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Ground Zero: Island Timberlands

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The extraordinarily rich forests of Vancouver Island have been fought over since James Douglas had 14 Vancouver Island chiefs sign a blank piece of paper. The frustration in losing virtually every battle by four generations of First Nations and concerned citizens has bred some sophisticated new approaches to the old task of protecting Indigenous rights and nature. These reach out internationally and to corporate shareholders. As a result, 2014 is off to a difficult start for Island Timberlands, the corporation most in the news these days for questionable logging practices.

First, a resolution on an ethical investment issue was passed unanimously on January 31 by the BC Teachers Federation. The resolution urged BC Investment Management Corporation (bcIMC), which invests the teachers’ pensions and is a majority shareholder in Island Timberlands, to send the company back to the planning table over its liquidation of old growth forests on Vancouver Island, specifically around Port Alberni (near Cathedral Grove and McLaughlin Ridge). This resolution built on a 2012 recommendation that “the BCTF seeks legislative or regulatory changes that would clarify the definition of fiduciary duty to include consideration of long-term financial sustainability through environmental, social, and governance responsible investing principles.” Since pensions are fuelling the logging rates, this hits at the heart of the problem.

In support of their resolution, members of the BCTF used the argument presented in the 2008 Supreme Court of Canada judgment that the directors must resolve to balance stakeholder interests “in accordance with their fiduciary duty to act in the best interests of the corporation, viewed as a good corporate citizen.”

This leaves it wide open for the courts and citizens to define “a good corporate citizen.”

Another case brought by Robert Morales, chief negotiator for six southeast Vancouver Island First Nations of the Hul’qumi’num Treaty Group (HTG), might do just that at the international level. The Inter-American Commission for Human Rights (Focus, November 2011) will assess the culpability of Canada and three corporations (including Island Timberlands) who are the “successors in interest” in breaching human rights. Morales explains that after the original application to the international tribunal was filed in 2011, the government of Canada objected on the grounds that the native groups had not exhausted all domestic remedies.

Morales states, “We argued that no Canadian court has ever recognized Indigenous people’s rights to private property. The Inter-American Commission agreed with us, and were satisfied that there were no domestic remedies. Canadians don’t realize the gravity of this statement. Here is an international body of human rights experts stating that in Canada a situation exists where a group of people’s human rights cannot be effectively dealt with under the existing legal and political structures here.” The case is now awaiting the final hearing—and we can anticipate that this court’s judgment might point to a lack of good corporate citizenship.

Island Timberlands’ third worry is a cluster of community groups up and down the island, who, under the slogan “No community stands alone,” have been seeking an improvement in forest practices of the company. On February 4, Jane Morden, spokesperson for Watershed Forest Alliance out of Port Alberni, released in a letter to bcIMC and IT “the evidence for our concern regarding Island Timberlands’ logging practices on private lands in the Alberni Valley area.”

In the documents submitted to bcIMC and IT, the Alliance detailed the history of the IT lands in question. In 2004 the provincial government removed 74,000 hectares of Island Timberlands private land from Tree Farm License 44 with a letter of intent that grandfathered the protection of 2400 hectares of critical wildlife habitat (old growth) for wintering ungulates (deer and elk) and the nesting Northern Goshawk—a red-listed species at risk. After long negotiations between 2005 and 2008, and upon acquiring these lands, IT agreed to the boundaries of the 2400 hectares of ungulate winter range (UWR) and wildlife habitat area (WHA) for goshawk as the minimum area required for protection. Shortly after, however, IT began clearcutting these lands.

In a document obtained by FOI, government scientists Darryn McConkey and Erica McClaren stated “negotiations ceased because we could not agree on the management regime within these boundaries. Island Timberlands wanted to extract timber resources from within UWRs and WHA 1-002 and Ministry of Forests could not scientifically rationalize how the quality of these areas could be maintained.” Ministry scientists go on to say that IT’s proposed management “did not incorporate any input from the Ministry of Environment” and “is not supported by the best available science.”

Island Timberland’s spokesperson Morgan Kennah, in answer to this claim of unscientific forest practices, stated IT stands by its forest certification process, Sustainable Forestry Initiatives (SFI). SFI has received strong criticism for being an industry-financed certification system. ForestEthics, for example, has stated, “The SFI certification program actually assures its timber company customers that it does not prohibit logging in old growth forests, wild areas that do not currently have roads, or other places in which ecological values are especially rich.”

When asked about these critiques and industry ties to SFI, IT’s Kennah responded, “Many people would say that it [SFI] is independent. The board is made up of economic and environmental interests. We feel strongly, as [do] others, that it is not controlled by industry.” On the SFI board various non-profits are represented, including Bird Studies Canada whose website states that SFI is a Gold Donor with donations of over $50,000 for projects like their Bird Atlas, which ironically would include the goshawk nesting site that the Alliance seeks to protect. Bird Studies Canada President George Finney, defended his role: “From Bird Studies Canada point of view, we are just giving them bird information and how they can be less detrimental to various bird populations.” He said, “Complaints could be registered and they will be investigated.”

The Kwakiutl First Nation also added their voice to the chorus of disenchanted Vancouver Islanders with an ongoing peaceful protest when Island Timberlands started to log cultural sites, traplines and cedar trees in their territory. The Douglas Treaty (signed 163 years ago to the day of their February 9 press release) stipulated “that lands and waters were to be set-aside for the exclusive use by Kwakiutl to maintain livelihood ‘as formerly’ and for ‘generations to follow.’” Chief Coreen Child of Kwakiutl First Nation stated: “The people of Kwakiutl have been left with no choice but to protest and stop Canada and BC from allowing Companies to cut and remove cedar trees from our land.” IT’s response to this was: “We have done due diligence by sending in an archaeologist to do an Archaeological Impact Assessment with members of the band attending.” Focus asked to view the report or the terms of reference, but was refused. Chief Child argues that these studies don’t address cultural land-use issues granted in the Douglas Treaty.

Morales and the Hul’qumi’num Treaty Group are also pointing to these cultural land-use issues as the nub of the case: “The Inter-American Commission is not judging whether the action of transferring the land to private corporate hands was legal or not, but whether the ability of the people to practice their culture has been significantly affected by this action today.” He argued that the privatization resulted in a situation in which First Nations cannot practice their culture due to the losses that they have sustained. “How can you teach your children how to build a canoe when there are no longer any cedar trees? That is the loss that the Inter-American Commission is considering.”

Finally, Cortes Islanders, who have successfully fended off Island Timberland’s clearcutting plans for the old growth on their island to date (Focus, January 2013), celebrated—after 20-plus years of negotiation—realization of a community forest agreement (CFA). The agreement covers Crown lands adjacent to IT’s land and includes equal partnership with the KIahoose First Nation. The partnership is in the process of developing a Community Forest Operating Plan that reflects community values and will guide forest management within the CFA. Cortes Islanders had asked IT to bring their own forestlands under a similar value-added ecosystem management and certification system, Forest Stewardship Council, but IT has consistently rejected that idea, citing increased costs. Today, with shareholders demanding this type of ethical management, IT’s excuse of fiduciary responsibility is sounding less and less convincing.

Documenting all these examples of citizens fighting back is Dan Pierce who, with producer Cari Green (of the award-winning documentary The Corporation), is developing a feature documentary (through crowd sourcing) on these initiatives. That gives hope to the idea that community involvement could finally supplant the old corporate model—from how we invest our pensions and how we run our timber companies to how we fund our films. See www.heartwoodfilm.com.

Ancient Forest Alliance

Cathedral Grove, Canada’s Most Famous Old-Growth Forest, Under Threat as Island Timberlands Moves to Log Adjacent Old-Growth Mountainside

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Port Alberni, Vancouver Island – Cathedral Grove, Canada’s most famous old-growth forest, is under threat as one of the province’s largest logging companies, Island Timberlands, began falling a new logging road right-of-way last week towards a stand of old-growth Douglas-fir trees on the mountainside above Cathedral Grove. Cathedral Grove is in the 300 hectare MacMillan Provincial Park, an area smaller than Vancouver’s Stanley Park, located along the Cameron River at the base of Mount Horne where the planned logging would occur.

Last week conservationists with the Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance came across the new road construction activities. Fallers had cleared several hundred metres of a new logging road through a second-growth forest, heading towards a stand of old-growth Douglas firs where the planned logging will take place on Mount Horne. Earlier in March, survey tape marked “Falling Boundary” and “Road Location” was found in the planned cutblock that comes as close as 300 meters from the park boundary. An aerial overflight by Ancient Forest Alliance activists this past Tuesday confirmed the existence of new road construction activities headed towards the grove. See PHOTOS and a MAP of the flagged logging cutblock at: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/cathedral-grove-canyon/

The planned logging will have numerous detrimental effects, including: fragmenting the continuous forest cover and wildlife habitat on the slope above Cathedral Grove; destroying some of the last remaining 1% of BC’s old-growth coastal Douglas-fir trees; destroying the wintering habitat of black-tailed deer in an area previously planned to sustain them; increasing siltation of the Cameron River (which runs through Cathedral Grove) during the heavy winter rains as soil washes down from the new clearcut and logging road; and destroying part of the Mount Horne Loop Trail, a popular hiking and mushroom-picking trail that the cutblock overlaps – Island Timberlands has now closed access to the trail.

See the Times Colonist article on the original cutblock discovery, from March: https://www.timescolonist.com/news/local/old-growth-near-cathedral-grove-set-for-imminent-logging-activists-1.90194
See the CHEK TV clip from the original cutblock discovery, from March: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3exaYAqSrzw

The flagged cutblock by Island Timberlands is estimated to be about 40 hectares and lies on the southwest facing slope of Mt. Horne on the ridge above the park and highway that millions of tourists visit annually. The logging would take place in an area formerly intended as an Ungulate Winter Range to protect the old-growth winter habitat of black-tailed deer – a plan that was not followed through when the BC Liberal government deregulated the lands in 2004 by removing them from their Tree Farm Licence.

Island Timberlands’ resumption of logging activities adjacent to Cathedral Grove appears to perfectly coincide timing-wise – either by sheer coincidence or by callous intention – with last week’s solidarity rally in Cathedral Grove involving half a dozen community conservation groups. The increased cooperation between diverse conservation groups has been prompted by heightened concerns about Island Timberlands’ widespread escalation of old-growth logging in many areas around Port Alberni recently. See the media release about last week’s rally at: https://16.52.162.165/news-item.php?ID=705

Island Timberlands is currently engaged in multiple logging incursions into other highly endangered old-growth forests besides Mount Horne. This includes recent logging and/or road-building at McLaughlin Ridge, Juniper Ridge, Labour Day Lake, and the Cameron Valley Firebreak in the Port Alberni area (see: https://16.52.162.165/news-item.php?ID=678); plans to log the Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River and the Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast; and plans to log old-growth forests at Basil Creek and the Green Valley on Cortes Island. See spectacular PHOTOS of most of these forests at: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/

Until recently much of these lands under threat were regulated to the stronger standards found on public lands. However, in 2004, the BC Liberal government removed 88,000 hectares of Weyerhaeuser’s private forest lands, now owned by Island Timberlands, from their Tree Farm Licences, thereby removing the planned old-growth, scenic, wildlife, and endangered species habitat protections, as well as the riparian protections and the restrictions on raw log exports, on those lands. Alberni-Pacific Rim Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) Scott Fraser has repeatedly worked to hold the BC government to account to remedy the situation by getting Island Timberlands to hold-off from logging these hotspots until a political solution can be implemented.

Island Timberlands (IT) is the second largest private land owner in BC, owning 258,000 hectares of private land mainly on Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast, and Haida Gwaii. Conservationists are calling on Island Timberlands to immediately back-off from its logging plans in old-growth and high conservation value forests until these lands can be protected either through purchase or through regulation.

Conservationists are also calling for a provincial plan to protect the province’s old-growth forests, to ensure sustainable second-growth forestry, and to end the export of raw, unprocessed logs to foreign mills. For private lands, conservationists are calling on the BC Liberal government to re-establish and bolster the former BC park acquisition fund (eliminated after the 2008 provincial budget). A dedicated provincial fund of $40 million per year (about 0.1% of the $40 billion annual provincial budget), raising $400 million over 10 years, would go a long way towards purchasing and protecting old-growth forests and other endangered ecosystems on private lands across the province. The fund would be similar to the existing park acquisition funds of various regional districts in BC, such as the $3 million/year Land Acquisition Fund of the Capital Regional District around Greater Victoria, which are augmented by the fundraising efforts of private citizens and land trusts.

BC’s old-growth forests are vital to support endangered species, tourism, the climate, clean water, wild salmon, and many First Nations cultures whose unceded lands these are. About 75% of the original, productive old-growth forests have already been logged on BC’s southern coast, including over 90% of the valley-bottom ancient forests where the largest trees grow, and 99% of the old-growth coastal Douglas fir trees. See maps and stats at: https://16.52.162.165/ancient-forests/before-after-old-growth-maps/

QUOTES:

“On October 19, MLA Scott Fraser and myself met with Island Timberlands’ CEO Darshan Sihota, and asked him if he was intending to save any old-growth Douglas-fir forests – his reply was that it was his legal right to log it ALL. So despite the BC government’s scientists formerly intending these vital wildlife habitats for protection when they were still within the Tree Farm Licence, Island Timberlands sees nothing wrong with harvesting the old growth forests across all their lands. This even includes the mountainside above Cathedral Grove, Canada’s most famous old-growth forest,” stated Jane Morden, coordinator of the Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance.

“Cathedral Grove is BC’s iconic old-growth forest that people around the world love – it’s like the redwoods of Canada. The fact that a company can just move to log the mountainside above Canada’s most famous old-growth forest – assisted by the BC government’s previous deregulation of those lands and their current failure to take responsibility – underscores the brutal collusion between the BC Liberal government and the largest companies to liquidate our ancient forest heritage,” stated Ken Wu, executive director of the Ancient Forest Alliance. “Island Timberlands needs to back off from Cathedral Grove and other endangered old-growth forests, while the BC Liberal government must take responsibility for allowing this destruction to happen. They broke it, now they have to fix it, either by purchasing or re-regulating these lands.”

“This is not about a company just wanting the right to log its own private lands unfettered, as the government and industry PR-spin suggests. These corporate private lands were previously regulated to public land standards for over half a century in exchange for the BC government’s granting of free Crown land logging rights to the companies back then – what has happened is that the regulations on private lands were removed recently, while the companies were still allowed to keep their Crown land logging rights,” stated TJ Watt, Ancient Forest Alliance photographer and campaigner.

“Cathedral Grove is the mascot of old-growth forests in Canada. If we can’t ensure its ecological integrity because of the BC government’s inaction – or complicity – it really gives a black eye to BC’s environmental reputation in the international community,” stated Annette Tanner, chair of the Mid-Island Wilderness Committee, who has led the fight for the ecological integrity of Cathedral Grove for over a decade.

Ancient Forest Alliance

Groups protest logging in Qualicum Beach watershed

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“Cathedral Grove, Canada’s most famous old-growth forest, is under threat as one of the province’s largest logging companies, Island Timberlands, began falling a new logging road right-of-way last week towards a stand of old-growth Douglas-fir trees on the mountainside above Cathedral Grove… Last week conservationists with the Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance came across the new road construction activities. Fallers had cleared several hundred metres of a new logging road through a second-growth forest, heading towards a stand of old-growth Douglas firs where the planned logging will take place on Mount Horne.”

– See more at: https://16.52.162.165/news-item.php?ID=709

 

Vancouver Island conservation groups rallied in Cathedral Grove Tuesday against Island Timberlands’ expansion of logging operations.

Almost 60 protesters rallied in the parking lot of Cathedral Grove, unfurling banners and leafletting tourists.

The groups included the Wilderness Committee Mid-Island Chapter based in Qualicum Beach, Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance, Save the Day

based in Roberts Creek, Wildstands Alliance based on Cortes Island, Friends of Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River, and Ancient Forest Alliance based in Victoria.

“Island Timberlands is logging Labour Day Lake, which is a community recreation area and is the headwaters of the Cathedral Grove, the official drinking watershed for the Town of Qualicum Beach, and the community of Dashwood,” said

Annette Tanner, Chair of the Mid-Island Wilderness Committee chapter based in Qualicum Beach. “We have been gathering petitions to stop the logging of the Cathedral Grove watershed since 2000.”

The groups say Island Timberlands is logging and/or roadbuilding at McLaughlin Ridge, Juniper Ridge, Labour Day Lake, and the Cameron Valley Firebreak in the Port Alberni area; flagging Mount Horne, the mountainside above Cathedral Grove, for potential logging; plans to log the Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River and the Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast; and plans to log old-growth forests at Basil Creek and the Green Valley on Cortes Island.

Extremely rare groves of oldgrowth Coastal Douglas-firs, of which only 1% remain, constitute much of these contentious forest lands, they say.

“These corporate private lands were previously regulated to public land standards for over half a century in exchange for the BC government’s granting of free Crown land logging rights to the companies,” said Ken Wu, executive director of the Ancient Forest Alliance. “What has happened is that the regulations on private lands were removed recently, while the companies were still allowed to keep their Crown land logging rights.”

See more at: [Original article no longer available]

Ancient Forest Alliance

Protesters target old-growth logging on Island

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About 50 protesters from half a dozen conservation groups gathered Tuesday at Cathedral Grove, west of Parksville, to protest Island Timberlands’ expansion of logging operations into old-growth forests on Vancouver Island.

Protesters from the Ancient Forest Alliance, the Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance and several other groups unfurled a banner reading “Hands off old growth” and handed leaflets to visitors stopping at Cathedral Grove on Highway 4.

Conservationists are calling on Island Timberlands to suspend plans to log old-growth forests while asking the provincial government to restore a park acquisition fund, and earmark $40 million a year for a decade to go into the fund.

The rally was held close to Island Timberlands’ logging operations at McLaughlin Ridge, Juniper Ridge, Labour Day Lake and Cameron Valley firebreak near Port Alberni.

The conservationists are also concerned about Island Timberlands’ plans to log Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River, Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast and forests on Cortes Island.

Ken Wu of the Ancient Forest Alliance said the province needs to make amends for allowing previously protected areas to be logged.

He’s calling on Island Timberlands to stop logging and the province to protect the lands from future clear-cutting.

Jane Morden of the Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance said logging roads are being built into a forested area above the city’s water supply.

“They’re trying to log an old-growth portion on McLaughlin Ridge, which is part of the China Creek watershed. The hillside is an extremely steep, south-facing slope.

Calls to Island Timberlands were not returned.

Only one per cent of old-growth Coastal Douglas fir forest remain intact.

Read more: https://www.timescolonist.com/sports/protesters-target-old-growth-logging-on-island-1.668628

Ancient Forest Alliance

Conflict Escalates with Island Timberlands as Conservation Groups Rally in Cathedral Grove in Solidarity

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October 22, 2013
For Immediate Release

Conservation Groups Rally in Solidarity in Cathedral Grove against Island Timberlands’ Coastal Old-Growth Logging

Island Timberlands’ recent expansion of logging operations in multiple endangered old-growth forests on Vancouver Island has prompted diverse community conservation groups to call on the company to immediately back-off and for the BC Liberal government to be responsible and protect these lands.

Diverse community conservation groups rallied together in Cathedral Grove on Vancouver Island today calling on Island Timberlands to immediately back away from its ongoing and planned logging of old-growth and high conservation value forests on Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast, and Cortes Island, and for the BC Liberal government to be responsible and protect these lands.

Almost 60 protesters rallied in the parking lot of Cathedral Grove near Port Alberni, unfurling banners and leafletting tourists in the Grove. The rally included representatives and supporters from half a dozen local conservation groups, including the Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance, Save the Day based in Roberts Creek, Wildstands Alliance based on Cortes Island, Friends of Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River, Wilderness Committee Mid-Island Chapter based in Qualicum Beach, and Ancient Forest Alliance based in Victoria.

Island Timberlands is currently engaged in multiple logging incursions into highly endangered old-growth forests. This includes recent logging and/or road-building at McLaughlin Ridge, Juniper Ridge, Labour Day Lake, and the Cameron Valley Firebreak in the Port Alberni area (see: www.ancientforestalliance.org/news-item.php?ID=678); flagging Mount Horne, the mountainside above Cathedral Grove, for potential logging (see: www.timescolonist.com/news/local/old-growth-near-cathedral-grove-set-for-imminent-logging-activists-1.90194); plans to log the Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River and the Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast; and plans to log old-growth forests at Basil Creek and the Green Valley on Cortes Island. See spectacular PHOTOS of most of these forests at: www.ancientforestalliance.org/galleries.php

Extremely rare groves of old-growth Coastal Douglas-firs, of which only 1% remain, constitute much of these contentious forest lands. Most such stands in the Port Alberni area were previously intended to become Ungulate Wintering Ranges for Roosevelt elk and deer, or Wildlife Habitat Areas for endangered species like the Queen Charlotte Goshawk – until the BC Liberal government deregulated these lands in 2004 by removing them from their Tree Farm Licence. Conservationists believe that there may be less than 900 hectares left of these forests that were formerly intended for protection in the Port Alberni area – less than half of what stood until just a few years ago (2400 hectares).

Conservationists are calling on Island Timberlands to immediately back-off from its logging plans in old-growth and high conservation value forests, while calling on the BC Liberal government to re-establish and bolster the former BC park acquisition fund (eliminated after the 2008 provincial budget). A dedicated provincial fund of $40 million per year, raising $400 million over 10 years, would go a long way towards purchasing and protecting old-growth forests and other endangered ecosystems on private lands across the province. The fund would be similar to the existing park acquisition funds of various regional districts in BC, such as the $3 million/year Land Acquisition Fund of the Capital Regional District around Greater Victoria, which are augmented by the fundraising efforts of private citizens and land trusts.

Island Timberlands (IT) is the second largest private land owner in BC, owning 258,000 hectares of private mainly on Vancouver Island, the Sunshine Coast, and Haida Gwaii.

Old-growth forests are vital to support endangered species, tourism, clean water, wild salmon, climate stability, and many First Nations cultures whose unceded territories these are.

QUOTES:

“‘No Community Stands Alone’ is about all of our groups dealing with Island Timberlands’ ongoing and planned logging of endangered old-growth forests,” stated Jane Morden, coordinator of the Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance. “At a recent meeting we asked Island Timberlands ‘will Island Timberlands save any old growth forest?’ and their reply was that it is their private land and they intend to log it. But, the government should also take responsibility for allowing this to happen. It was their legislation in 2004 that cancelled any existing and planned protections.  The government has an obligation to protect these lands for generations to come.”

“This is not about a company just wanting the right to log its own private lands unfettered, as the government and industry PR-spin suggests. The fact is that these lands once had stronger environmental regulations and planned designations to protect protect elk and deer winter ranges, old-growth forests, scenery, riparian forests for salmon and clean water and that restricted raw log exports, until the BC Liberal government removed or did not implement them,” stated Ken Wu, executive director of the Ancient Forest Alliance.  “That is, these corporate private lands were previously regulated to public land standards for over half a century in exchange for the BC government’s granting of free Crown land logging rights to the companies back then – what has happened is that the regulations on private lands were removed recently and intended regulations were never put in place, while the companies were still allowed to keep their Crown land logging rights.”

“I believe that major public and markets pressure has so far helped to keep Island Timberlands from logging on Cortes Island,” stated forest activist Zoe Miles, from Cortes Island's Wildstands Alliance. “But we don’t know how long this will last, and it certainly hasn't stopped them from carrying out the same destructive, short-term logging projects in other small communities.”

“No community stands alone. That's the new reality. Forest management has become unprofessional and coastal communities have had enough. We now stand together, and call on the BC government to reinstate integrity and public oversight of forestry on private lands as well as public lands,” stated Cec Robinson of Wildstands Alliance on Cortes Island.

“’Save the Day’ felt it was important to show our support to the Vancouver Island groups trying to protect special areas from the Island Timberland style of logging. We have seen their methods of logging in our own neighbourhood and are currently trying to protect a beautiful forest that they are threatening to log in the near future, home to a double 40 foot waterfall and is a place used by many members of our community for recreation and connecting with the natural world,” stated Brett Heneke of Save the Day, a Roberts Creek organization working to protect the Day Road Forest on the Sunshine Coast.

“Island Timberlands is logging Labour Day Lake, which is a community recreation area and is the headwaters of the Cathedral Grove, the official drinking watershed for the Town of Qualicum Beach, and the community of Dashwood,” stated Annette Tanner, Chair of the Mid-Island Wilderness Committee chapter based in Qualicum Beach.  “We have been gathering petitions to stop the logging of the Cathedral Grove watershed since 2000.”

“These forested lands are being fought for by a united group of activists because so much is at stake,” said Jason Addy of the Friends of Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River. “These lands and their trees provide immeasurable value to their communities, and for all the people of BC, as integral parts of a living forest ecosystem.”

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Ancient Forest Alliance

RALLY: Island Timberlands – Hands Off our Old-Growth Forests! Tuesday, Oct. 22

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• When: Tuesday, October 22, 2013
• Time: 12:30 – 1:30 pm
• Where: Cathedral Grove parking lot

Join a diverse collaboration of community groups standing together to stop Island Timberlands' ongoing and planned logging of high conservation value forests on Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast. Hold a sign, help leaflet tourists to raise awareness, or just come out to show your solidarity!

Island Timberlands is engaged in multiple assaults on highly endangered old-growth forests. This includes recent logging and/or road-building at McLaughlin Ridge, Juniper Ridge, Labour Day Lake, and the Cameron Valley Firebreak in the Port Alberni area; flagging Mount Horne, the mountainside above Cathedral Grove, for potential logging; plans to log the Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River and the Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast; and plans to log old-growth forests at Basil Creek and the Green Valley on Cortes Island. See spectacular photos of many of these forests at: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/

Most of these endangered stands consist of extremely rare groves of old-growth Coastal Douglas-fir trees, of which only 1% remain. Many stands in the Port Alberni area were previously intended for protection as Ungulate Winter Range for Roosevelt elk and deer, or as Wildlife Habitat Areas for endangered species like the Queen Charlotte Goshawk – until the BC Liberal government exempted the areas from these protections in 2004 when they removed these lands from their Tree Farm Licence.

Island Timberlands needs to immediately back-off from its logging plans in old-growth and high conservation value forests, while the BC Liberal government needs to protect these private forest lands through strong regulations or re-establishing a BC park acquisition fund to purchase them.

Old-growth forests are vital to support endangered species, tourism, clean water, wild salmon, the climate, and many First Nations cultures whose unceded lands these are.

Sponsored by the Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance (https://www.watershedforestalliance.ca/); Elphinstone Logging Focus (https://www.loggingfocus.org/); WildStands (https://wildstands.wordpress.com/); Friends of Stillwater Bluffs (https://fosb.blogspot.ca/); Save the Day; and Ancient Forest Alliance (https://16.52.162.165/).

For more info email: info@16.52.162.165

Island Timberlands to log contentious old-growth forests on Vancouver Island

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Island Timberlands is moving to log some of their most contentious old-growth forest lands near Port Alberni, including “Juniper Ridge”, a formerly protected Ungulate Winter Range, and Labour Day Lake, the headwaters of Cathedral Grove’s Cameron River.

Juniper Ridge is an increasingly rare tract of old-growth forest filled with endangered old-growth Douglas-fir trees, sensitive ecosystems of brittle reindeer lichens growing on open rocky outcrops, and an abundance of juniper shrubs. The roughly 20-hectare area is a one hour drive from the town of Port Alberni and is located between Ash and Turnbull Lakes.

“The old-growth forest and lichen-covered rocky outcrops on Juniper Ridge are endangered and sensitive ecosystems largely growing on extremely thin soils. It would take many centuries for the old-growth forest to fully recover here after logging. Unfortunately, with the trend of harvesting smaller sized trees with shorter logging rotations, these old growth Douglas- fir ecosystems will never have the chance to return,” Watershed-Forest Alliance coordinator Jane Morden said in a news release.

“This forest is heavily used by wintering deer, and was intended to be preserved for this purpose. This area is also a popular recreation destination for locals and tourists going hiking, fishing and boating.”
The Watershed-Forest Alliance, with support from Alberni-Pacific Rim MLA Scott Fraser, has reportedly met with and have asked Island Timberlands to stay out of all previously designated Ungulate Winter Range and Wildlife Habitat Areas.

The land was largely deregulated in 2004 due to its removal from Tree Farm Licence (TFL) 44. A subsequent agreement between the former licencee and the BC government was supposed to have resulted in the continued protection of these lands, but has not been pursued. Instead the company has chosen to simply log these high conservation value forests. Of the original 2400 hectares of designated lands, only about 900 hectares remain unlogged which amounts to just over 1 per cent of the total 74,000 hectares removed from TFL 44.

Recent logging that began in early June also threatens the old-growth subalpine forests at Labour Day Lake, but a popular recreation destination not far from Port Alberni.

The Ancient Forest Alliance has called on the provincial government to establish a BC Park Acquisition Fund of at least $40 million per year, raising $400 million over 10 years, to purchase old-growth forests and other endangered ecosystems on private lands across the province, such as Juniper Ridge and Labour Day Lake.

The fund would be similar to the park acquisition funds of various regional districts in BC which are augmented by the fundraising efforts of private citizens and land trusts.
Island Timberlands also plans or has been logging numerous other contentious forests, including:

  • The south side of Mt. Horne on the mountain above the world-famous Cathedral Grove
  • McLaughlin Ridge, a prime old-growth deer winter range and important habitat for the endangered Queen Charlotte Goshawk. With trees similar in size to Cathedral grove, McLaughlin Ridge helps to protect the China Creek Watershed which is the source of drinking water for the city of Port Alberni.
  • Cameron Valley Firebreak, a rare valley bottom-to-mountain top old-growth forest that the company has already logged large swaths of.
  • The west side of Father and Son Lake, a popular fishing area for local Port Alberni residents.
  • Pearl Lake, near Strathcona Provincial Park.
  • Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River.
  • Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek.
  • Old-growth and mature forests on Cortes Island.

Read more:  https://www.vancouverobserver.com/news/island-timberlands-log-contentious-old-growth-forests-vancouver-island

Island Timberlands Moves to Log Contentious Old-Growth Forests and Deer Winter Range Intended for Protection on Vancouver Island

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Island Timberlands is moving full throttle to log some of their most contentious old-growth forest lands near Port Alberni, including “Juniper Ridge”, an ungulate winter range formerly intended for protection, and Labour Day Lake, the headwaters of Cathedral Grove’s Cameron River.

See beautiful photos of the highly scenic Juniper Ridge here: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/juniper-ridge/

Earlier this week, Island Timberlands began road construction into an ungulate winter range formerly intended for protection for black-tailed deer in an old-growth forest near Port Alberni on Vancouver Island, an area referred to by conservationists as “Juniper Ridge”. Juniper Ridge is an increasingly rare tract of old-growth forest filled with highly endangered old-growth Douglas-fir trees, sensitive ecosystems of brittle reindeer lichens growing on open rocky outcrops, and an abundance of juniper shrubs. The area, roughly 20 hectares in size, is a one hour drive from the town of Port Alberni and is located between Ash and Turnbull Lakes. This is a popular recreational area where many Alberni locals and tourists fish, camp, canoe, and hike.

“The old-growth forest and lichen-covered rocky outcrops on Juniper Ridge are endangered and sensitive ecosystems largely growing on extremely thin soils. It would take many centuries for the old-growth forest to fully recover here after logging. Unfortunately, with the trend of harvesting smaller sized trees with shorter logging rotations, these old growth Douglas- fir ecosystems will never have the chance to return,” stated Jane Morden, coordinator of the Watershed-Forest Alliance based in Port Alberni. “This forest is heavily used by wintering deer, and was intended to be preserved for this purpose. This area is also a popular recreation destination for locals and tourists going hiking, fishing and boating.”

The Watershed-Forest Alliance, with support from Alberni-Pacific Rim MLA Scott Fraser, have met with and have asked Island Timberlands to stay out of all previously planned Ungulate Winter Range and Wildlife Habitat Areas. The land was largely deregulated in 2004 due to its removal from Tree Farm Licence (TFL) 44 and planned protections were never implemented. A subsequent agreement between the former licencee and the BC government was supposed to have resulted in the protection of these lands, but has not been pursued. Instead the company has chosen to simply log these high conservation value forests. Of the original 2400 hectares of lands intended for protection, only about 900 hectares remain unlogged which amounts to just over 1% of the total 74,000 hectares removed from TFL 44.

 

“The BC government never implemented the planned environmental protections on these lands a few years ago, putting them in jeopardy. Now they need to do the right thing and properly protect these lands, either by purchasing them or re-regulating them and putting in place the intended protections,” stated Jane Morden, coordinator of the Watershed-Forest Alliance.

Recent logging that began in early June also threatens the old-growth subalpine forests at Labour Day Lake, not an intended Ungulate Winter Range, but a popular recreation destination not far from Port Alberni. The lake is surrounded by ancient yellow cedars and mountain hemlocks and is the headwaters of the Cameron River which flows into the famed Cathedral Grove.

The Ancient Forest Alliance is calling on the provincial government to establish a BC Park Acquisition Fund of at least $40 million per year, raising $400 million over 10 years, to purchase old-growth forests and other endangered ecosystems on private lands across the province, such as Juniper Ridge and Labour Day Lake. The fund would be similar to the park acquisition funds of various regional districts in BC which are augmented by the fundraising efforts of private citizens and land trusts.

“Island Timberlands needs to put the brakes on their plans to log any more of their forests that were formerly protected or planned for protection and other contentious old-growth forests, otherwise they’ll face increasing international markets pressure. Meanwhile Christy Clark’s BC Liberal government must step forward to protect these lands. Part of what’s needed is a BC Park Acquisition Fund, similar to those of many regional districts, to purchase endangered ecosystems on private lands for protection,” stated TJ Watt, Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner.

Island Timberlands also plans or has been logging numerous other contentious forests, including:

  • The south side of Mt. Horne on the mountain above the world-famous Cathedral Grove
  • McLaughlin Ridge, a prime old-growth deer winter range and important habitat for the endangered Queen Charlotte Goshawk. With trees similar in size to Cathedral grove, McLaughlin Ridge helps to protect the China Creek Watershed which is the source of drinking water for the city of Port Alberni.
  • Cameron Valley Firebreak, a rare valley bottom-to-mountain top old-growth forest that the company has already logged large swaths of.
  • The west side of Father and Son Lake, a popular fishing area for local Port Alberni residents.
  • Pearl Lake, near Strathcona Provincial Park.
  • Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River.
  • Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek.
  • Old-growth and mature forests on Cortes Island.

The Ancient Forest Alliance and local conservationists are calling for the protection of old-growth forests, sustainable logging in second-growth forests, and an end to the export of raw logs to foreign mills in order to ensure a guaranteed log supply for BC mills.

BACKGROUNDER:

In 2004 the BC Liberal government removed 88,000 hectares of Weyerhaeuser’s forest lands, now owned by Island Timberlands, from their Tree Farm Licences (TFL’s), thus removing many environmental protections and exempting the area from many other intended protections.  This includes designated protections such as Riparian Management Reserves, the prohibition against conversion of forest lands to real estate developments, and provincial restrictions on raw log exports on those lands; and planned protections such as Old-Growth Management Areas, Wildlife Habitat Areas, Visual Quality Objectives, as well as Ungulate Winter Ranges (UWR’s) at Juniper Ridge, McLaughlin Ridge, Cameron Valley Firebreak, forests by Father and Son Lake, and south Mt. Horne by Cathedral Grove.

The original logging rights on public (Crown) lands on Vancouver Island were granted to logging companies for free earlier last century on condition that the companies allowed their adjacent private forest lands to be placed into regulatory designations known as Tree Farm Licences (TFL’s), in order to control the rate of cut, ensure their logs went to local mills, and to ensure environmental standards on those private lands.
In recent times the companies (Weyerhaeuser in 2004 and Western Forest Products in 2007) greatly benefitted from the removal of their private lands from their TFL’s as it allowed them to log previously protected forests, to export raw logs, and to sell-off forest lands to developers – but meanwhile were still allowed to retain their Crown land logging rights (despite no longer upholding the conditions of the original agreement on their private lands).

This failure to uphold the original agreement is considered by many to be a breach of the public interest. Weyerhaeuser has since moved off the coast, with the company’s former private lands now owned by Island Timberlands and its Crown land logging rights held by Western Forest Products.
 

The UVic AFA’s 3rd Annual Tree Huggers Ball Dance Party Extravaganza Fundraiser this SATURDAY March 23rd!

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The UVic Ancient Forest Committee will be hosting their 3rd Annual Tree Huggers Ball this coming Saturday March 23rd from 7:30 pm to 1:00 am at Felicita’s Pub, 3800 Finnerty Rd., Victoria, BC. There will be a full night of bands and Djs and lots of awesome prizes, all for a great cause. All of the proceeds from this event will go directly to the Ancient Forest Alliance to assist in their fight to protect BC’s remaining old-growth forests. Please bring your friends and family as this promises to be a night to remember. Tickets will be $10 and will be available at the door and prior as announced!

Check out the facebook page for this event: https://www.facebook.com/events/140870222749121/

Here’s the music line up for the evening:

Warm Up Jam BROI (Bring Your Own Instrument)
Reveal your secret talents, any acoustic instrument you can find, bring.

Moonshine Gang Victoria Chapter
Cortesian Folk Rock

As The Crow Flies.
Psychedelic indie-folk country-rock

Redwood Green
Acoustic Rock Ska

Co-Captain (aka Dylan Gale)
Happy Go Lucky Electronic Beats

Rough Child (aka Alistar Stewart)
Move your Feet Dub-step 

San Juan Spruce tree and the Red Creek Fir - some of the Canada's largest trees found right nearby!

Feb. 28th Presentation at SFU: The Ancient Forest Alliance’s Pre-Election Campaign with Ken Wu

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This Thursday, Feb. 28, 2013: The Ancient Forest Alliance’s Pre-Election Campaign – Presentation with Ken Wu

BLUSS Rm 9655
Simon Fraser University, Burnaby Mountain
5:30pm-6:30pm
Tasty snacks!

Hear about the Ancient Forest Alliance’s campaign to ensure that the fate of BC’s ancient forests and forestry jobs are central election issues in the next several months leading up to the May 14, 2013 provincial election. Learn about the ecology and politics of BC’s old-growth forests, see TJ Watt’s spectacular photos of the Upper Walbran Valley, Fangorn Forest, Echo Lake Ancient Forest, Christy Clark Grove, Cortes Island, Stillwater Bluffs, Day Road Forest, McLaughlin Ridge, and other endangered ancient forests. Hear about the momentus March 16th rally with thousands of people and how you can help!