New Old Growth Protections More Symbolic than Symbiotic, Environmentalists Say

/in /by

The Tyee
July 19, 2019

Province vows to protect 54 trees, describing it as a ‘first step.’

Environmentalists say the provincial government’s commitment to protect 54 more old-growth trees is a good first step, but its effect will likely be more symbolic than ecological.

B.C. Forests Minister Doug Donaldson said at a press conference Wednesday that the designated trees would be protected by placing a one-hectare buffer zone around each of them.

He described the action as a “first step in a broader old-growth plan” that also includes an independent, two-person panel to “engage with First Nations, industry, stakeholders and communities on old-growth management” starting this fall.

The panel will provide recommendations to the government in spring 2020.

“This is good, but it’s not nearly enough, and it’s not happening anywhere close to the pace we need change for endangered old-growth forests,” said Jens Wieting, senior forest and climate campaigner with the Sierra Club BC. “We are in the midst of extinction and climate crisis, and this step is more symbolic than anything else.”

Old-growth forests, he said, help mitigate the effects of climate change — particularly when it comes to forest fires. Wieting said he’s worried about any delay in implementing a long-term strategy for such forests.

“While the plan sounds good, it’s actually a huge concern that the government is proposing more talks,” he said, noting that the government has also invited feedback on its Forest and Range Practices Act until Monday.

Forest ecologist Andy MacKinnon said the announcement made him hopeful that the government is “listening to what people have to say about old-growth forests in B.C.,” but he also finds the current lack of a long-term plan troubling.

“What they’re announcing is protection for some very large trees,” he said. “It’s not any kind of plan for old-growth forests.”

Wieting and MacKinnon are doubtful that protecting 54 trees, even with a one-hectare buffer zone, will have significant effect on their ecosystems.

“It’s a very modest step,” said Wieting. “The buffer zones would add up to 54 hectares. On Vancouver Island alone, we are destroying about 10,000 hectares of old growth every year.”

MacKinnon compares the total area protected to a little more than 13 per cent of Stanley Park, which comprises around 400 hectares.

Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner Andrea Inness is optimistic that the buffer zones will be a good first step to avoiding more “Big, Lonely Doug” scenarios on the coast, referencing Canada’s second-largest Douglas fir tree that stands alone amid a clearcut. It is now one of the 54 protected trees.

But Innes also said a more comprehensive strategy based on ecosystem science is needed.

“Standing and fallen dead wood plays an incredibly important role in old-growth forest ecosystems as wildlife trees, for example,” she said. “Bears will still use dead and rotting western red cedar trees for habitat.”

Currently, only living trees are eligible for provincial protection, and advocates want protection for dead trees, too.

Dead trees continue to store carbon for decades, Wieting said. “It takes that long for a truly old tree to completely decompose and much of the carbon will then remain stored in the soil, slowly absorbed by other growing trees.”

Inness, Wieting and MacKinnon also said the size threshold is a concern.

To be eligible for provincial protection, Douglas fir, Sitka spruce, western red cedar and yellow cedar trees must have a diameter at least half the size of the largest tree on record for their species. All other species of trees must be 75 per cent of the largest tree on record.

“It sounds like that would capture a lot, but it actually doesn’t. The very largest trees on the Big Tree Registry are exceptional giants,” said Inness. “So to protect only those that are 50 per cent as wide only captures exceptionally rare and large trees.”

The BC Big Tree Registry is a record of large tree specimens native to B.C. housed at the University of British Columbia. All 54 of the newly protected trees are from the registry.

MacKinnon, who was the committee chair of the registry from the mid-1990s until last year, said that any old-growth forest strategy needs to extend far beyond trees on the registry.

“Much more important than protecting individual, large, old trees is protecting watersheds,” said MacKinnon. “One-hectare patches won’t help anything except perhaps protect individual, very large trees.”

Donaldson noted Wednesday that the 54 newly protected trees would be in addition to the 55 per cent of old-growth forests on Crown land already protected on Vancouver Island and the coast, citing 500,000 hectares of protected old growth on Vancouver Island.

But Inness, Wieting, and MacKinnon said those numbers are misleading.

“Not only does that [55 per cent] include low productivity forests in subalpine areas and bogs — forests that have very little to no commercial value and aren’t endangered — it excludes private lands which have largely been cut over,” said Inness.

The ministry has previously said that it has “very limited jurisdiction over private land harvesting” in response as to why it’s not included.

Inness also said that the 55 per cent of protected old growth only describes the remaining forests, not the original amount before industrial logging began.

According to her, more than 80 per cent of original productive old-growth forests and more than 90 per cent of very rare, monumental old-growth stands have already been logged on the south coast.

“They’re just talking about a fraction protected of the fraction remaining,” she said. “By that logic, the more you log outside of the protected areas, the more is protected until finally, the government can say ‘100 percent of old growth on the coast is protected’ because everything else is logged.”

Wieting and MacKinnon said they have been unable to map 500,000 hectares of protected old growth on Vancouver Island.

“It’s been really frustrating to see the different numbers that have been thrown about,” said MacKinnon. “When an environmental NGO says there’s only this amount [of old growth] left on Vancouver Island, the government and industry together will always respond that there’s this amount protected on the coast of British Columbia.”

MacKinnon said the coast of B.C. has very different conservation statuses depending on the location, with 75 per cent of the north and central coast already protected under the Great Bear Rainforest agreement and 52 per cent of Haida Gwaii in protected areas.

Lumping the amount of protected old growth on Vancouver Island with these regions distorts the image of how much is at risk from logging, he said.

“If you’re wondering who to believe about Vancouver Island, I would encourage people to either look at satellite imagery, air photos,” said MacKinnon. “Or simply drive the back roads and decide for yourself.”

The province’s office of Land Use Planning was reached out to for data on Vancouver Island’s protected old growth but did not respond. 

See the original article

NDP announces plan to protect old-growth trees

/in /by

Global News
July 17, 2019

Watch this Global News piece featuring interviews with Endangered Ecosystems Alliance’s Ken Wu, the AFA’s Andrea Inness, and Sierra Club BC’s Jens Wieting about the BC government’s plan to protect 54 of BC’s biggest trees and develop an old-growth management strategy.

While the conversation often comes down to jobs vs. the environment and the need to ‘strike a balance’, this is a tired argument that must be left in the past. Healthy forest ecosystems form the basis of a strong economy and healthy communities. Many jobs, not to mention our climate, clean water, endangered species, and First Nations’ cultures depend on healthy, intact old-growth forests.

With 80% of Vancouver Island’s productive old-growth forests already logged, it’s time for bold action from the BC government. We need to keep the pressure up to ensure the Province’s old-growth strategy isn’t a piecemeal approach that protects big trees but allows entire old-growth ecosystems to be mowed down.

 

See the original clip 

B.C. announces protection for old-growth trees

/in /by

 

CTV News
July 17, 2019

 

 

Forests minister says 54 of the province’s largest trees will be protected

/in /by

Times Colonist
July 17, 2019

The B.C. government moved Wednesday to protect 54 of the province’s largest trees in a first step toward a broader old-growth strategy.

In a change criticized as “inadequate” by the B.C. Green Party, Forests Minister Doug Donaldson said the “exceptionally large and old trees” were selected from 347 on the University of B.C.’s Big Tree Registry.

The 54 old-growth giants will be surrounded by groves about the size of a “soccer pitch” to provide additional protection, especially from windstorms, Donaldson said.

“I don’t want to leave the impression that it’s one tree standing in the forest,” he said. “It’s a one-hectare buffer around that tree. So it’s other trees included in that.”

The 54 trees include seven in the Capital Regional District — one Arbutus, two Douglas firs, three Sitka spruce and a western red cedar, documents show.

More trees could be added as they are identified, said Donaldson, who made the announcement at Francis/King Regional Park, standing in front of an ancient Douglas fir tree that is already protected within the park boundaries.

“British Columbians want to know that trees like this and the ones you’re seeing today — even in an area they might not ever visit — will never be cut down,” he said.

B.C. Green Party MLA Adam Olsen said the decision to protect 54 trees falls far short of what is needed to save endangered old-growth ecosystems, particularly those on Vancouver Island.

“It’s the least possible thing that the government could do when it comes to protecting old growth,” he said. “It’s frustrating and a distraction, I think, from what actually needs to be done.

“It’s not good enough, not far enough.”

The Greens have called for a moratorium on logging in Vancouver Island’s old-growth “hot spots,” described as pristine areas of conservation significance, such as the Central Walbran or Schmidt Creek, north of Sayward.

Donaldson said the move to protect big trees marks the start of a “broader conversation” about managing old-growth forests.

He noted that Gary Merkel, a forester and member of the Tahltan Nation, and Al Gorley, former chair of the Forest Practices Board, will hear from British Columbians beginning this fall on how to manage old-growth forests. The two-man panel will deliver its recommendations to the government next spring.

“The recommendations are expected to inform a new approach to old-growth management for British Columbia,” Donaldson said. “It’s always a question of how to strike a balance between protecting old-growth trees and protecting jobs and the economy.”

Andrea Innes, a forest campaigner with the Ancient Forest Alliance, welcomed the appointment of an independent panel. “The NDP have been talking about an old-growth strategy for almost a year now, with very little to show for it,” she said.

“What we need is a much more comprehensive, legislated plan that’s based on science and protects entire endangered old-growth forest ecosystems.”

The government said the 54 trees selected for protection had to meet certain criteria, including being on Crown land outside parks or other protected areas. In addition, each tree was required to meet a minimum size threshold determined by the tree’s diameter.

For Douglas fir, Sitka spruce, western red cedar and yellow cedar, the minimum threshold was set at 50 per cent of the largest tree on record for those species. The minimum for other species was set at 75 per cent.

For example, the largest coastal Douglas fir on record has a diameter at breast height of 4.23 metres. The protection threshold was set at 2.12 metres.
lkines@timescolonist.com

See the original article

Big Lonely Doug among largest old-growth trees now on protection list

/in /by


Sooke News Mirror
July 17, 2019

B.C. to protect 54 old-growth trees, but critics say it’s not enough

 

A tree climber scales Big Lonely Doug, Canada’s second largest Douglas-fir tree. Doug stands alone in an old-growth clearcut in the Gordon River Valley near Port Renfrew, BC. Height: 216 ft (66 m) (broken top) Diameter: 12 ft (4 m)

Big Lonely Doug won’t be so lonely anymore.

The Coastal Douglas-fir is among 54 of the province’s largest and oldest trees to be protected by the province along with a one-hectare buffer zone surrounding each of the giants, says Forest Minister Doug Donaldson.

Big Lonely Doug is the second largest Douglas-fir in Canada. The tree, located near Port Renfrew, stands at 70.2 metres, or 230 feet.

Two other trees in the Port Renfrew region – Sitka spruce – are also protected.

The trees are on the University of B.C.’s Big Tree Registry that has identified 347 of the largest of each species in the province.

The 54 trees were at risk of being harvested.

The trees are in more than two dozen locations, including central B.C., the East Kootenays, Haida Gwaii, Vancouver Island and the Fraser Valley.

The species include arbutus, coastal Douglas-fir, Pacific yew, ponderosa pine, Sitka spruce, western red cedar and western white pine.

Donaldson says the announcement is also the start of a broader conversation about the future of old-growth management in the province.

The government says starting this fall, an independent two-person panel will meet with First Nations, industry and communities on how to manage old growth in the province.

Local environmental groups welcomed the decision to protect the 54 trees, but say much more needs to be done.

“It’s a small step, but it may signal there’s more comprehensive action to come,” said Andrea Inness, forest campaigner for the Ancient Forest Alliance.

“A more comprehensive, legislated plan is still desperately needed to protect the province’s old-growth ecosystems on a larger scale in order to sustain biodiversity, clean water, and the climate.”

Ken Wu, the executive director of the Endangered Ecosystems Alliance, says the government announcement protects the most charismatic fraction of B.C.’s endangered old-growth forests, but at the same time thousands of others remain endangered, including their ecosystems.

“The fact that the B.C. government says that they plan more comprehensive big tree protections and also old-growth forest ecosystem protections gives us some hope – but let’s see where they go with it,” Wu said.

See the original article

Conservationists Welcome NDP Government’s Big Tree Protection Announcement, Set Sights on More Comprehensive Old-Growth Plan

/in /by

 

Victoria, BC – The Ancient Forest Alliance (AFA) welcomes the NDP government’s announcement that it will protect 54 of the biggest trees listed on the BC Big Tree Registry with buffer zones and hopes for more comprehensive, science-based old-growth forest protection under the BC government’s proposed old-growth strategy.

“We welcome this positive step toward protecting some of the biggest and oldest trees on Earth,” stated Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner Andrea Inness. “It’s a small step, but it may signal there’s more comprehensive action to come.”

“The BC government’s old-growth plan must now be scaled up exponentially. We need protection at all spatial scales: at the tree, grove, landscape unit/watershed, and ecosystem level.”

“We’re glad to hear the 54 trees will be protected with buffer zones, which, although small in this case at only one hectare, are vital to minimize the risk of damage due to factors exacerbated by surrounding harvesting activities, such as strong winds, and to enhance ecosystem protection and tourism value.”

“The NDP’s approach to protecting big trees should not be based only on trees listed on the BC Big Tree Registry, though, which is a small subset of BC’s biggest trees based on what some big tree enthusiasts have found. Many of BC’s biggest trees are not on the big tree registry.”

The AFA also welcomes the NDP’s commitment to change regulations later this year to protect more of BC’s biggest trees. If effective, such a legal mechanism would help protect the environmental, recreational, and cultural values of BC and could bolster BC’s tourism industry, significantly enhancing the province’s status as a preferred destination for nature-lovers far and wide.

“It’s important they get the details right, though,” stated AFA campaigner and photographer TJ Watt. “These regulatory protections must include adequate buffer zones of at least 2 hectares and must avoid loopholes that allow big trees to be logged in certain circumstances. The minimum size thresholds for protection should also be lowered, as 50% of the diameter of the widest trees found still only captures the most extremely rare, exceptionally big trees.”

“It must also be a comprehensive policy that’s rolled out across BC’s coast and expanded to the Interior.”

The AFA is hopeful the NDP’s big tree protection regulations will also be expanded to include protection of BC’s “grandest groves,” where there is an exceptional number and density of large trees, to ensure ancient forests with the greatest ecological, recreational, and scenic values are conserved for future generations to enjoy.

“BC’s biggest trees and grandest groves truly stand out as some of the province’s most spectacular natural assets and are disproportionately valuable for tourism and often for biodiversity. But much more work is needed to protect old-growth forests on a much greater scale.”

“A more comprehensive, legislated plan is still desperately needed to protect the province’s old-growth ecosystems on a larger scale in order to sustain biodiversity, clean water, and the climate,” stated Inness.

The AFA is hopeful the NDP government’s consultation process and resulting old-growth strategy result in such legislated changes, for example, through amendments to the Forest and Range Practices Act in the spring of 2020.

“The next step, however, should be immediate moratoria on logging of old-growth ‘hotspots’ with the highest ecological and recreational value. Otherwise the grandest, most intact forests will continue to be whittled away while the government figures out its old-growth plan.”

“To sustain forestry jobs, the BC government must also ensure the development of a sustainable, value-added second-growth forest industry and end the export of vast amounts of raw, unprocessed logs to foreign mills.”

“Today’s announcement is like the bang of the starting gun at the beginning of the race. It kicks things off. Let’s just hope there are much more exciting things to come and that the NDP’s old-growth strategy is a sprint, not a marathon that drags on for years. Time is running out for the last of BC’s remaining productive old-growth forests and we need province-wide, science-based solutions fast.”

In the press release accompanying today’s announcement, the NDP government claimed that 55% of the old-growth on BC’s coast is protected. This figure is highly misleading for a number of reasons. The BC government is including vast areas of low-productivity sub-alpine and bog forests with little to no commercial value, which aren’t endangered, and are ignoring largely cut-over private lands, which make up almost 25% of Vancouver Island’s land base. They also lump the Great Bear Rainforest (where 85% of forests have been set aside from commercial logging) in with the south coast, where old-growth forests are highly endangered and where old-growth logging continues at a scale of about 10,000 hectares a year.

Finally, the BC government fails to mention how much old-growth has previously been logged on the south coast: almost 80% of the original productive old-growth forest and over 90% of the low elevation, high-productivity stands (e.g. the very rare, monumental old-growth stands currently being logged in the Nahmint Valley and other hotspot areas).

“By focusing only on the fraction of old-growth protected of the fraction remaining, the more old-growth forest that’s logged outside the 55% that’s protected, the higher that number rises,” stated Inness. “If all the unprotected old-growth forests are logged, the BC government could then make the claim that ‘100% of the old-growth forests on the coast are protected!’”

UBC scientists find high mutation rates generating genetic diversity within huge, old-growth trees

/in /by

UBC News
July 8th, 2019

Study provides clues on how trees evolve to survive

The towering, hundreds of years old Sitka spruce trees growing in the heart of Vancouver Island’s Carmanah Valley appear placid and unchanging.

In reality, each one is packed to the rafters with evolutionary potential.

UBC researchers scraped bark and collected needles from 20 of these trees last summer, sending the samples to a lab for DNA sequencing. Results, published recently in Evolution Letters, showed that a single old-growth tree could have up to 100,000 genetic differences in DNA sequence between the base of the tree, where the bark was collected, and the tip of the crown.

Each difference represents a somatic mutation, or a mutation that occurs during the natural course of growth rather than during reproduction.

“This is the first evidence of the tremendous genetic variation that can accumulate in some of our tallest trees. Scientists have known for decades about somatic mutations, but very little about how frequently they occur and whether they contribute significantly to genetic variation,” said Sally Aitken, the study’s lead researcher and a professor of forestry at UBC. “Now, thanks to advances in genomic sequencing, we know some of the answers.”

The researchers chose the Sitka spruce because it’s among the tallest trees growing in the Pacific Northwest, and sampled the exceptional trees in Carmanah Walbran Provincial Park.

“Because these trees live so long and grow so tall, they’re capable of accumulating tremendous genetic variation over time,” explained Vincent Hanlon, who did the research as part of his master of science in the faculty of forestry at UBC.

“On average, the trees we sampled for the study were 220 to 500 years old and 76 metres tall. There’s a redwood tree in California that’s 116 metres tall, but these Sitka spruce were pretty big.”

The researchers say more time and further studies will be needed to understand exactly how the different somatic mutations will affect the evolution of the tree as a species.

“Most of the mutations are probably harmless, and some will likely be bad,” explained Aitken. “But other mutations may result in genetic diversity and if they’re passed onto offspring they’ll contribute to evolution and adaptation over time.”

Studying somatic mutation rates in various tree species can shed light on how trees, which can’t evolve as rapidly as other organisms like animals due to their long lifespans, nonetheless survive and thrive, Aitken said.

“We often see tree populations that adapt well to local climates and develop effective responses to changing stresses such as pests and bugs,” she added. “Our study provides insights on one genetic mechanism that might help make this possible.”

See the original article

ACTION ALERT: Have Your Say on Changes to BC’s Forest Practices Legislation

/in /by

The BC Government is currently seeking public feedback on proposed changes to the Forest and Range Practices Act, the main piece of legislation governing forest practices in BC. The amendments will focus on issues like climate change, biodiversity, government oversight, and public trust in forestry management decisions.

This is a rare and critical opportunity for British Columbians to speak up for science-based protection of BC’s endangered old-growth forests!

The Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA) has reduced government accountability and oversight and put the fox (timber industry) in charge of the henhouse (BC’s public lands, including rare and endangered old-growth forests). It also prioritizes timber supply over all other forest management objectives and includes loopholes around old-growth protection big enough to drive a logging truck through! The results have been a disaster and BC’s ancient forest ecosystems, biodiversity, climate, and communities are paying the price. 

Now is our chance to demand bold and sweeping changes to this outdated law.

Current legislated targets for old-growth protection are set too low and are not based on science, meaning we are losing the species, ecosystem services, tourism and recreation opportunities, and valuable carbon stores that old-growth forests provide. It’s high time the NDP government stopped placating the timber industry and started prioritizing the health and resilience of BC’s forest ecosystems. And it starts with strengthening the Forest and Range Practices Act.

Amendments to FRPA must:

  • Mandate the establishment of higher, legally-binding old-growth protection targets, based on the latest science, to sustain the long-term ecological integrity of old-growth forest ecosystems;
  • Prioritize forest connectivity and climate resilience;
  • Prioritize the management of biodiversity over timber supply across landscapes; and 
  • Close the loopholes that allow much of Earth’s grandest forests and biggest trees to be logged.

Read the BC government’s discussion paper for more information and details on the proposed changes.

Until Monday, July 15th, the BC government is accepting public comments on amendments to FRPA through an online survey. We have provided responses to the survey questions below to make it as easy as possible for you -simply copy, paste, and edit your responses as needed.

SUBMIT YOUR FEEDBACK (suggested survey answers below) Question 1. How should the Province identify opportunities and priorities for adapting forest management to a changing climate, such as mitigating the effects of beetle infestations, drought and fire?

  • Prioritize forest ecosystem health, connectivity, and resilience over timber supply to ensure forest ecosystems and the species that depend on them can cope with the impacts of climate change. Recent studies show that mature and old-growth and older forests are more resilient and can better protect communities from climate impacts like droughts and flooding better than younger forests.
  • Strengthen protection of valuable forest carbon sinks (i.e. old-growth forests).
  • Recognize the BC forest sector’s contribution to provincial greenhouse gas emissions and prioritize management approaches that significantly reduce forestry emissions (for example, by ending slash burning).

Question 2. What factors should be considered in the planning of forest operations to reduce the risks of wildfire around your community?

  • Logging and clearcuts that readily dry out have been shown to make landscapes more prone to fires. Protecting more forests around communities and curtailing forestry around communities will help reduce the frequency of fires.
  •  Forest operations must aim to minimize activities that exacerbate climate change impacts such as fires, flooding, droughts, and landslides.
  • Silvicultural practices must be changed to reduce wildfire risks near communities. This can be done, for example, by planting climate appropriate tree species and actively reducing fuel build-up in second-growth forests via thinning and controlled burns.

Question 3. A vital step in landscape-level planning is understanding what is important to the public. Based on what is important to you or your community, what information on the condition of resource values (such as species-at-risk habitat) do you think is necessary to support the planning process?

  • The current amount, in hectares and percentages, of protected and unprotected old-growth forest that remains in each landscape unit, by ecosystem type and productivity level, compared to their original extent (pre-European colonization).
  • Maps showing the geographic location of these remaining old-growth forests and their existing land use designations, both legislated (Parks, TFLs, Private, Crown, etc.) and regulatory (OGMAs, WHAs, etc.).
  •  Information on biodiversity (at all scales), including biodiversity hotspots for species richness, endangered species concentrations, underrepresented plant communities, and rare element occurrences.
  • Various species at risk habitat, including critical habitat.
  • Freshwater quality and salmon stock data and trends.
  • Forest industry and other industry tenures, leases and activities over the landscape.

Question 4. How would you like to be involved in the planning process?

  • Members of the public should be given meaningful, timely opportunities for public engagement at all levels of forest planning, including online commentary.
  • Landscape planning must be well-funded and be done quickly.
  • Landscape planning must also be multi-stakeholder processes (including environmental non-governmental organizations, among others) and co-managed by provincial and Indigenous governments.

Question 5. Resource roads are a valuable asset in the province as they provide access for the forest industry, ranchers, other resource users, and the public for commercial and recreation purposes. Yet, these same road networks are costly to maintain and have potential negative impacts on wildlife, water quality and fish habitat. What values do you believe are important to consider when planning new roads, road use and maintenance, and deactivation in your area?

  • Minimize on road construction wherever possible. Road densities may be the single largest source of lasting environmental degradation in landscapes.
  • Maintaining habitat connectivity and supporting species that rely on large tracts of undisturbed forest for survival.
  • Maintaining sufficient interior forest habitat and reducing the amount forest edge ecosystem.
  • Maintaining access to areas that provide valuable recreation and tourism opportunities while ensuring habitat connectivity and ecological integrity take priority.
  • Ensuring minimal impacts to freshwater quality, especially in drinking watersheds and salmon-bearing waterways.

Question 6. How can the Province improve transparency and timelines of information regarding proposed operational and landscape-level objectives, plans and results?

  • Provide meaningful, timely opportunities for public engagement at all levels of forest planning.
  • Forest Stewardship Plans must be more detailed on specific cutblock plans and roads, be publicly available online, and require public consultation spanning at least 120 days (twice the current 60-day period) to allow ample time for public comment.
  • Require licensees and provincial decision-makers to demonstrate how public comment substantially informed proposed plans, operations and approval decisions.

Question 7. What information will help inform your feedback on plans that may impact you, your community or your business (e.g., maps of cutblocks and roads planned in your area, hydrological assessments, wildlife habitat areas or recreation opportunities, etc.)?

  • Maps of planned cutblocks and roads, forest reserve designations (e.g. OGMAs, WHAs), old-growth forest ecosystems (at the BEC zone and, where possible, site series level) and productivity classes, species-at-risk habitat, recreation opportunities, and information such as surveys, assessments, and studies relied on by licensees to demonstrate consistency with government objectives, approval tests, and statutory requirements should all be made publicly available in order to inform feedback on proposed plans.

Question 8. What additional values should be considered in FRPA that will allow us to manage forest and range practices in a better way?

  • Science-based old-growth forest retention on a scale sufficient to ensure their long-term ecological integrity must be added as a management objective.
  • Through FRPA, the BC government must establish an independent science panel to: a) Evaluate the conservation status of all forest ecosystems, b) Establish evidence-based old-growth and other biodiversity targets to be applied through landscape level planning with associated, legally-binding timelines.
  • These targets must take ecosystem types, forest productivity, and elevation distinctions into account and must not be based on representation alone, but also on landscape ecology and conservation biology principles to ensure long-term ecological integrity.

FRPA amendments must also:

  • Establish biodiversity as a high management priority in all forest ecosystems through an explicit FRPA objective.
  • Remove the constraint “without unduly reducing the supply of timber from British Columbia’s forests” from all FRPA legal objectives and from the Government Actions Regulation and add the constraint “without unduly reducing the resilience of ecosystems” to timber and other ‘use’ objectives.
  •  Include a hierarchy of old-growth forest reserve establishment where old-growth forests take priority over second-growth and high productivity forests take priority over low.
  • Restrict the movement of Old Growth Management Area boundaries.

Question 9. In what ways should the Province strengthen government oversight and industry accountability regarding forest and range activities to better address the challenges of climate change and the interests of all British Columbians?

  • Require licensees to provide sufficient information for provincial decision-makers to evaluate operational plans and proposed forest operations for consistency with legal objectives and require government approval of site-level plans.
  •  Require that decision-makers provide written reasons to the public demonstrating how proposed logging and road-building are consistent with statutory tests, legal objectives, Indigenous rights and public comment.
  • Require provincial decision-makers to determine whether proposed forest operations are consistent with:  a) maintaining and where necessary restoring healthy, fully functioning forest ecosystems that support ecological, social and cultural resiliency, and  b) the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
  • Remove existing, lengthy bureaucratic steps required to set objectives and give government the authority to set objectives, informed by public input, for a particular area.

Thank you for submitting your feedback! Can you go a step further?

Send an email to Forests Minister Doug Donaldson, Premier John Horgan, and other decision-makers telling them the 2020 Forest and Range Practices Act amendments must include science-based protection of old-growth forests! 

Directions to Avatar Grove and the big trees.

Avatar Grove with BC KAIROS Rolling Justice Bus

/in /by

Last week, the BC KAIROS Rolling Justice Bus embarked on four day tour to see some of Vancouver Island’s most spectacular ancient forests and learn more about the issues surrounding them. AFA’s TJ Watt and forest ecologist Andy MacKinnon helped kick off day one of the tour at Avatar Grove in Canada’s Tall Trees Capital, Port Renfrew, sharing what makes old-growth forests so unique and why they’re worth more standing than as stumps! Thanks to BC-KAIROS for hosting this informative tour, raising awareness for BC’s ancient forests, and having the AFA along!

ACTION ALERT: Speak up for Ancient Forests. Submit your Feedback on Budget 2020 Before June 28th!

/in /by

Suggested wording for your submission:

Across British Columbia, old-growth forests have significant economic, social, and environmental value.

Old-growth forests:
• Support unique and endangered species that cannot flourish in second-growth forests;
• Are vital pillars of BC’s multi-billion dollar tourism industry, with tourists coming from around the world to visit BC’s old-growth forests and parks;
• Are vital to many First Nations cultures;
• Store vast amounts of atmospheric carbon, potentially allowing local communities to benefit from rapidly expanding carbon markets;
• Supply clean water for communities and for wild salmon, which in turn supports commercial and recreational fisheries; and
• Are important for non-timber products, such as mushrooms, wild berries, and medicines.

Studies have shown that keeping old-growth forests standing can provide a greater overall economic benefit than cutting them down when factoring in the values listed above. Across British Columbia, local communities stand to gain greater revenues and jobs by protecting nearby old-growth forests.

A century of industrial logging has reduced BC’s remarkable old-growth forests to a fraction of their original extent. Today, almost 80% of the original productive old-growth forests on BC’s south coast have been logged, including well over 90% of the highest productivity forests with the greatest biodiversity and biggest trees. As more of BC’s carbon-rich old-growth forests are logged every year, unique species and entire ecosystems are being pushed to the brink of collapse.

I therefore recommend the BC government prioritize the conservation of endangered old-growth forests in its 2020 provincial budget by:

1) Establishing a dedicated $40 million per year BC Natural Lands Acquisition Fund to purchase private lands of high conservation, scenic, cultural, and recreational value from willing sellers to add to BC’s parks and protected areas system. This $40 million annual fund should increase by $10 million/year until the fund reaches $100 million/year.

A $40 million Natural Lands Acquisition Fund would amount to only 0.07% of BC’s approximately $60 billion annual budget and would generate significant financial returns for the province. In fact, studies have shown that, for every $1 invested by the BC government in our parks system, another $9 is generated in the provincial economy through tourism revenues.

British Columbia’s most endangered ecosystems are often found on privately-owned lands, many of which are under threat from logging and real estate developments. Private land trusts, while important, are simply unable to raise enough funds fast enough to buy all of BC’s endangered private lands before many of them are destroyed. The BC government must develop a comprehensive, strategic plan with sufficient, consistent government funding to protect endangered ecosystems on private lands before they are lost.

2) Contributing funding toward the sustainable development and economic diversification of Vancouver Island First Nations communities in lieu of old-growth logging, tied to the creation of Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (an initiative known as conservation financing).

Many First Nations communities on Vancouver Island make significant revenues from old-growth logging, yet lack a range of alternative economic development opportunities that would support their local economies into the future and allow them to transition away from old-growth logging, should they wish to. In order to protect old-growth forests, create jobs, and improve community wellbeing, the BC government should support conservation financing solutions as an alternative to old-growth logging, similar to the $120 million (including $30 million in provincial funds) provided to First Nations in the Great Bear Rainforest in support of ecosystem-based management in that region.

This is a fundamentally important precursor for the large-scale protection of endangered old-growth forests in BC and for the NDP government to effectively implement its 2017 election platform commitment to apply ecosystem-based management of old-growth forests across BC.

 

 

 

 

Note: You may also wish to present your feedback in person to the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government at a public hearing (in-person or via teleconference). Click here [Original article no longer available] for the dates and locations of public hearings being held across BC and read this handy guide [Original article no longer available] on how to prepare presentations and submissions to the Committee. You can also submit an audio or video submission here. [Original article no longer available]

 

 

Questions about the Budget 2020 consultation process? Visit the Budget 2020 website [Original article no longer available] for more information.

 

Please help us spread the word by sharing this page with your network! We need as many British Columbians as possible to speak up and request funding for old-growth protection in Budget 2020.

 

 

 

 

Every year, the BC government consults British Columbians on their financial priorities for the upcoming provincial budget. The consultation process for the 2020 provincial budget is happening now until 5:00 pm on Friday, June 28th, giving us a golden opportunity to request dedicated funding for old-growth forest protection.

 

Horne Mountain

 

A BC Land Acquisition Fund would allow endangered ecosystems on private lands (like Horne Mountain, pictured here) to be purchased and protected.

 

 

The Ancient Forest Alliance has long called for a legislated, science-based plan to protect endangered old-growth forests on Crown lands, along with regulations and incentives to support the transition to a sustainable, second-growth forest industry. But these regulatory measures aren’t enough to ensure the protection of endangered forests on private lands or secure the long-term economic and social well-being of First Nations communities that want to protect old-growth forests in their territories, but are dependent on revenues from old-growth logging.

 

 

To protect old-growth forests, the BC government must commit funding to two key initiatives in its 2020 budget:

 

  • A provincial Natural Lands Acquisition Fund for the purchase and protection of endangered ecosystems on private lands; and
  • Conservation financing for the sustainable economic development of First Nations economies in lieu of old-growth logging, tied to the creation of Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas.

 

 

Funding for these initiatives is critical for the large-scale protection of BC’s endangered forests. Even modest funding in the 2020 budget would send a positive signal that the BC government is willing to take action in the interests of BC’s ancient forests and First Nations communities and would create momentum for greater funding commitments in future budgets.

 

 

PLEASE SPEAK UP FOR ANCIENT FORESTS AND SUBMIT YOUR RECOMMENDATIONS FOR THE 2020 PROVINCIAL BUDGET TODAY!

 

Follow these easy steps to submit your feedback:
1) Copy the prepared submission below,
2) Visit the budget consultation website [Original article no longer available], select Make a written, audio or video submission, and hit “next,”
3) Fill in your contact details and skip to the next page,
4) Paste the prepared submission into the “comments” box,
5) Follow the instructions and submit!

 

CLICK HERE TO SUBMIT YOUR FEEDBACK [Original article no longer available]

 

 

 

Suggested wording for your submission:

Across British Columbia, old-growth forests have significant economic, social, and environmental value.

Old-growth forests:
• Support unique and endangered species that cannot flourish in second-growth forests;
• Are vital pillars of BC’s multi-billion dollar tourism industry, with tourists coming from around the world to visit BC’s old-growth forests and parks;
• Are vital to many First Nations cultures;
• Store vast amounts of atmospheric carbon, potentially allowing local communities to benefit from rapidly expanding carbon markets;
• Supply clean water for communities and for wild salmon, which in turn supports commercial and recreational fisheries; and
• Are important for non-timber products, such as mushrooms, wild berries, and medicines.

Studies have shown that keeping old-growth forests standing can provide a greater overall economic benefit than cutting them down when factoring in the values listed above. Across British Columbia, local communities stand to gain greater revenues and jobs by protecting nearby old-growth forests.

A century of industrial logging has reduced BC’s remarkable old-growth forests to a fraction of their original extent. Today, almost 80% of the original productive old-growth forests on BC’s south coast have been logged, including well over 90% of the highest productivity forests with the greatest biodiversity and biggest trees. As more of BC’s carbon-rich old-growth forests are logged every year, unique species and entire ecosystems are being pushed to the brink of collapse.

I therefore recommend the BC government prioritize the conservation of endangered old-growth forests in its 2020 provincial budget by:

1) Establishing a dedicated $40 million per year BC Natural Lands Acquisition Fund to purchase private lands of high conservation, scenic, cultural, and recreational value from willing sellers to add to BC’s parks and protected areas system. This $40 million annual fund should increase by $10 million/year until the fund reaches $100 million/year.

A $40 million Natural Lands Acquisition Fund would amount to only 0.07% of BC’s approximately $60 billion annual budget and would generate significant financial returns for the province. In fact, studies have shown that, for every $1 invested by the BC government in our parks system, another $9 is generated in the provincial economy through tourism revenues.

British Columbia’s most endangered ecosystems are often found on privately-owned lands, many of which are under threat from logging and real estate developments. Private land trusts, while important, are simply unable to raise enough funds fast enough to buy all of BC’s endangered private lands before many of them are destroyed. The BC government must develop a comprehensive, strategic plan with sufficient, consistent government funding to protect endangered ecosystems on private lands before they are lost.

2) Contributing funding toward the sustainable development and economic diversification of Vancouver Island First Nations communities in lieu of old-growth logging, tied to the creation of Indigenous Protected and Conserved Areas (an initiative known as conservation financing).

Many First Nations communities on Vancouver Island make significant revenues from old-growth logging, yet lack a range of alternative economic development opportunities that would support their local economies into the future and allow them to transition away from old-growth logging, should they wish to. In order to protect old-growth forests, create jobs, and improve community wellbeing, the BC government should support conservation financing solutions as an alternative to old-growth logging, similar to the $120 million (including $30 million in provincial funds) provided to First Nations in the Great Bear Rainforest in support of ecosystem-based management in that region.

This is a fundamentally important precursor for the large-scale protection of endangered old-growth forests in BC and for the NDP government to effectively implement its 2017 election platform commitment to apply ecosystem-based management of old-growth forests across BC.

 

 

 

 

Note: You may also wish to present your feedback in person to the Select Standing Committee on Finance and Government at a public hearing (in-person or via teleconference). Click here [Original article no longer available] for the dates and locations of public hearings being held across BC and read this handy guide [Original article no longer available] on how to prepare presentations and submissions to the Committee. You can also submit an audio or video submission here. [Original article no longer available]

 

 

Questions about the Budget 2020 consultation process? Visit the Budget 2020 website [Original article no longer available] for more information.

 

Please help us spread the word by sharing this page with your network! We need as many British Columbians as possible to speak up and request funding for old-growth protection in Budget 2020.