Younes Alila

A UBC professor says the time is now to be serious about the way BC manages its forests because it affects our water. Dr. Younes Alila, a professor of forest hydrology at the UBC Faculty of Forestry, made the statement at the Kelowna screening of Trouble in the Headwaters, a documentary by Dan Pierce. Alila, who has studied the connection between forestry and flooding for decades, is featured in the film, which focusses on the flooding of Grand Forks in 2018. Alila alleges the flooding was caused by clearcut logging. “The forest cover is our most powerful protection against flood risk and drought risk,” he said, noting the tree canopy intercepts snow as well as shading snow that reaches the ground, allowing it to melt slower. …Alila would like to see the remaining old-growth forest left alone and selective logging in the secondary forest that’s already been logged.

Additional coverage in The Tyee, by Alice Kassam: Floods, Fires, Forests. For Younes Alila, It All Connects