Evan Saugstad

FORT ST. JOHN, B.C. —  …the primary rationale for [recent mill] closures [in northern BC] is the overall lack of available timber supply. The key word here is “available”. For various reasons, our NDP government has deemed our forest unfit for harvest. …On April 30th, Preston Manning wrote an Op-ed for the Globe and Mail titled “Natural resources are more important to the economy than city-dwellers realize.” …Unfortunately, the federal government tends to regard the natural resource sectors as … environmental liabilities. …the average city dweller, such as those working as waiters, plumbers, stylists, or technology entrepreneurs, needs to understand that their bills are underwritten by what our rural resource economies generate and provide, in an indirect way, to them. …I am still advocating for a strong, resource-based rural economy so we all can prosper and supply the rest of the world with the natural resources they so desperately want and need.

VICTORIA – The Forest Practices Board will examine the activities of BC Timber Sales (BCTS) and timber sale licence holders in the Haida Gwaii Timber Supply Area (TSA) portion of the Chinook Business Area. BCTS’s operating areas are in the Haida Gwaii Natural Resource District located west of Prince Rupert. Approximately half of Haida Gwaii is in protected areas and about 35% of the nonprotected areas are in the timber harvesting land base. BCTS’s operating areas are predominantly situated on Graham Island, with smaller portions extending into northern Moresby Island. The audit area is located within the territory of the Haida Nation, which includes the protected areas of the Naikoon Provincial Park and Gwaii Haanas National Park Reserve. Protected areas are co-operatively managed by the Haida Nation and the provincial and federal governments.

Andy MacKinnon

It’s been six months since the B.C. government released its “Draft B.C. Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health Framework” suggesting a radical and welcome shift in its approach to resource management. …Up to and including today, the B.C. government’s primary forestry focus has been on timber supply, and that single objective has driven land use and forest management over public lands (about 94 per cent of the province) for the last century. …Protected areas cover 15.4 per cent of B.C. …Most of the areas important for logging have less than 10 per cent of the land in protected areas. Since the 1950s, most of B.C. has been divided into timber supply areas and tree farm licences. …That’s why the “Draft B.C. Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health Framework” is such a big thing. It suggests that, for the first time in our province, forest management and land use is to be driven by something other than a timber focus.

Margareta Dovgal

Last week, Canfor announced the closure of its sawmill at Bear Lake in northern B.C., with the loss of some 400 jobs. …Now, sadly, you can add those lost jobs to the estimated loss of 10,000 jobs in 2023, largely as the result of a shrinking supply of timber. …These losses aren’t an isolated phenomenon, nor is it just one company. It is a widespread issue. It is a real hit, especially when those losses happen in small communities where there are fewer people, especially when these are among the most economically productive jobs that we have in the province of B.C.. The provincial government is putting the blame on commodity cycles. …Canfor’s CEO, Don Kayne, says: “This has got nothing to do with market conditions. It is about certainty of supply — economic supply.” …The forestry sector says B.C. has sufficient timber available for harvest, but the actual harvest level has declined dramatically.

The Province is securing a better future for B.C.’s forests and communities by taking better care of more old-growth forests, supporting local jobs and building a more sustainable and resilient forestry industry. Released on Tuesday, May 21, 2024, the B.C. government’s update reports on work underway in response to the 14 recommendations made by an independent panel in a 2020 review of B.C.’s old forests. It also outlines next steps as the Province and First Nations, alongside the forestry sector, workers and communities, take action to better care for forests, provide stability for B.C.’s forestry communities, and address challenges associated with climate change and wildfires. …Nine FLPs are underway, with more to be announced in the future. Forest Landscape Plans (FLPs) will be developed in partnership with First Nations, and through engagement with communities and people affected, local knowledge and values can be incorporated into the management of entire ecosystems.