who was instrumental in the creation of the neighbouring provincial park. …Coxson is also seeking protected area status for a 986-hectare corridor connecting Ancient Forest-Chun T’oh Whudujut and Sugarbowl-Grizzly Den provincial parks. As a result of a previous complaint to the Forest Practices Board, the corridor has been designated as a “candidate” old-growth management area.

Register for a new Forest Professionals British Columbia (FPBC) webinar, Range Practices Act (FRPA) Improvement Initiative: 2023 Updates on Regulatory Changes to Bill 21. The free webinar will provide an overview of regulatory changes brought in last year and how they affect activities governed by FRPA. As part of an improvement initiative, the provincial government introduced changes in 2019 to FRPA with Bill 21: Forest and Range Practices Amendment Act. The changes were a response to a broad engagement campaign with the public, industry, and other interested parties. They are designed to align FRPA with new environmental and socio-economic challenges. Presenters Julius Huhs, RPF, RFT; Sean Muise, RPF; and Aaren Ritchie-Bonar, RPF; are with the Sustainable Forest Management team in the Forest Science, Planning and Practices Branch at the Office of the Chief Forester. January 11, 2024 from 9:00 to 10:30am.

LYTTON, BC — More than two years after a behemoth fire devastated Lytton and the neighbouring Lytton First Nation, cement has finally been poured on the village’s first home rebuild. Mayor Denise O’Connor said the first residential rebuild permit was issued in the fall. …The length of time it has taken for shovels to get into the ground has enraged many Lytton residents, with various archeological, debris removal and remediation delays prompting protest and dominating B.C. headlines. …The Village of Lytton is suing Canada’s two national railways and Transport Canada, alleging they were negligent in letting trains pass through the town during the deadly 2021 heat dome. …A 2022 report from the Transportation Safety Board, however, stated investigators could find no evidence that the wildfire was started from a spark from a train.

ALBERTA — The longer, hotter, drier fire seasons recently experienced in Alberta means that wildfire risk management is top of mind. Sustainable forest management is beneficial in the context of the conditions Alberta is facing. While not a stand-alone solution, forest management strategies complement traditional fire-suppression methods. By focusing on reducing the amount of combustible material and creating strategic fuel breaks and access routes, these practices contribute to mitigating the spread of wildfires. That’s just one component of the 200-year sustainable forest management plans developed and followed by the forest industry and members of Alberta Forest Products Association (AFPA). “These plans take forest companies about six years to prepare and consider a number of forest values, including biodiversity, wildlife habitat, carbon sequestration, traditional values and more,” says Aspen Dudzic, director of communications at AFPA. …Bob Mason, chief forester at Canfor Alberta emphasizes fire impact mitigation in his harvesting plans.

ALBERTA — The mountain pine beetle is the most destructive pine insect pest in Alberta. However, cold winters paired with Alberta’s aggressive control program have led to striking progress in preserving the health and resilience of the province’s forests. Mountain pine beetle populations in Alberta have declined 98% since their peak in 2019. To mitigate wildfire risk and negative impacts to the forest industry, watersheds and endangered species, the province has been actively managing mountain pine beetle for more than 15 years. Alberta will continue to invest in the mountain pine beetle control program to ensure its continued success. …“I am proud of the progress we have made in controlling the spread of mountain pine beetles throughout Alberta,” said Todd Loewen, Minister of Forestry and Parks. … Alberta uses management measures like population monitoring, risk assessments, cutting and burning infested trees, and harvesting highly vulnerable pine.

Well before a record-setting deluge of smoke had come and gone from Alberta’s capital city this summer, a new provincial precedent had already been set. By June, officials noted that wildfires had burned through more than one million hectares. …By the end of the official wildfire season, the 2.2 million hectares burned surpassed the benchmark set in 1981, when 1.3 million hectares were left charred. …The forestry and parks ministry said the scope and severity of this year’s wildfire season cannot be attributed solely to an increase in arson, even though it said the proportion of fires determined to be set on purpose has nudged upwards. …This year, 8.4 per cent of all wildfires were categorized as arson, which is slightly above the previous five-year average of 7.8 per cent, according to the forestry ministry.

QUESNEL, BC — Local forestry professionals had their knowledge base grow in forests half a world away. Thirty-one people travelled from B.C. to Finland, this fall, to get ground truth from their Scandinavian counterparts. B.C. and Finland are both world leaders in forest use and forest husbandry, but have widely different localized practices. This visit included Quesnel’s forestry initiatives manager, Erin Robinson, who reported back to mayor and council on the experience. …This junket was led by the University of B.C. and dovetailed with Finnish delegations that have been to Quesnel during the past year for knowledge exchanges here in our forestry settings. …Opportunities were presented like district heating systems, which, in a limited way, are already in use around here in settings like the downtown Prince George buildings connected to the Lakeland Mills biomass burner.

2023 has been a great year for FESBC. In January Premier Eby announced another $50 million for FESBC to help workers and communities use more waste wood from the forest and reduce wildfire risk. FESBC started approving new projects right away and now most of the funding is allocated. Some projects are already completed on the ground, many more are currently underway, and all will have been completed by March 31 2025. In this newsletter: Minister of Forests, Bruce Ralston’s statement. Learn more about how Central Chilcotin Rehabilitation Ltd. is focusing on forest rehabilitation through wildfire risk reduction and fibre utilization. Read how the Fort Nelson Community Forest is working to enhance wildfire resilience. Learn about how funding will help the Chinook Community Forest to undertake vital wildfire risk reduction work. Meet our Faces of Forestry featured person, Klay Tindall.