Ravi Parmar

With the annual harvest a fraction of what it once was and a declining workforce, British Columbia’s forestry minister admits that the industry is in a state of transition – but needed changes won’t happen without participation of First Nations. The Ministry of Forests announced a review of B.C. Timber Sales … the review seeks to find the potential for growth and diversification in an industry that has seen harvests shrink in recent years. …BC Timber Sales has at times been at odds with First Nations in whose territory the Crown timber is for sale. In 2014 a dispute over how the agency was managing cedar in the Nahmint Valley led the Tseshaht to blockade access to logging roads… more disagreements followed when BCTS sold timber from the valley without the First Nation’s consent. …Lennard Joe, CEO of the BC First Nations Forestry Council, is on an expert team assembled to help with the BCTS review.