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Chinese-Language Ancient Forest Tours – Training for Educators Begins in Stanley Park

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Today the Ancient Forest Alliance (www.AncientForestAlliance.org), the Hua Foundation (www.HuaFoundation.org) and the Stanley Park Ecology Society (www.StanleyParkEcology.ca) launched a new educational program that will eventually target the half a million Chinese-speakers in the Lower Mainland about the ecology and conservation of BC's old-growth forests.

The organizations held their first “training for educational tour guides”, volunteers who are interested in potentially leading old-growth nature walks in Mandarin or Cantonese, in Stanley Park. The Ancient Forest Alliance's Ken Wu and the Hua Foundation's Kevin Huang guided the dozen volunteers along some of the most spectacular old-growth trails in the park, the Tatlow and Lovers Trails where 14 feet wide, 800 year old redcedars still stand, and explained in English about the plants, animals, ecology, and related conservation issues regarding old-growth forests in British Columbia. The specialized terminology will subsequently be translated by skilled volunteers into Chinese for the participants to study.

As there are half a million people in the Lower Mainland who identify their mother tongue as Chinese, this program aims to help raise the awareness and level of engagement of a major segment of BC's population on the ecology and conservation needs of old-growth forests.

At a future date to be announced, once there is a trained core of nature guides, there will be public tours in Mandarin and Cantonese in the old-growth forests of Stanley Park and potentially in the Walbran Valley, Avatar Grove, Eden Grove, and Echo Lake Ancient forests.

If you can speak Mandarin or Cantonese and would like to participate in this program, please contact Ken Wu at info@16.52.162.165

Port Renfrew: Walking among ancient giants

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Check it out! New Zealand's largest newspaper has an article about the Ancient Forest Alliance, the importance of old-growth forests for the tourism economy of Port Renfrew, and the campaigns to protect old-growth forests including the Central Walbran Valley.

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Visitors to British Columbia, on Canada's Pacific southwest coast, will no doubt be expecting to see some of the thick evergreen forests the area is famous for worldwide. And of course you won't have to go far to see such trees. You will no doubt see plenty as you fly down the coast to Vancouver airport. But the majority of these forests are made up of second-generation trees. The massive giants that can live more than 1000 years are now largely gone from Canada's wooded areas.

On Vancouver Island – a 30-minute flight from downtown Vancouver – 75 per cent of the productive old-growth forests have been logged, including 90 per cent of the valley bottoms, where the biggest trees grow. However, as in New Zealand, small pockets of old growth ancient forest remain, and – like this country – people are rallying to ensure they remain protected from loggers and accessible to visitors keen to view Canada's fascinating botanical heritage.

One such man is T J Watt, who, on a wet spring day, met our small group at an area that has become known as Avatar Grove, a 20-minute drive north of the small coastal settlement of Port Renfrew.

“I came across Avatar Grove in 2009 while looking for old-growth forests and giant trees in the Gordon River Valley near Port Renfrew,” says 31-year-old Watt. “The most accessible old-growth trees usually were logged first, so it's surprising this area still exists, given that it's just a few minutes from the road.”

Watt had to move fast if he wanted to protect the area, which was slated for logging in 2010. He and long-time forest activist Ken Wu had recently formed a group called the Ancient Forest Alliance and, with the Port Renfrew Chamber of Commerce, lobbied for its protection – which was granted in early 2012.

The group has since been constructing a boardwalk to protect the grove's ecological integrity, enhance visitor safety and access, and support the local economy of Port Renfrew and the Pacheedaht First Nation people. The boardwalk and accompanying hikers trail is expected to be completed this year.

Asked whether his project was named before or after the popular 2009 science fiction movie, Watt laughs, and says the area needed a catchier name than just the cutblock number.

“The area is largely untouched and with such amazing old giant trees that were in danger of being cut down, the name Avatar seemed to fit well.”

It is hard to deny that fact, as our group walks among the monumental red cedars, hemlocks, amabilis and douglas firs. The next tree we come across is a gnarled giant that would not be out of place on an alien planet. Its trunk resembles the mottled tubes of a pipe organ and is so tall its upper reaches can barely be seen.

Some of the trees are of such magnificent proportions it is easy see why comparisons are often made with the majestic Californian red woods. One tree, known as the San Juan Spruce, is 62.5m tall with a diameter of 3.7m. The world's largest Douglas fir is also in the area. The red creek fir measures 73.8m high with a 4.2m diameter. Watt has started a company called Big Tree Tours and leads guided hikes to Avatar Grove and the other record-sized trees around Port Renfrew.

“My hope is that the Avatar Grove helps to educate the public about the importance of protecting endangered old-growth forests on other parts of Vancouver Island, like the nearby Walbran Valley and how doing so can not only benefit the environment but the local economy as well,” Watt says.

Asked about the substantial contents of his backpack when the trees are barely 10-15 minutes from the road, Watt says it is mostly emergency gear, food, water and first-aid equipment. “In case anyone gets hurt, you never know. Plus, this a wilderness area. You can still get cougars and bears.”

During our group's hour or so in the grove, no such critters cross our path, but to prove his point Watt says he plans to check a nearby “bear-cam” he set up to see if it has had any large furry visitors.

Also joining our group for the day is Toni Chalk, another young Canadian committed to preserving the local forest areas.

Chalk owns Rainforest Tours, a company that takes guided day-hiking excursions to some of the local sites of scenic beauty. Earlier that day she had taken us to the suitably named Mystic Beach – a beautiful and wild spot that was still shrouded in early morning mist on our arrival. Its remote, unspoilt location attracted US draft dodgers in the 1960s but now it is more popular with hikers and surfers.

The 45-minute walk from the carpark takes us through another heavily wooded area, but this time the trees are all second-generation growth, with little that would be more than 100 years old. Not far from the road she stops to point out three massive tree stumps that would easily be a couple of metres across.

“You can see up there the size of some of the trees that loggers took out of this area”, says Chalk, “but thankfully all this is now part of the Juan de Fuca Provincial Park, so what remains will hopefully be here for some time to come.”

The old-growth forests of Vancouver Island are important for sustaining endangered species, climate stability, tourism and clean water, says Chalk. She says many First Nations tribes use naturally falling old-growth red cedars to build canoes, longhouses and other cultural items.

The largest strand of old-growth trees lies just further north of us in a 500ha section of land known as the Central Walbran Valley.

It is for these areas that Port Renfrew has the reputation as the tall tree capital of Canada.

Later that day our group returns for a tasty dinner at the Renfrew Pub, a stone's throw away from the Wild Renfrew – a small eco-resort featuring 11 well-equipped cottages beside the harbour inlet of Snuggery Cove. The cottages are warm and comfortable – exactly what is needed after a damp day's hiking.

After our meal we talk to one of the Pub's owners, Ian Laing, one of four partners who also own the Wild Renfrew resort, The Coastal Cafe, West Coast Trail Lodge and 180ha of surrounding land.

Laing says Port Renfrew used to be solely the domain of loggers and fishermen, but that is changing.

“The whole area is converting from using up primary resources to eco-tourism,” he says, adding that as well as hiking and surfing, the region has some impressive mountain bike trails and a growing kite-surfing community in the harbour.

Read more: https://m.nzherald.co.nz/travel/news/article.cfm?c_id=7&objectid=11708020

Rare cougar sighting in endangered forest on Vancouver Island

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A conservation photographer has captured a rare photo and video of cougars in the Walbran Valley.

According to a B.C. organization that works to protect endangered forests, cougars on the island tend to avoid clear cut areas.

The Ancient Forest Alliance photographer documented the two cougars, likely a mother with her juvenile offspring, from his car.

“I’ve spent over a decade exploring the old-growth forests of Vancouver Island several times a week, and I grew up here, but I never saw a cougar until this past weekend,” TJ Watt said.

In the brief sighting the large cougar casually bounded across the road and paused momentarily, which is when Watt captured the photo.

The video, which was captured moments later, shows the smaller cougar meandering on the road.

Watt said seeing the carnivores was a “dream come true.”

According to the alliance, old-growth forests provide cover for cougars and wintering habitats for their main prey, black-tailed deer.

It’s estimated that there are between 300 and 800 cougars on Vancouver Island, the alliance says.

The Walbran and adjacent Carmanah Valley’s forests are also home to wolves, black bears, Roosevelt elk, spawning coho, steelhead in the river and marbled murrelet.

You can watch the video of the cougar here: https://ctv.news/qz16JuQ

Read more: https://vancouverisland.ctvnews.ca/rare-cougar-sighting-in-endangered-forest-on-vancouver-island-1.3016840

Rare sighting of mother cougar and juvenile on Vancouver Island as activists push for forest conservation

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Conservation photographer TJ Watt had mere seconds to take a photo of a mother cougar before it disappeared into the forest last weekend in Vancouver Island’s Walbran Valley.

He says the encounter reminded him how important it was to conserve the region’s old-growth forest.

Watt had just returned to his car when a large couger bounded out onto the road in front of him and paused before crossed onto the other side, into the forest. A smaller, juvenile cougar followed and Watt managed to capture a video of it.

“I’ve always dreamed of seeing a cougar,” said Watt, who explores the old growth forest in the area several times a week.

This was his first time encountering a cougar, he said in a written release from the Ancient Forest Alliance.

“The sighting underscores the great need for the B.C. govenrment to protect the remaining old-growth forests of the Walbran Valley and of cross the province, before it is turned into a sea of stumps.”

Walbran Valley is located in the southwest part of Vancouver Island and is home to some of the oldest and largest trees in Canada. About 40 per cent of the valley is protected from logging while the rest is still subject to old-growth logging.

[Original Metro News article no longer available]

 

A rare photo of a cougar captured in the endangered Walbran Valley through the front window of AFA photographer TJ Watt's car.

Rare cougar sighting – Mother and juvenile filmed and photographed in the Walbran Valley’s endangered old-growth forest

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For Immediate Release
August 4, 2016
 
Rare cougar sighting – Mother and juvenile filmed and photographed in the Walbran Valley’s endangered old-growth forest
 
At a rare encounter earlier this week, Ancient Forest Alliance photographer TJ Watt filmed and photographed two cougars, a mother and a juvenile, in the endangered old-growth forest of the Walbran Valley on southwestern Vancouver Island. Activists continue to push for the valley’s full protection.
 
See the photograph of the large cougar here: https://16.52.162.165/pic.php?pID=122
 
See the video of the juvenile cougar here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=x7QbQHE6Nv0
 
 
Port Renfrew, Vancouver Island – This past weekend in the Walbran Valley’s endangered old-growth forest, conservation photographer TJ Watt of the Ancient Forest Alliance captured a photograph and video of a rare cougar encounter – two cougars in fact, a large and smaller one, likely a mother with her juvenile offspring. In the brief encounter, the large adult cougar casually bounded across the road, pausing in one instant long enough for Watt to get a somewhat blurry photo through his front window, while the juvenile meandered for about 20 seconds along the road, allowing Watt to capture several seconds of shaky video. Watt had been returning in his van with a group of volunteers after giving a workshop at the Walbran Valley Convergence, a celebration organized by the Friends of Carmanah-Walbran of the 1991 environmental protests in the valley. He was driving through a section of old-growth forest near a steep canyon in the endangered “Special Management Zone”, an area that is still being logged by licensee Teal-Jones.
 
“I’ve always dreamed of seeing a cougar, let alone photograph and film one! I’ve spent over a decade exploring the old-growth forests of Vancouver Island several times a week, and I grew up here – but I never saw a cougar until this past weekend. It was a very brief encounter, which explains the shaky photo and video – but certainly breathtaking and magnificent all the same! To see these elusive large carnivores is rare – few people, including those who spend a lifetime working in or exploring the woods on Vancouver Island, get to see them, let alone photograph or film them! I feel lucky, but the sighting underscores the great need for the BC government to protect the remaining old-growth forests of the Walbran Valley – and across the province – before it is turned into a sea of stumps,” stated TJ Watt, Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner and photographer.
 
Research of cougars on Vancouver Island show they tend to avoid clearcuts, while old-growth forests provide cover for them and wintering habitat for their main prey, black-tailed deer.  Estimates for cougars on Vancouver Island have ranged from roughly 300 to 800 individuals. The Walbran and adjacent Carmanah Valley’s old-growth forests are also home to wolves, black bears, Roosevelt elk, and spawning coho, chum and steelhead in the river, as well as species at risk that are associated with old-growth forests, like the marbled murrelet, northern goshawk, Vaux’s swift, long-eared bats, and hundreds of new species of arthropods (insects, spiders, mites) found in the mossy old-growth canopy.
 
“The old-growth forests in the endangered Central Walbran Valley are the grandest in the country, akin to being the ‘Redwoods of Canada’! Not only are they home to gargantuan red cedars, Sitka spruce, and Douglas-fir trees 500 to a thousand years old, they sustain charismatic large carnivores, herbivores, and many old-growth dependent species. Industrial encroachment into Vancouver Island’s last old-growth forests like the Walbran Valley is jeopardizing the wildlife,” stated Ken Wu, Ancient Forest Alliance executive director. “It’s time the BC Liberal government update the 22 year old Vancouver Island Land Use Plan to protect the remaining old-growth forests, and to ensure a sustainable second-growth forest industry instead.”
 
More Background Info:
 
40% of the Walbran, the Lower Valley, was protected in 1994 in the Carmanah-Walbran Provincial Park, while the other 60% in the Central and Upper Valley was left outside of the park and is the centre of much environmental concern and controversy about the old-growth logging taking place there. The total Walbran watershed is 13,000 hectares, while the protected Lower Walbran Valley is about 5500 hectares, the Central Valley is 500 hectares and the Upper Valley is 7000 hectares. 2600 hectares including the Central Valley and part of the Upper Valley is a “Special Management Zone” – which still allows for major old-growth logging and fragmentation through smaller but more numerous clearcuts. The cougar was spotted in the Special Management Zone, an area which has seen environmental protests and blockades over the past year. The most intact portion of the Special Management Zone is the 500 hectare Central Walbran, which includes the largest tracts of contiguous old-growth forests and many of the largest trees and groves, including the Castle Grove, Castle Giant, Tolkien Giant, and Karst Giant.
 
Logging licensee Teal-Jones has 8 cutblocks planned for the Central Walbran Valley, of which one, Cutblock 4424, has been granted a cutting permit by the Ministry of Forests, Lands, and Natural Resource Operations. The company has stated that they are not pursuing logging plans in the Central Walbran Valley for now, a positive step forward at this time. The company has been logging in other parts of the Special Management Zone, an activity condemned by the conservationists. The Walbran Valley is in the unceded territory of the Pacheedaht band in Tree Farm Licences 44 and 46 on Crown lands.
 
Over the past few months, resolutions for the protection of the Walbran Valley and/or the old-growth forests of Vancouver Island have been passed or supported by major business associations and local governments, including the BC Chamber of Commerce, representing 36,000 BC businesses; local Chambers of Commerce in Port Renfrew, Sooke, and the WestShore (Langford, Colwood, Metchosin, Highlands, View Royal); the Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities (AVICC), representing 53 municipal, town, and regional district councils; the district councils of Victoria, Metchosin, and Tofino; and by Federation of BC Naturalists (BC Nature), representing 53 naturalist clubs with over 6000 members.  See a media release: www.ancientforestalliance.org/news-item.php?ID=1010   and an article: www.timescolonist.com/news/local/b-c-chamber-of-commerce-hugs-old-growth-trees-1.2267701
 
Port Renfrew, formerly a logging town, has been transformed in recent years into a big tree tourism destination as hundreds of thousands of tourists have come from around the world to visit some of Canada’s largest trees in the nearby Avatar Grove, the Red Creek Fir (the world’s largest Douglas-fir tree), Big Lonely Doug (Canada’s 2nd largest Douglas-fir tree), San Juan Spruce (until recently Canada’s largest Sitka spruce tree – its top broke off in a recent storm unfortunately), the Harris Creek spruce (one of the largest Sitka spruce trees in Canada), and the Central Walbran Valley.
 
On BC’s southern coast (Vancouver Island and the southwest mainland), 75% of the original, productive old-growth forests have already been logged, including over 90% of the valley bottoms where the largest trees grow. 3.3 million hectares of productive old-growth forests once stood on the southern coast, and today 860,000 hectares remain, while only 260,000 hectares are protected in parks and Old-Growth Management Areas. Second-growth forests now dominate 75% of Vancouver Island's productive forest lands, including 90% of southern Vancouver Island, and can be sustainably logged to support the forest industry. See maps and stats at: www.ancientforestalliance.org/old-growth-maps.php 

Save the Walbran Tour Victoria

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Have fun while supporting the protection of the endangered Walbran Valley this Friday, May 27th at the White Eagle Hall in James Bay as part of the Save the Walbran Tour! There will be great local musicians as well as information booths to learn more about how you can help out! Tickets $20 at Lyle's Place. The tour is being hosted by local organizers in conjunction with several non-profits and community initiatives.  For more info see: https://www.facebook.com/events/1102443283130908/

The Save the Walbran Tour is also happening on SALTSPRING, May 28 (Featuring Kinnie Starr, Downtown Mischief, Joy District, Barefoot Theives) – see: https://www.facebook.com/events/599599783539460/

And CUMBERLAND June 3 (Featuring Mat The Alien, Downtown Mischief, Bousada) – see: https://www.facebook.com/events/1071161182925308/

Ancient Forest Alliance

The WestShore Chamber of Commerce Supports Port Renfrew’s Call for the Protection of the Central Walbran Valley’s Old-Growth Forest

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For Immediate Release
May 19, 2016

Media Release: The WestShore Chamber of Commerce Supports Port Renfrew’s Call for the Protection of the Central Walbran Valley’s Old-Growth Forest

The WestShore Chamber of Commerce (https://westshore.bc.ca/), representing almost 400 businesses in the western suburbs of Victoria and across the Capital Regional District, is supporting the Port Renfrew Chamber of Commerce’s call to the province to protect the Central Walbran Valley’s old-growth forests. In addition, the Sooke Chamber of Commerce, the Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities (AVICC) representing 51 cities, towns, and regional districts, and the councils of Victoria, Metchosin, and Tofino, have also joined the call to protect the Central Walbran Valley and/or Vancouver Island’s remaining old-growth forests.

Victoria, British Columbia – Conservationists are delighted that the WestShore Chamber of Commerce, representing almost 400 businesses in the western suburbs of Victoria has issued a letter in support of the Port Renfrew Chamber of Commerce’s request to the province of British Columbia that it protect the Central Walbran Valley from old-growth logging.

Hundreds of thousands of tourists have come from across Canada, Europe, the USA, and jurisdictions around the world in recent years to visit some of Canada’s largest trees on southern Vancouver Island, near the town of Port Renfrew. Visitors are coming to see the Avatar Grove, Red Creek Fir (the world’s largest Douglas-fir tree), Big Lonely Doug (Canada’s 2nd largest Douglas-fir tree), San Juan Spruce (until recently Canada’s largest Sitka spruce tree – its top broke off in a recent storm unfortunately), Harris Creek spruce (one of the largest Sitka spruce trees in Canada), and the Central Walbran Valley.

The growing numbers of visitors coming to see ancient forests are supporting local businesses as they pay for meals, accommodations, transportation, entertainment, and services, including in the Victoria region, on their way to and from Tall Tree hotspots.

• See spectacular photos of the Walbran at: www.ancientforestalliance.org/photos.php?gID=7

And https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.886074168153838.1073741889.823970554364200&type=3

And https://www.facebook.com/media/set/?set=a.973573459403908.1073741896.823970554364200&type=3

• See a recent Youtube clip using drone footage over the Central Walbran at: www.youtube.com/watch?v=lyMPXHOjlK0

• See this 2012 video when a similar attempt to log near Castle Grove was held off, only to return recently: www.youtube.com/watch?v=lHnG_sC4oms

“Our understanding is that old growth forests represent a vital part of our multi-billion dollar coastal tourism industry, and the Walbran Valley is a key area for preservation due to its spectacular beauty, gigantic trees, and accessibility. Every year tourists are attracted to the area from around the world to explore the wild west coast, including some of the tallest trees in the world. This increasing eco-tourism generates revenue every year and directly supports local businesses throughout the region as visitors pay for meals, accommodations, transportation, and entertainment on their way to and from Tall Tree hotspots. We fully expect that West Shore businesses are currently benefiting from this tourist traffic,” stated Joshua Schmidt, Projects & Relations Manager for the WestShore Chamber of Commerce.

“Our temperate coastal rainforests are home to about the greatest per hectare biomass and some of the biggest trees in the world. As old growth forests continue to be logged worldwide the local forests we preserve will only increase in demand and value. Our belief at the WestShore Chamber is that the ecological and economic value of protecting these last old growth forests far exceeds the monetary value of its lumber.”

The Central Walbran Valley’s old-growth temperate rainforest has long been an area of public interest since hiking trails were built in the valley in 1990. In 1994, the BC government protected the Lower Walbran Valley, about 5500 hectares, as part of the larger Carmanah-Walbran Provincial Park, but left out the Central Walbran Valley (500 hectares) and the Upper Walbran Valley (7,000 hectares) from the park. Since then, most of the Upper Walbran has been heavily tattered by logging, but the Central Walbran remains largely intact. However, eight new cutblocks are planned in the Central Walbran, of which one (cutblock 4424) has been approved by the province. The Central Walbran Valley lies on Crown (public) land in the territory of the Pacheedaht band in Tree Farm Licence 46 held by licensee Teal-Jones.

On BC’s southern coast (Vancouver Island and the southwest mainland), 75% of the original, productive old-growth forests have already been logged, including over 90% of the valley bottoms where the largest trees grow. 3.3 million hectares of productive old-growth forests once stood on the southern coast, and today 860,000 hectares remain, while only 260,000 hectares are protected in parks and Old-Growth Management Areas. Second-growth forests now dominate 75% of Vancouver Island’s productive forest lands, including 90% of southern Vancouver Island, and can be sustainably logged to support the forest industry. See maps and stats at: www.ancientforestalliance.org/old-growth-maps.php

Over the past few months, the Port Renfrew, Sooke, and WestShore Chambers of Commerce have spoken up for the protection of the old-growth forests in the Walbran Valley, while the Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities (AVICC) and the councils of Victoria, Metchosin, and Tofino have also passed resolutions for the protection of the Walbran or all of Vancouver Island’s remaining old-growth forests.

‘Tree Huggers’ Documentary

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Here's a new documentary by Capilano College film student Jordie Yeager, with the help of her fellow students, on the battle for Vancouver Island's old-growth forests, with a focus on the endangered Central Walbran Valley! See here: https://vimeo.com/164476946

WestShore Chamber of Commerce joins call for protection of Central Walbran Valley

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Great News! The WestShore Chamber of Commerce representing almost 400 businesses in the western communites of Victoria in Langford, Colwood, Metchosin, View Royal, and Highlands, has joined the Port Renfrew and Sooke Chambers of Commerce calling on the provincial government to protect the old-growth forests of the endangered Central Walbran Valley for tourism. Unfortunately, the link to the letter is unavailable, but please see their website here.

Vancouver Island’s old-growth forest an ‘ecological emergency’: Sierra Club

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Looking down from an elevation of 400 kilometres or so, Vancouver Island appears to be covered by a mostly intact jade-green forest from one end to the other. Using a Google Earth mapping tool that incorporates logging data, however, the Sierra Club of B.C. has created a different image – one showing just a few remaining pockets of rich old-growth forest.

“This can be described as an ecological emergency,” said Jens Wieting, forest campaigner for the Sierra Club of B.C. “The last big, contiguous old-growth areas with giant trees, such as the Walbran on the southern island and East Creek on the northern island, should be considered as rare as white rhinos.”

Just one-tenth of Vancouver Island’s most productive old-growth rainforest with the tallest trees remains unlogged, he said, and some of that is currently approved for logging.

The B.C. government states that on Vancouver Island, 46 percent of the forest on Crown land is still covered by old-growth forest, but Mr. Wieting said that figure is inflated because the province includes less productive ecosystems such as bogs or sparsely treed high elevations. What remains, he said, is a patchwork of forests that are too small to ensure biodiversity.

“For Vancouver Island and British Columbia’s south coast, we believe it is urgent to develop a new conservation plan to safeguard the remaining intact areas and to restore older second growth so that we can have some connectivity,” he said in an interview.

In February, environmentalists celebrated an agreement to protect the Great Bear Rainforest on B.C.’s central coast. That historic pact ensures that 85 per cent of the old growth will not be logged, includes economic benefits for First Nations and provides the forest industry with a green seal of approval for the timber it is allowed to harvest in the region.

With that agreement completed, environmental campaigns have shifted to other regions. The Sierra Club of B.C. has highlighted logging of old growth just outside the Carmanah Walbran Provincial Park on southern Vancouver Island, and Mr. Wieting said the province should be looking at the objectives of the Great Bear Rainforest there as well.

The province has set aside 1.8 million hectares of old-growth forests on the coast for protection as parks or other conservation areas. Under the Forest and Range Practices Act, it sets targets for old-growth preservation within geographic and biological regions that range from 1 to 28 per cent. It maintains that those parcels are large enough to maintain biodiversity.

However, the independent Forest Practices Board has questioned the government’s stance. In a 2012 report, the board said the province has improved its old-growth forest management plans but concluded there is “a compelling need for government to undertake comprehensive effectiveness monitoring to determine whether or not efforts to protect biodiversity in these areas are actually effective.”

The provincial Forests Ministry issued a written statement noting it has since pledged to increase tracking and monitoring of old-growth forests.

Richard Hebda, the Royal B.C. Museum’s curator of botany and earth history, said in an interview the Sierra Club’s Google Earth mapping tool confirms what his own research has suggested – that there is not much old-growth forest left on Vancouver Island, and that what is left is not well connected.

That is troubling, he said, because B.C.’s intact coastal forests will be crucial in adapting to climate change: “Healthy forests are going to play an important role in our future.”

Dr. Hebda said the most resilient forests are those that have been intact for thousands of years, weaving together a complex system of hydrology, soil formation, nutrient cycling and more into an ecosystem that is more capable of surviving changes in climate.

Logging doesn’t just remove the trees, he said, but unravels that living fabric that holds those systems together.

“We need a hard-nosed investigation of what we want these forests to be doing: Do we want to protect biodiversity? Do we want them to be very good at storing carbon? Then we can decide how much forest we actually need,” he said. “I think the answer will be a much higher percentage than we now have.”

Read more: https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/vancouver-islands-old-growth-forest-an-ecological-emergency-sierra-club/article29427393/