Appropriateness of a Stop Work Order for a Woodlot near Midway, BC

The complainant is a professional forester in good standing, a former woodlot extension forester and former president of the local woodlot association. The complainant manages the forest on his own private land and 600 hectares of Crown land under a woodlot licence near Midway, BC. He has managed the woodlot for about 15 years. The complainant is proud of the woodlot and his forest practices, and he routinely conducts tours for students and interested individuals.

The complainant operated in the woodlot without incident for about 8 months in 1999 and 2000. In February 2000, the Ministry of Forests (the ministry) discovered that the complainant had built a short section of road in the woodlot without an approved road layout and design. On February 16, 2000, a ministry official called the complainant and told him that an approved road layout and design was required before the road could be built. Both parties agree that the conversation became heated and the complainant became upset. The official then issued a verbal stop work order that prohibited harvesting and hauling operations.