News Coverage

Bell’s announcement came on the heels of a similar recommendation released by the Forest Practices Board, an independent advisory group for the B.C. government.

Watt earned first place in Outdoor Photography Canada magazine’s “human impact on the environment” photo contest. The image is of a lone man standing on the stump of an ancient tree in the middle of a clear cut in Gordon River valley, near Port Renfrew.

“Certainly we have been hearing the message . . . that we should be considering some tools, perhaps new tools that we could use when particularly unique trees are identified. They may be individual trees or small areas like the Avatar Grove that provide incremental value over and above the timber resource value,” Bell told media.

Super, natural British Columbia is awesome, with more than 4,373 known forms of life. At more than double the size of the state of California, B.C. is breathtaking.

"Certainly we have been hearing the message for some time from different organizations that we should be considering some tools, perhaps new tools that we could use when particularly unique trees are identified. They may be individual tees or small areas like the Avatar Grove that provide incremental value over and above the timber resource value," Bell said.

Voluntary efforts by forest companies answerable to shareholders aren't enough, but the report is a start toward real protection for trees with historic significance every bit as real as ancient ruins.

The forest practices board made a recommendation that BC should find creative ways to protect monumental trees and ancient forest stands. This is the government's watchdog. They appointed the body to review forestry in BC and now their own watchdog is saying we need to move farther to save our old growth forests

The minister's acknowledgment that more needs to be done to protect monumental trees is not exactly a revelation. Environmental groups, particularly the Ancient Forest Alliance and the Wilderness Committee have been pushing for it for years.