Board to Audit BCTS Operations near 100 Mile House

VICTORIA – The Forest Practices Board will audit the forest planning and practices of the British Columbia Timber Sales (BCTS) program in the 100 Mile House Forest District.

The audit will include BCTS’s operations, under various licenses, located throughout the 100 Mile House Forest District, which covers over one million hectares. The forest district is bounded on the West by the Fraser River and on the east by the Cariboo Mountains and Wells Gray Park. In the centre of the operating area is the town of 100 Mile House, with Lac la Hache to the North and both 70 Mile House and Clinton to the South.

The audit will be a full-scope audit, meaning that auditors will examine forest practices carried out over the past year, including timber harvesting; road construction, maintenance and deactivation; fire protection; silviculture; and operational planning.

The Forest Practices Board carries out periodic independent audits to see if government and forest companies are complying with the province’s forest practices legislation. This licence was chosen randomly for the audit and not on the basis of location or level of performance.

The four members of the audit team are professional foresters and a chartered accountant. They will be in the licence area examining plans, cutblocks and roads for about four days beginning on June 21. Once the fieldwork is done, the board will prepare a draft report on the audit findings. Any party that may be adversely affected by the audit findings will have an opportunity to respond to the board before the report is finalized and released to the public and government.

The Forest Practices Board is an independent public watchdog that reports to the public about compliance with the Forest Practices Code and the achievement of its intent. The board’s mandate has been retained under the new Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA). The board’s main roles under FRPA are:

• Auditing forest practices of government and licence holders on public lands.
• Auditing government enforcement of FRPA.
• Investigating public complaints.
• Undertaking special investigations of forestry issues.
• Participating in administrative appeals.
• Providing reports on board activities, findings and recommendations.

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Erik Kaye
Communications
Forest Practices Board
Phone: 250 356-1586 / 1 800 994-5899