A $1-million grant from the Forest Enhancement Society of BC (FESBC) to Central Chilcotin Rehabilitation Ltd. will increase use of waste wood fibre, bring more wood products to market and support forestry jobs in the Cariboo-Chilcotin region. Central Chilcotin Rehabilitation Ltd. is a joint venture company owned by the Tŝideldel First Nation (Alexis Creek First Nation) and the Tl’etinqox government (Anaham First Nation). The first phase of this project began in early 2017, when a $3.4-million grant from FESBC allowed the company to reduce wildfire risks and rehabilitate forests impacted by mountain pine beetles west of the Anaham community. The $1-million grant that FESBC provided in 2019 funds the second part of the project. Beginning in September 2019, it focuses on recovering and using at least 200,000 cubic metres of waste wood fibre that accumulated during the first phase of the project. 

Young people interested in environmental management and conservation will have opportunities to gain experience, skills and training through a new government program that offers employment with BC Parks and the B.C. Conservation Officer Service (COS). “These new positions give young people an opportunity to gain valuable skills and experience in the natural environment protection sector and reflect our commitment to an inclusive and diverse workforce,” said George Heyman, Minister of Environment and Climate Change Strategy. “Creating job opportunities… for young British Columbians, whose jobs have been hardest hit by COVID-19. We all benefit from enhancements to BC Parks and stewardship of our natural environment.” The $1.8-million Youth Employment Program (YEP) offers employment opportunities for young people through the fall and winter months. …The duties will range from public outreach and education, facility and trail maintenance, to invasive species removal and supporting conservation and recreation projects.

Doug Donaldson

Thompson Rivers University has been granted a new research chair position to examine the impact of wildfires in British Columbia. Through a $5 million provincially funded endowment, the new B.C. research chair in predictive services, emergency management and fire science is expected to help the province forecast, prevent and respond to wildfires. The chair will head a team, lead research, direct and supervise graduate students and work with researchers at TRU and other universities. The chair’s research will support wildfire data modelling and help explore the relationship between climate change and its effect on wildfire risk. TRU president Brett Fairbairn said… “This research chair is going to help chart a new course for wildfire protection and response in British Columbia”. …Minister of Forests Doug Donaldson said the research will help provide more information about the changing nature of wildfires.

According to the respected Sierra Club, very few old-growth forests are still standing across the province — and most of them are slated to be logged. …the daily area of 500 soccer fields of old growth forest is being clearcut in B.C. These forests support our health and wellbeing, are critical for endangered species and salmon habitat, provide essential carbon storage, support jobs in tourism, and help defend our communities from flooding and other worsening impacts of climate change. The last of these highly endangered, globally rare ecosystems are being logged to the brink and unless concerned citizens write to our government about it, the last giant trees will vanish. …please write and request the support of legislature, starting with John Horgan and Sonia Furstenau… I am calling on all who care about the future of our planet and our families to act now before it is too late to save the last of B.C.’s endangered forests.

Two people are on a hunger strike on Vancouver Island, demanding an end to logging of old-growth forests in B.C., and Canada’s federal environment minister says he shares their concerns over biodiversity loss. During a media teleconference Tuesday, National Observer asked federal Environment and Climate Change Minister Jonathan Wilkinson about James Darling and Robert Fuller, who are on their ninth day of no food, protesting in front of the office of Nanaimo-North Cowichan MLA Doug Routley. Darling and Fuller, who are representing Extinction Rebellion, have written a letter to B.C. Premier John Horgan saying they won’t eat until he implements a ban on old-growth logging. …“In general, I feel that politicians are really good at saying the right things and expressing their concerns for the environment, and saying they want to protect species. But we’re living, globally, in a mass extinction event that’s driven by human activity,” Darling said.