Posts

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

/in /by

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.
 

MLA Scott Fraser Receives “Forest Sustainability Award” For Years of Outspoken Public Service to Protect Endangered Old-Growth Forests, Halt Forestry Deregulation, and Support BC Forestry Jobs

/in /by
For Immediate Release
March 25, 2013
 
Today NDP MLA Scott Fraser (riding of Alberni-Pacific Rim) received a “Forest Sustainability Award” from conservationists and forestry workers for his years of exceptional public service as an elected Member of the Legislative Assembly (MLA) in British Columbia to protect endangered old-growth forests, to counter the deregulation of forest lands on Vancouver Island, and to restrict the export of BC raw logs to foreign mills.
  
The award was presented by Ken Wu and TJ Watt of the Ancient Forest Alliance (AFA), a non-profit environmental group working to protect old-growth forests and ensure sustainable second-growth forestry. The award is jointly sponsored by the Youbou TimberLess Society (YTS), former employees of the now-defunct Youbou sawmill who continue to advocate sustainable forest policies.
  
The brief ceremony took place in Cathedral Grove on Vancouver Island, Canada’s most famous old-growth forest that is currently under threat with a planned cutblock by Island Timberlands on the above mountainside on Mount Horne (see:  https://www.timescolonist.com/news/local/old-growth-near-cathedral-grove-set-for-imminent-logging-activists-1.90194)

 
Joining the award ceremony to show their support for Fraser’s good work were Arnold Bercov (Pulp, Paper, and Woodworkers of Canada – President of Local 8), Jane Morden and Mike Stini (Port Alberni Watershed-Forest Alliance), and Annette Tanner (Mid-Island Chapter of the Wilderness Committee).
 
“I’m grateful to receive this wonderful recognition for my work. Our old-growth forests are a vitally important part of this province’s identity, and a sustainable forest industry will benefit everyone. I will champion endangered old-growth protection and sustainable forestry leading up to the election and subsequent to the election whether as part of a new government or in the opposition,” stated Fraser.
 
“Scott Fraser has been an exceptional MLA for his energy and outspokenness to protect endangered old-growth forests and forestry jobs. He’s one of the rare politicians who has a real connection to BC’s majestic old-growth forests –  a politician who actually hikes and gets muddy in these special places. It’s clear that his advocacy has not been lip service or simply a means to score political points, but because Fraser has a genuine passion – you can feel it when he’s talking – for our old-growth forests and for a sustainable forest industry that could support future generations of forest workers in this province,” stated Ken Wu, Ancient Forest Alliance executive director. “It's important to give credit where credit is due, and Fraser certainly deserves credit for making forest sustainability central to his role as an elected public servant in his time.”
 
“This past decade has been an atrocity for BC’s forestry workers – over 70 mills have closed and 30,000 forestry jobs have been lost. Fraser has repeatedly gone to bat against the deregulation of BC’s forest industry and the massive export of raw logs that is killing current and future manufacturing jobs in this province,” stated Ken James, president of the Youbou TimberLess Society. “We need MLA’s like Fraser in government to champion a forest industry that will sustain both ecosystems and human communities.”
 
Since Fraser was elected in 2005 as an MLA for the New Democratic Party opposition member, he has repeatedly worked for sustainable forestry on such issues as:
 
– Tree Farm Licence (TFL) deregulation, where the BC Liberal government removed 88,000 hectares of Weyerhaeuser’s (now Island Timberlands) corporate forest lands from their Tree Farm Licences in 2004, removing regulations and policies designed to protect old-growth and wildlife, as well as restrictions on raw log exports, prohibitions against real estate development for non-forestry uses, and controls on the rate of cut. This large scale deregulation of forest lands on central Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast was one of the most destructive, anti-environmental acts of the BC Liberal government during its reign of power. Fraser has repeatedly sought to ensure that a follow-up agreement to protect the old-growth ungulate winter range between the company and the government is pursued, to no avail so far.
 
– Cathedral Grove, speaking up against adjacent logging plans several times, including recently where a surveyed Island Timberlands cutblock threatens an old-growth Douglas fir and hemlock forest in an area formerly intended for protection as an Ungulate Winter Range on Mount Horne above the park. The cutblock would also annihilate part of the Mount Horne loop trail.
 
– McLaughlin Ridge, the prime old-growth winter range for deer that was formerly intended for protection as an Ungulate Winter Range until the BC Liberal government removed existing protections and failed to implement other planned protections for the area in 2004 as part of their TFL deregulation scheme. Island Timberlands has already logged part of its ancient forests and plans to log more in the future.  Fraser has worked hard for this area’s protection.
 
– Cameron Valley Firebreak, a rare valley-bottom to mountain-top ancient Douglas fir, cedar and hemlock forest that was formerly planned to become an Ungulate Winter Range for Roosevelt elk and black-tailed deer until the BC Liberal government deregulated the land in 2004. Island Timberlands has now logged perhaps half of the area now.
 
– Raw log exports. Since the BC Liberals came to power in 2001, a mass exodus of raw logs have left the province, currently about 6 million cubic meters of logs each year, costing thousands of existing and potential forestry jobs in BC’s mills and wood manufacturing facilities.
 
– Private Managed Forest Lands Act, the too-weak regulations on private managed forest lands that do little to protect riparian ecosystems, endangered species, old-growth forests, and the ecological integrity of the vast private forest lands on Vancouver Island and elsewhere. Large swaths of these lands were formerly regulated up to stronger public lands standards until the BC Liberal government deregulated them.
 
– Spearheading the introduction of petitions into the Legislative Assembly to protect endangered old-growth forests, ensure sustainable second-growth forestry, and to end raw log exports, on behalf of the Ancient Forest Alliance recently (22,000 signatures) and the Wilderness Committee in 2009 (30,000 signatures).

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

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

/in /by

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!

A map detailing the area of planned logging.

Alberni’s "Hump" gets reprieve as Island Timberlands delays logging plans

/in /by

Island Timberlands has for now backed away from plans to log the fringe of trees along the Hump near Port Alberni.

“We considered our plans over the weekend and now we are putting a temporary suspension on the harvest of the buffer along the highway,” Island Timberlands spokeswoman Morgan Kennah said in an interview Monday.

“We are still planning to harvest it in the future, but probably after we have replanted the harvested area behind and given it time to grow.”

That is likely to take several years, Kennah said.

The one caveat is that, if trees in the buffer pose a blowdown threat on the highway, they will be removed, she said.

The company has already logged most of the area behind the 40-hectare buffer meaning that if the remaining trees were removed, drivers heading to Port Alberni or the Tofino/Ucluelet area would be looking at a large clearcut.

The logging plans, resulting in the denuding of about 800 metres beside the highway, sparked outrage in the community and a vigil was planned for Monday evening, when logging was scheduled to start.

Opponents said views along the hilly section of Highway 4, know as the Hump, would be destroyed and could affect Port Alberni’s efforts to become an eco-tourism centre.

Others were concerned about evening road closures of 15 minutes at a time, from Jan. 21 to Feb. 8 and Highway 4 is the major road access to the Alberni Valley.

Island Timberlands was given permission by the Highways Ministry to close the road so logging could be conducted safely.

Public concerns about the inconvenience of the traffic interruptions and the visual aspect of the cutting brought about the change of plans, Kennah said.

“We always listen and, sometimes, we react in a way that might be considered favourable,” she said.

“This is one where we have heard lots of concern and we can be flexible on it.”

Alberni Valley resident Chris Alemany, organizer of Monday’s Witness the Hump Clearcut event, was startled by the change of heart.

“Wow. That’s great news. That’s amazing,” Alemany said.

“Maybe they saw just too much opposition. I think people were pretty upset about it,” he said.

The get-together may go ahead as a celebration and Island Timberlands representatives would be welcome, Alemany said.

“It could be a good party.”

Alberni-Pacific Rim NDP MLA Scott Fraser, who had reacted in horror to the potential destruction of the viewscape in a tourist corridor, said public opinion appears to be forcing Island Timberlands into making some community-friendly decisions.

“That’s good news. It’s an important step for the company to take, given the public reaction on this issue,” he said.

“A reprieve is better than nothing.”

Last week Island Timberlands said it is reconsidering logging plans at nearby McLaughlin Ridge because of community concerns about critical habitat for wintering deer and effects on the community watershed.

Link to Times Colonist article: https://www.timescolonist.com/news/local/alberni-s-hump-gets-reprieve-as-island-timberlands-delays-logging-plans-1.53108

Red-legged frog.

Give trees (and frogs) a break

/in /by

As I walked the trails on Cortes Island in British Columbia this summer, beady eyes watched me from the puddles. Sometimes, when I put my foot down, three or four red-legged frogs would leap up and splay in all directions. Now that it is winter, the puddles of summer have expanded into sheets of water. I imagine that the frogs are dozing there, in the slow moving water beneath the canopy of giant trees.

Cortes is very lucky to have forests like this because they are rare and quickly disappearing. Red legged frogs are rare too. They are provincially listed and declining in numbers. On Cortes Island, those rare forests are about to be logged, and the little frogs may be facing their last winter.

Island Timberlands, a privately owned logging company, owns the forest. They plan to start logging any day. They would have started already, except for a band of islanders who created a blockade on the road. As I write this, they are standing guard over the entrance to the forest, willing to risk arrest for the trees.

Cortes Island is not the only place where a community is in a faceoff with IT. People in Port Alberni oppose IT’s industrial logging of McLaughlin Ridge and Cameron Valley Firebreak. In Roberts Creek, it’s Day Road Forest and in Powell River, its Stillwater Bluffs. IT’s logging of the magnificent Cathedral Grove has sparked years of protest and controversy. If IT sells these controversial lands to another timber company, it will probably be for a price that ensures ecosystems, species and jobs still leave B.C.

The province of B.C. is responsible for this broken system. The B.C. Liberals repealed the Forest Land Reserve Act in 2002, and replaced it with the highly flexible, industry-friendly Private Managed Forest Land Act in 2004. Nearly a decade later, we can see the result of this market-based approach.

According to the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives, forests are being logged at more than twice the rate that forest auditors say can be sustained; trees are logged at younger and younger ages; more trees get exported as raw logs; and tens of thousands of hectares are being readied for conversion to residential development. Island Timberlands will liquidate all of its Douglas fir forests within 25 years, mostly for export as raw logs. Threatened and endangered species can’t stop the logging: there is no provincial legislation that requires their protection. Tough luck, frogs.

As taxpayers, we should expect the province to protect the lands of B.C. for uses that benefit the citizens of B.C. – especially when the forest companies like Island Timberlands pay such low property tax rates on private land. On Cortes Island, I paid about $62 in taxes in 2011 for each of my 20 inland acres. Island Timberlands paid between $5 and $6 for each of its inland acres near Squirrel Cove. What does the province require from timber companies in exchange for this 90-per-cent reduced tax rate? Sustainable forestry jobs that can support a small community over time? Nope. Value-added manufacturing jobs for the province? Sorry, no. Intact ecosystems for the tourist industry (about $4 million in direct wages for our island)? Again, no.

How, in the face of all this, do we stand up for ourselves, for the forest, and even for the frogs?

Perhaps our best leverage at this point is our voices as voters. If we want healthy forests and our community values that depend on them, then we all need to write to the B.C. provincial government and tell them that it isn’t fair for corporations to benefit from low property tax rates and then manage their land with no benefit to B.C.

Tell them that destroying ecosystems and exporting raw logs is not a reasonable trade-off for low tax rates. We need regulations that protect jobs and ecosystems, including protection for the habitat of declining species like the red legged frog. While you are at it, ask that funds be allocated for places like Cortes Island. Cortes residents seek a mix of park land and ecosystem-based logging that will support the local economy. Other communities have different needs. Roberts Creek, for example, seeks expansion of the Mount Elphinstone Provincial Park.

If enough people raise their voices, we could act as the stewards the forests need. This holiday season, you and I could give a lasting gift to the trees, and the frogs and countless other animals and plants that are sustained by them.

As for me, I’ve seen the magic of old forests and I want my grandchildren to see it – and yours as well. So I’m going to push the province for a fair approach to private forest lands and support those blockaders on Cortes Island.

After all, I’ve got those beady little eyes watching me.

Carrie Saxifrage is a writer with a background in law. She lived on Cortes Island for 15 years and will return to the island when her son graduates from high school.

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

/in /by

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.
“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 lands before they are logged or developed —only governments have such funds,” stated TJ Watt, Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner and photographer.
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):

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.

Cortes Island resident and activist

Media Release: BC’s War in Woods on Cortes Island needs Political Leadership

/in /by

For Immediate Release

December 6, 2012

Political Leadership Needed to Resolve Cortes Island’s “War in the Woods” and other Island Timberlands battles

Conservationists renew call for BC Liberals to commit to restoring and expanding a “BC Park Acquisition Fund” to purchase and protect endangered forests on private lands

NOTE: Media are free to reprint any photos, credit to “TJ Watt” where possible.
“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% 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.

“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 lands before they are logged or developed —only governments have such funds,” stated TJ Watt, Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner and photographer.

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):
–          Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/day-road-forest/
–          Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River on the Sunshine Coast: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/stillwater-bluffs/
–          McLaughlin Ridge near Port Alberni on Vancouver Island: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/mclaughlin-ridge/
–          Cameron Valley Firebreak near Port Alberni: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/mclaughlin-ridge/
–          Cathedral Grove Canyon near Port Alberni: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/cathedral-grove-canyon/
–          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% of the original, productive old-growth forests have already been logged, including 90% of the most productive old-growth forests in the lowlands where the largest trees grow. Well over 90% of the old-growth “Dry Maritime” and Coastal Douglas-fir forests on BC’s southern coast have already been logged.

See the Ancient Forest Alliance’s petition for a BC Park Acquisition Fund at www.BCParkFund.com [Original article no longer available] and a recent newsletter at https://www.bcparkfund.com/newsletter/June-2012-Parks-Acquisition.pdf [Original article no longer available].

 

 

The scarred landscape of an Island Timberlands clearcut along the McLaughlin Ridge from Oct. 2011. Approximately 400 hectares of the original 500 HA of old-growth remains along the ridges' core.

Alberni groups protest McLaughlin logging

/in /by

More than 80 people gathered at Echo Centre Monday for a meeting hosted by the Watershed-Forest Alliance in its quest to protect an old-growth forest at McLaughlin Ridge and in the China Creek Watershed.

Alberni-Pacific Rim MLA Scott Fraser and retired government scientist Doug Janz were guest speakers at the event.

The pair were resolute: that the forest range needs to be protected with enhanced regulations.

“McLaughlin Ridge is critical winter range for deer and elk. Weyerhaeuser and Mac Blo saw this and left it untouched,” Fraser said. “The area is a unique system for many different species.”

Fraser retraced the history of the issue.

McLaughlin Ridge was removed from a tree farm licence in 2004 by then-owners Weyerhaeuser and is now considered privately managed forest land.

Provincial officials wanted critical winter habitat protected for two years and a committee would subsequently decide the form of protection.

The province and Island Timberlands disagreed on critical issues and the company ceased meeting in 2009. Harvesting plans were not science-based, government biologists said. “We asked Island Timberlands not to go into McLaughlin but at the end of the day it was their land,” Fraser said.

Groups have a bit of breathing room as logging has thus far occurred only in the lower areas and not on the upper ridge. And logging isn’t expected to start again until next spring, Watershed-Forest Alliance chair Jane Morden said.

The group will continue talks with Island Timberlands about stalling logging in the area.

The group doesn’t have a beef with the company, Morden said. “Island Timberlands has the legal right to do what it’s doing,” Morden said. “But the government erred in not following through with its intent to pursue winter ungulate ranges.”

Original article no longer available:  https://www.albernivalleynews.com/news/180526621.html

Photo by TJ Watt

VICTORIA: Monday, Nov.26th – EAGLES, ANCIENT FORESTS, and ELECTIONS!

/in /by
Date: Monday, Nov. 26th, 2012
Time:  7:00-9:00 pm
Location: Ambrosia Centre, 638 Fisgard St., VICTORIA.

*By donation (suggested $5 to $20)

Snacks, drinks, hob-nobbing, silent auction fundraiser!

Hi friends, for those of you in Victoria, please out come to tonight’s awesome Ancient Forest Alliance year end event – that will also include a SPECIAL, GOOD NEWS ANNOUNCEMENT! (you’ll have to come to find out 😉 
ALSO, please SIGN and FORWARD our petition ancientforestalliance.org/ways-to-take-action-for-forests/petition/ and help us reach 20,000 signatures soon! (currently at 18,700 signatures)

Presentations include:

– “The World’s Largest Eagle Congregating Area: The Harrison-Chehalis Rivers, and a Natural History of BC’s Bald Eagles” with David Hancock (Hancock Wildlife Foundation executive director, Hancock House publisher, Fraser Valley Bald Eagle Festival director, American Bald Eagle Foundation trustee)
– “BC’s Endangered Ancient Forests, Echo Lake, and the Pre-Election Campaign to Protect Them! An Ancient Forest Alliance Campaign Overview,” with Ken Wu, TJ Watt, Joan Varley, and Hannah Carpendale of the Ancient Forest Alliance
Also words from the renowned Victoria conservationist Vicky Husband!
*** And a Special, Good News Announcement!!
**By donation (suggested $5 to $20)**
Snacks, drinks, hobnobbing, silent auction fundraiser!
Friends of the forest, join the Ancient Forest Alliance (AFA) for our Fall 2012 special event in Victoria featuring a fascinating presentation by BC’s eagle expert David Hancock; a presentation by the AFA featuring NEW PHOTOS of Echo Lake, the world’s greatest bald eagle gathering area and the Castle Grove of the Walbran Valley, Cortes Island, Mossy Maple Grove, Christy Clark Grove, McLaughlin Ridge, Stillwater Bluffs, Cameron Firebreak, Day Road Forest, and Wilson Creek Forest; an AFA year in review; the launch of our major pre-election campaign; and a SILENT AUCTION! Socialize with other friendly folks while enjoying some appetizers and drinks as well.
The silent auction will feature fantastic local art, green goods and services, and AFA merchandise such as our NEW beautiful 2013 CALENDARS, cards, posters and more! Perfect for fulfilling those holiday gifts for family and friends!
Art work, local artisan handcrafts, local businesses including:
Business and Individual Donations by:
Kermode Wild Berry Wines – Red Huckleberry Wine and Orange Salmonberry Wines from the wilds of BC! https://www.kermodewildberry.com/
Coastline Surf Shop https://www.coastlinesurf.com/
David Hancock Publishing https://www.hancockhouse.com/
Frances Litman Photography www.franceslitman.com
Caitlyn Vernon Book: Nowhere Else on Earth: Standing Tall for the Great Bear Rainforest
Art Work by:
Barbara Bickel www.barbarabickel.ca
Ingrid Koivukangas www.ingrid-koivukangas.com/
Jemzo
Jill Louise Campbell www.jlcgallery.com
Kathleen Drumheller www.kathleendrumheller.com
Lauren Campbell
Margaret Jones Callahan
Mary Vasey – Slightly Ajar
Robert Held
Tamara Lovegrove
Join and invite others on Facebook at: https://www.facebook.com/events/476398232404260/?fref=ts
We hope to see you there!
********************************
Please Support the Ancient Forest Alliance!
We are a new organization that greatly needs your support.
Please DONATE securely online at: https://www.ancientforestalliance.org/donations.php
Visit the Ancient Forest Alliance online at:

YouTube: www.youtube.com/user/BCAncientForest

Local Port Alberni Activist

Land swaps could protect watersheds, official says

/in /by

Read the Times Colonist article here

Logging on hillsides such as McLaughlin Ridge inevitably affects the water supply of surrounding communities and the province should do more to help protect watersheds, says the chairman of the AlberniClayoquot Regional District.

Glenn Wong is planning to ask Forests Minister Steve Thomson about the possibility of swapping Crown land for private managed forest lands at the Union of B.C. Municipalities meeting in Victoria next week. If the proposal were accepted, forestry companies could cut in Crown land areas instead of in the watershed.

“I know that what you do in the hills has an impact on water quality,” he said. “We have two water improvement districts and the [Port Alberni] water supply, and we don’t have much of a say in what is happening in our watersheds.”

Smaller communities such as Port Alberni, which is surrounded by private managed forest land, cannot afford to buy their watersheds, so must look for other ways to increase protections, Wong said.

Port Alberni Mayor John Douglas said the emphasis is on talking to forestry companies.

“We have a pretty good dialogue going,” he said.

But Alberni-Pacific Rim MLA Scott Fraser, who obtained documents showing strong disagreements between the province and Island Timberlands over protection on McLaughlin Ridge, said logging done so far in the area shows little concern for environmental or watershed values.

Logging this year took place around the periphery of the ridge. The core has not yet been harvested.

“It’s not just a matter of the deer or the water,” Fraser said. “It’s a unique biosystem.”

Jane Morden, spokeswoman for the WatershedForest Alliance in Port Alberni, said the ridge has “scary steep slopes” and harvesting is likely to affect both the water supply and wildlife habitat – even if selective logging techniques are used.

“It was supposedly protected to begin with,” she said. “If anything is going to be left, at least leave this.”

China Creek, the main source of Port Alberni’s water, already has sediment problems, but recent turbidity has cleared very quickly – a sign that the creek is rushing because of erosion higher up, Morden said.

McLaughlin Ridge is made up of old-growth coastal Douglas fir, with a good canopy, hanging lichens and small meadows, making it excellent wildlife habitat, Morden said.

Forests Ministry spokeswoman Vivian Thomas said ministry staff have met with Port Alberni officials about the water.

“There are pre-existing seasonal water turbidity issues in China Creek; however, to this point, no evidence suggests that logging activity in the area is the cause,” she said. “This turbidity has existed for many years and is one reason why Port Alberni also draws water from Bainbridge Lake, particularly when turbidity levels are high in China Creek.”

Minutes of meetings in the documents obtained by Fraser document concerns about public perception.

“Selling this to the public is a real concern for [Island Timberlands],” say the minutes.

Bill Waugh, Island Timberlands’ forestry manager, warned ministry staff that the only way to protect the area in perpetuity would be for the province to buy it.

However, Thomas said the ministry has no interest in buying the ridge.