VICTORIA – The Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development’s small scale salvage program and salvage licence holders in the Cariboo-Chilcotin Natural Resource District met the requirements of the Forest and Range Practices Act and the Wildfire Act, according to a new report.

“Our audit found that salvagers did a good job dealing with trees infested with Douglas-fir bark beetle in the district,” said Board Chair Kevin Kriese. “Auditors saw a couple of practices that need improvement, but nothing significant.”

One salvage licensee harvested some trees just outside the boundary of the licence and several licensees did not document fire hazard assessments following logging. As a result of the audit process, one of the licensees has already improved its boundary marking procedures to prevent a similar error in the future.

The audit examined timber harvesting, silviculture, fire protection and associated planning, carried out between Sept. 2017 and Sept. 2018.

Small scale salvage is the harvest of single trees or small patches of dead or damaged timber. Salvage licences are limited to 2,000 cubic metres or less. In the past year, most salvage activities in the district took place near Williams Lake, Horsefly and McLeese Lake and involved beetle infested trees, with a few areas of burned or wind thrown trees.

The Forest Practices Board is B.C.’s independent watchdog for sound forest and range practices, reporting its findings and recommendations directly to the public and government. The board audits forest and range practices on public lands and appropriateness of government enforcement. It can also make recommendations for improvement to practices and legislation.

Contact:

Darlene Oman
Communications
Forest Practices Board
250 213-4705 / 1 800 994-5899