This special investigation examined how well forest licensees plan and mitigate forestry impacts to timbered natural range barriers. Along with barriers such as steep gullies and large rivers, timbered range barriers are important because they help ensure cattle are contained within certain areas and do not graze where they are not supposed to. Forestry operations, including harvesting and road construction, can reduce the effectiveness of a timbered range barrier.
The investigation examined 10 case studies of range barrier mitigation on the ground and the commitments made in 56 operational plans (referred to as measures) to address forestry impacts to range barriers. In most of the case studies, the investigation found problems in how mitigation was planned and implemented. Most measures in operational plans were also deficient because, as written, they were not likely to lead to effective mitigation and were not verifiable. The investigation report includes three recommendations to improve how range barrier mitigation is planned and implemented.
In 2011, the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations (FLNR), the Ministry of Environment and 12 heli ski/cat ski operators signed two memoranda of understanding (MOUs) regarding the management of helicopter and snowcat skiing in mountain caribou habitats. The MOUs, being consistent with government’s mountain caribou recovery objectives, include provisions for adapting to caribou encounters, among other things, and reporting this information to FLNR by May 31 each year.
This audit highlights the beneficial aspects of having an industry, with the potential to adversely impact a sensitive wildlife resource, follow agreed upon procedures to manage and minimize wildlife encounters, and to self-report on those encounters.
One way the Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA) and Wildfire Act (WA) are enforced is through the use of administrative penalties. Administrative penalties provide an efficient way to enforce legislation and promote compliance, if appropriately used. This investigation examined whether administrative penalties:
This report looks at penalty determinations made by government officials for contraventions of FRPA, WA and the Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act, during a five-year period from April 1, 2009, to March 31, 2014.
The report makes several recommendations, including that government should establish a publicly-accessible, online database of all penalty determinations under FRPA and WA.
The Forest Practices Board (Board) is British Columbia’s independent forest and range watchdog. On behalf of the public, it monitors and reports on forest and range practices on public land. One of the main ways it does this is through field-based compliance audits of forest and range licensees.
The purpose of this guide is to help licensees prepare for a Board audit and discuss how to conduct their practices to avoid issues most commonly found in past audits. This guide answers some frequently asked questions and provides potential auditees with background information on the audit process.
