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The incredible Cathedral Grove Canyon near Port Alberni is just one of many conentious areas of old-growth forest land owned by Island Timberlands.

Media Release: Chinese Goverment’s Ownership of BC’s Forests Could Undermine New Environmental Laws, Forestry Jobs, and First Nations

Dec 13 2012/in Media Release

Chinese Government’s Ownership of British Columbia’s Forests Could Stifle New Environmental Laws, Undermine BC Forestry Jobs, and Infringe on First Nations’ Rights under Proposed Trade Agreement

Conservationists with the Ancient Forest Alliance (AFA) are raising the alarm that the potential ownership of vast tracts of British Columbia’s private forest lands by the Chinese government could negatively impact BC’s environmental laws, forestry jobs, and the rights of First Nations in light of the proposed Canada-China Foreign Investment Promotion and Protection Agreement (FIPA). Island Timberlands is BC’s second largest private landowner, with over 254,000 hectares of private forest lands on Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast. The company is expected to close a $100 million deal soon with the China Investment Corporation (CIC), one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds owned by the Chinese government. The deal will see the CIC own a 12.5% stake in Island Timberlands (see the article: https://www.scmp.com/news/world/article/1099267/tiny-cortes-island-girds-battle-chinas-huge-cic-wealth-fund).

“The Communist Party of China is about to become one of the biggest landowners in British Columbia if this deal goes through. In light of the proposed Canada-China investment treaty, this could be at the expense of BC’s environment, forestry workers and First Nations,” stated Ken Wu, executive director of the Ancient Forest Alliance. “Chairman Harper seems to be channelling Chairman Mao’s spirit these days, as it’s hard to see how this proposed agreement will be a net benefit to Canadians.”

The Canada-China FIPA would allow Chinese investors in Canada to sue the federal government for lost profits due to new regulations, taxes, and environmental laws enacted federally, provincially, or municipally. This would undercut the ability of future governments to enact new regulations or policies that might result in a lawsuit by Chinese companies which are accountable to the Chinese government. Any disputes under FIPA would go for arbitration in tribunals outside of Canadian courts and mostly outside of any court. These tribunals are not independent, open, and procedurally fair in the manner of other international courts and tribunals. The agreement’s stipulations would last for a minimum of 31 years even if the Canadian government in the future opts out of the agreement at the earliest opportunity, which is after a 15-year minimum term. The federal government has yet to ratify FIPA, possibly as a result of major public opposition including within Conservative party constituencies. See more info at: https://www.desmogblog.com/2012/10/15/china-canada-investment-treaty-designed-be-straight-jacket-canada-exclusive-interview-trade-investment-lawyer-gus-van

“Not only could the Chinese government’s ownership of our forests under FIPA obstruct future measures to protect our endangered ecosystems, BC wood processing jobs, and First Nations land use plans, but it could result in Canadian taxpayers owing tens of millions of dollars to the Chinese government for protecting the interests of our own citizens,” stated Wu.

Measures to protect the environment, labour, and First Nations rights that could be negatively affected by the Canada-China FIPA and the CIC buying a stake in Island Timberlands include:

– Obstructions against new regulations or taxes to curtail unprocessed “raw” logs from being exported from BC to sawmills in China and abroad. Island Timberlands is one of BC’s largest exporters of raw, unprocessed logs to foreign mills in China, the US, and other countries. Public pressure is strong to curtail raw log exports in order to ensure a guaranteed log supply for BC’s wood manufacturing sector. “This trade agreement with China could provide an unfettered conduit for the free flow of unprocessed raw logs from BC’s forests to Chinese sawmills,” stated Wu.

– Undermining stronger Forest Practices regulations on private forest lands. Conservationists are calling for stronger regulations on Private Managed Forest Lands to protect salmon streams with wider forested“buffers”, to protect drinking watersheds, old-growth forests, and endangered species against industrial logging, and to enact controls on the unsustainable rate of overcutting. In 2004 the BC Liberal government removed 88,000 hectares of private forest lands now owned by Island Timberlands from the Tree Farm Licenses that once regulated them with stronger forest practices regulations with the same standards on public lands.

– Frustrating the establishment of a “Forest Land Reserve”, similar to the existing “Agricultural Land Reserve”, that would prohibit real estate subdivisions and suburban sprawl on private forest lands zoned for forestry use.

– Obstructing the implementation of First Nations land-use plans and shared decision-making measures that may require legally-binding orders from the BC government to protect sacred sites, important cultural use sites, and natural resource areas. Most of Island Timberlands’ lands are also unceded by First Nations where no treaties were signed that relinquished First Nations title to them. Many BC First Nations are pushing for increased legal control over their unceded territories and to implement their own land use visions even before treaties are settled, which in most cases are still many years away.

Island Timberlands is entangled in battles with communities across Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast who are upset by the company’s plans to log old-growth forests and sensitive ecosystems (see a list of contentious areas and beautiful photos at: https://www.ancientforestalliance.org/news-item.php?ID=519).

On Cortes Island (see beautiful photos at: https://www.ancientforestalliance.org/photos.php?gID=12), local residents repeatedly protested and blocked Island Timberlands’ attempts to log earlier this month. Last week the company temporarily pulled out its logging crews from Cortes Island and postponed its pursuit of a court injunction against the protesters, with Island residents currently waiting for the company to meet with them to resume negotiations.

The Ancient Forest Alliance is calling on Island Timberlands back off from logging its contentious “forest hotspots” across the coast until conservation funding can be secured for their purchase, and to log on Cortes Island according to community, ecosystem-based forestry standards.

In addition to strengthening environmental regulations on private forest lands, the AFA is also calling on the provincial government to establish a $40 million annual BC park acquisition fund to purchase and protect endangered ecosystems on private lands. The last time the provincial government had a dedicated park acquisition fund was in the 2008 budget.

“While private land trusts are vital for conservation, they simply don’t have the capacity to quickly raise the tens of millions of dollars needed each year to protect most endangered private lands before they are logged or developed —only governments have such funds,” stated TJ Watt, Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner and photographer. “More than ever, considering the potential future difficulties to strengthen environmental laws on private lands under FIPA, the BC government must fund the purchase of the last endangered old-growth forests on private lands before they are logged.”

A battle over private forest lands on Salt Spring Island over a decade ago between local residents and a logging/development company was resolved when the federal, provincial and regional governments provided over $16 million in funding, along with $1 million raised by local citizens, to purchase over 1000 hectares of private forest lands on Mount Maxwell and around Burgoyne Bay – an area similar in size to Island Timberlands’ holdings on Cortes Island. Currently, Cortes Island residents are working to raise funds to purchase and protect the 250 hectare “Children’s Forest” from Island Timberlands, constituting about 25% of the company’s private lands on Cortes.

The transfer of lands from private corporate ownership to public ownership would also open up greater possibilities for First Nations shared decision-making and cultural uses on those lands. Other provincial funds could also be put forward to purchase private forest lands for conversion to Community Forests for ecosystem-based forestry operations controlled by local communities.

Big Trees of Vancouver featured in major Chinese-language newspaper.

Dec 11 2012/in News Coverage

Here are a series of articles in the Sing Tao Daily News, a major Chinese-language newspaper in Vancouver, about the biggest trees of Vancouver that also features the Ancient Forest Alliance and our campaign to protect them!

愛樹團體籲省府保育

[2012-11-28]

本報記者王露報道

卑詩省古樹聯盟（Ancient Forest Alliance）20個支持者，上周六到省長簡蕙芝（Christy Clark）於溫西格雷岬（Point Grey）選區辦公室外示威，促請省府保護本省珍貴古樹。
聯盟發起人吳俊諺說，他與支持者計劃去格雷岬約2,000個家庭，向他們解說保護古樹的重要，並邀請他們簽署請願信，呼籲省府成立一個卑詩古老森林保護計劃，阻止砍伐溫哥華島及低陸平原等地區的珍貴古樹。他們還希望省府能確保本省伐木業者不要砍伐古樹，選擇5至50年樹齡的年輕樹木砍伐。
吳俊諺指出，卑詩低陸平原地區約有2萬公頃的古樹森林，需要保護。而距離下屆省選不到7個月時間，簡蕙芝仍有機會推動改變。他說，聖誕將至，簡蕙芝應該送給卑詩省一份可持續受惠的聖誕禮物。他們稍後會把收集到的請願信交到簡蕙芝選區辦公室。

溫市樹木也有新移民

[2012-11-28]

本報記者王露報道

人均擁樹2.6棵不負最綠城市美譽
除了人和建築物外，溫哥華市最常見到就是樹木。據統計，溫市共有160萬棵樹，當中有「原住民」──西部紅柏與道格拉斯冷杉，也有「新移民」──源自上世紀日本的櫻花樹。目前全市居民平均每人有2.6棵樹。溫市府計劃未來8年增種15萬棵樹，延續溫哥華最綠色城市的美譽。
由香港移民溫市30多年的溫市府社區發展及社會政策部規劃師黃永安稱，上世紀80年中期至90年代初，大批香港人湧入，當時有建築商為吸引新移民買家，在翻新舊屋或建新屋時，砍掉院子內原有樹木。由於入住這些屋苑多數是香港移民，本地居民誤以為華裔移民不懂珍惜樹木因而衍生反感，經華社領袖出面解釋，雙方誤會才告化解(詳另文)。
160萬棵樹擬8年增1成
根據市府資料，溫市現在約有160萬棵樹，包括約14萬棵街樹，並計劃在未來年再種植5萬棵，增幅約一成（見附表）。
百多年前溫市開埠初期，木材是本地的主要經濟命脈，不少街名也以樹命名。最普遍的是西部紅柏（Western Red Cedar）和道格拉斯冷杉樹（Douglas Fir），史丹利公園（Stanley Park）及市面仍可見到它們的蹤影。
溫哥華綠色文化俱樂部會長林聖哲說，溫市街樹很有特色，例如樹葉變化最多的楓樹，最常見的榆樹等；為保護街樹，市府還立例，砍樹須申請及種下新樹苗。
相對於「原住樹」，源自上世紀30年代日本的櫻花樹就是溫市的「新移民」，陪伴日裔移民融入本地生活，對他們有特別意義。
櫻花樹是「新移民」
據溫市府樹木修剪師斯蒂芬（Bill Stephen）憶述，1967年，日本政府代表昭和天皇送給溫市幾百株櫻花樹，作為象徵加日友誼的禮物，它們被分種在溫市不同區域。1977年，本地日裔為慶祝第一代日裔抵埠百年，在奧本海默公園（Oppenheimer Park）種下21棵櫻花樹。其後，更有日裔團體發起櫻花節，現已成為每年城中盛事。
但四年前，公園局計劃在奧本海默公園增建運動場館，打算移走部分櫻花樹，遭日裔社區反對。斯蒂芬指，起初公園局並不知這些櫻花樹對日裔有重要歷史意義，後經溝通，公園局放棄原計劃，櫻花樹保留。
古樹保護聯盟（Ancient Forest Alliance）發起人之一吳俊諺說，小時候父母曾帶他去公園垂釣，令他愛上樹木及自然環境。長大後，他報讀卑詩大學（UBC）生態學系，想要更加瞭解周圍的綠色環境。他記得讀書時，有一次學校要砍伐校園大片森林，為保護這片森林，他曾堅持在樹上靜坐一星期示威。

違例砍樹可罰千元

[2012-11-28]

本報記者王露報道

根據溫市樹木保護附例，業主如要砍伐自己物業內的樹木，必須事先申請砍樹許可（tree permit）。
一般業主只可在12個月內，申請砍一棵樹，該樹樹圍必須在64釐米以上，樹輪直徑20釐米以上，離地至少1.4米高，才能被砍。
此外，業主在砍樹後必須種下一棵新樹苗。如有人違法砍樹，市府將對違法者罰款，每棵樹500至1,000元。
溫市府表示，市府平均每年發出1,500至1,600個砍樹許可。市府在近年曾有過兩個較嚴重的違法砍樹案例，其中一個業主無許可而砍下25棵樹，被罰3.1萬元。
另一宗發生在西南海旁大道（SW Marine Dr.），業主和承建商沒有許可砍下14棵樹，分別被罰3.2萬元和2.1萬元。

溫市中部Heather St. 首條以樹命名街道

[2012-11-28]

本報記者

溫市在1867年開埠，早期居民主要在煤氣鎮一帶，從事伐木和鋸木工作，時至今日，這個城市樹木密度，仍然遠高於人口密度。
事實上，從溫市許多街道都以樹種命名，就可知本地和樹木有不解之緣。
在1874年，溫市中部出現第一條以樹種命名的街道，即意為石南樹街的希瑟街 (Heather St.)，而命名者是卑詩省伐木先驅麥基(William Mackie)。
繼石南樹街由市中部延至南部之後，溫市西區陸續有更多街道以樹命名，例如意為野草莓樹街的阿布特斯街(Arbutus St.)、意指橡樹街的渥街(Oak St.)，以及白蠟樹街的阿什街(Ash St.)等。

https://news.singtao.ca/vancouver/2012-11-28/headline1354098933d4220784.html

[Original article no longer available]

https://news.singtao.ca/vancouver/2012-11-28/headline1354098945d4220785.html

https://news.singtao.ca/vancouver/2012-11-28/headline1354098888d4220782.html

Political leadership needed to resolve Cortes Island’s "War in the Woods"

Dec 10 2012/in News Coverage

The conflict over the past week between local Cortes Island residents and Island Timberlands over the company’s contentious plans to log endangered forests has conservationists renewing their call for political leadership in BC to resolve the “War in the Woods”.

Last week, local residents on Cortes Island repeatedly blocked Island Timberlands’ attempts to begin logging. Earlier this week the company withdrew its workers from the island and have postponed pursuing a court injunction against the protesters for one week while negotiations resume with Cortes residents.

“What is needed now is leadership from the BC Liberal government to help resolve the War in the Woods by committing funds to purchase endangered ecosystems on private lands, including old-growth forests on Cortes Island and throughout the southern coast where communities are fighting Island Timberlands’ old-growth logging plans,” stated Ken Wu, Ancient Forest Alliance executive director.“The province hasn’t had a dedicated annual fund to purchase and protect private lands in years, despite that fact that for every $1 invested in new parks in BC, another $9 is generated in revenues in the provincial economy, according to studies. Island Timberlands also has an obligation to log according to community, ecosystem-based forestry standards on Cortes Island.”

The Ancient Forest Alliance is calling for a $40 million annual BC park acquisition fund, which would amount to about 0.1 per cent or 1/1000th of the province’s $40 billion annual budget.Over 10 years, $400 million would be available for purchasing critical habitats on private lands throughout the province. The last time the provincial government had a dedicated land acquisition fund was in the 2008 budget. A similar battle on Salt Spring Island over a decade ago between local residents and a logging/development company was resolved through funding from the provincial, federal and regional governments and local citizens to purchase the endangered lands around Burgoyne Bay and on Mount Maxwell.

Park acquisition funds already exist in several Regional Districts in BC, including the Capital Regional District (CRD) in the Greater Victoria region, which has a Land Acquisition Fund of about $3.5 million each year. The CRD has spent over $34 million dollars since the year 2000 to purchase over 4500 hectares, including lands at Jordan River, the Sooke Hills, the Sooke Potholes, Thetis Lake, Mount Work, and Mount Maxwell on Salt Spring Island, to expand their system of Regional Parks.

Logging giant Island Timberlands, which owns about 260,000 hectares of private forest lands on Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast, is entangled in battles with communities throughout the region. The company is also one of the largest exporter of raw, unprocessed logs to foreign mills in the USA and Asia. Currently, the Chinese government is looking to buy a major stake of Island Timberlands through the China Investment Corporation, one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, and is expected to close a $100 million deal with the company soon.

Contentious old-growth forests and endangered ecosystems owned by Island Timberlands include (see beautiful photos in the following links):

Cortes Island
Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast
Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River on the Sunshine Coast
McLaughlin Ridge near Port Alberni on Vancouver Island
Cathedral Grove Canyon near Port Alberni
Lands directly adjacent to Cathedral Grove in MacMillan Provincial Park near Port Alberni
Labour Day Lake near Port Alberni
Pearl Lake adjacent to Strathcona Provincial Park on Vancouver Island
Eagle Ridge Bluffs near Shawnigan Lake on Vancouver Island

Old-growth forests are vital for supporting endangered species, tourism, recreation, the climate, clean water, wild salmon, and many First Nations cultures. On Vancouver Island, 75 per cent of the original, productive old-growth forests have already been logged, including 90 per cent of the most productive old-growth forests in the lowlands where the largest trees grow. Well over 90 per cent of the old-growth “Dry Maritime” and Coastal Douglas-fir forests on BC’s southern coast have already been logged.