As a follow-up to the Board’s 2014 Special Investigation of Bridge Planning, Design and Construction, the Board examined 269 newly constructed bridges and 59 wood box culverts in 5 natural resource districts in the summer and fall of 2019.
While safety and protection of the environment improved over the 2014 results, there is still work to do to improve planning and professional assurance of structures.
On November 28, 2019, the Forest Practices Board received a complaint from a Prince George resident that Canadian Forest Products Ltd. (Canfor) is harvesting within a caribou corridor in the Anzac drainage.
The Board determined that Canfor’s development in the Anzac caribou corridors is consistent with the general wildlife measures.
In February 2018, the Forest Practices Board received a complaint from residents of East Thurlow Island about forest planning for old forest and red- and blue-listed plant communities in the Great Bear Rainforest. The complainants believed that TimberWest’s planning did not meet the intent of the Great Bear Rainforest Order, and that it favored the harvest of timber over the conservation of ecological integrity.
The Board concludes TimberWest is meeting the intent of the Order on East Thurlow Island.
As part of its 2019 compliance audit program, the Board selected three non-replaceable forest licences (NRFLs) in the Chilliwack Natural Resource District as a location for a full scope compliance audit. The licences include A75807, A79504 and A90380, held by Ts'elxweyeqw Forestry Limited Partnership, Leq' A: Mel Forestry Limited Partnership, and Skwah First Nation, respectively.
The activities audited are located in the area around Chilliwack, near Chehalis, Wahleach and Chilliwack Lakes. Operations are located in the Chehalis, Chilliwack and Silverhope Landscape Units, where resource values include scenic areas, wildlife habitat for a variety of species, recreation areas, consumptive watersheds and culturally important areas. The licensees must meet objectives set by government for old growth management areas, scenic areas, wildlife, community watersheds and karst.
The activities for all of the licensees audited complied with the requirements of the Forest and Range Practices Act and the Wildfire Act.
As part of its 2019 compliance audit program, the Board selected Community Forest Agreement K4F in the 100 Mile House Natural Resource District as a location for a full scope compliance audit. Clinton & District Community Forest of BC Limited holds the licence.
The activities audited are located in the area surrounding Clinton. The community forest falls within the area covered by the Cariboo-Chilcotin Land Use Plan and must meet government objectives for OGMAs, scenic areas, wildlife tree retention, critical fish habitat, lakes management, grasslands, trails and high value wetlands for moose. All activities complied with the requirements of the Forest and Range Practices Act and the Wildfire Act.
The Forest Practices Board is pleased to provide a submission to the Strategic Review of Old Growth Management in BC. We have done a fair amount of work involving old growth management through our audits, complaint investigations and special investigations. We are providing a selection of observations based on findings from our work, grouped around two themes: what we don't know and the need for monitoring and research, and observations on the current management approach.
As part of its 2019 compliance audit program, the Board selected Community Forest Agreement K2W in the 100 Mile House Natural Resource District as a location for a full scope compliance audit. 100 Mile Development Corporation holds the licence.
The activities audited are located to the east of 100 Mile House in the area surrounding Horse Lake, where the terrain is gentle to rolling and includes a number of small lakes. All activities complied with the requirements of the Forest and Range Practices Act and the Wildfire Act.
As part of its 2019 compliance audit program, the Board randomly selected the Cascades Natural Resource District as the location for a full scope compliance audit. Within the district, the Board selected Tolko Industries Ltd.’s (Tolko) forest licences (FL) A18696, A18697 and A74911 for audit. Forest licences A18696, A18697 and A74911 are within the Merritt timber supply area (TSA), which covers about 1.13 million hectares in British Columbia’s southwest interior. Merritt and Princeton are the largest communities in the TSA.
The audit found an area for improvement with the completion of fire hazard assessments.
A Proposed Pathway for Improving Wildlife Management and Habitat Conservation in British Columbia
The Forest Practices Board is pleased to provide a submission to Together for Wildlife. At the outset, we wish to recognize the importance of having a long-term vision and plan for stewardship of BC’s wildlife resources, and the importance of this initiative. This submission draws from reports and investigations the Board has undertaken over almost 25 years.
A professional biologist with black bear expertise submitted a complaint on April 8, 2019, asserting that black bear dens in large diameter, old trees are being lost to harvesting old growth forests on Vancouver Island. The complainant is concerned that the declining availability of large trees will eventually affect population numbers.
The Board concluded that there is uncertainty in terms of the population status of black bears on Vancouver Island.
