PAWS NEWSBULLETIN
December 19, 2007
Hello Everybody,
Good news on the Eagle River Sliver at Lois Main, Mile 1. This afternoon we were informed by Island Timberlands by phone that the company has decided it will not log the half-acre adjacent and below the main line at Mile 1, which lies inside their private lands along the Eagle River. (Note: The Sliver is not the same area as that on the highway, or that on the mouth of the river, which has also been deferred.)
This is not a permanent moratorium on the area, however, the company has taken it out of their logging plans. There may still be some pruning activity in the area to protect the remaining timber from blowdown. Island Timberlands will still be exposing the timber on the low side of the road with their logging on the high side of the road, and they want to do their dilligence to protect it from blowdown as best they can. The company will come out with a written statement re this matter in the coming days.
The Powell River Parks and Wilderness Society (PRPAWS) applauds Island Timberlands protecting fish, biological diversity and recreation/tourism, and we thank them for this gesture of good will.
For further information contact Makenzie Leine at Island Timberlands: mleine@islandtimberlands.com.
Cheers,
Eagle
Thursday, December 20, 2007
Saturday, December 8, 2007
Monday, December 3, 2007
Suggestions for a modified LRMP
SUGGESTIONS FOR A MODIFIED LAND AND RESOUCE MANAGEMENT PLAN (LRMP) Dec. 1, 2007
To Round-table participants and the public:
Please add your thoughts about what a modified LRMP should contain and look like, so we can jointly come up with a written comprehensive plan that we can present to the Integrated Land Management Bureau. This is your chance to express your vision on paper and give specific situations you would like to see on the ground. Do not worry if your draft is organized, just put down your thoughts on paper. We will put it all together in a comprehensive format once we have input from everybody. You can write down your immediate thoughts and add more at a later date.
It might be interesting to start with lower level plans first focusing on exactly what we want to achieve on the ground. In other words, what do we want as an end result and what is already in place at lower level plans, like the Bunster Plan. To do this we need to integrate all the competing interests such as logging and all community values. How can these co-exist, and what should the landscape look like now, and over time. Achievable results will entail compromises from all sides. Not only do we need to examine the environment but we need to look at the economics of logging in this forest district. What would a real sustainable logging industry and job situation look like down the road? How much money will logging make for government? What are the problems for the forest industry now and in the future? What is an appropriate annual cut so all the community values can be accommodated? All of this has a large impact on the final outcome. What type of real-estate development do we want and what do we want the landscape to look like when it happens. Granted, the real-estate development will occur on private land and a better land use plan should be set up by the regional district. So many private Island Timberlands Limited Partnership (ITLP) parcels are surrounded by crown land and need to be part of the planning process. All of this will affect the forest and if we do not think about this somebody else will. Once these specific issues are looked at and dealt with then one can move up the ladder and talk about a higher level zoning land use plan.
Modified LRMP criteria.
This includes both a higher level plan giving guidance to lower level plans that will be implemented on the ground. A higher level plan might be a zoning plan with boundaries drawn on a map. The Stillwater Pilot Plan is a good example. Another example of a higher level plan would be a descriptive set of circumstances which would raise a red flag. For example, any time logging was proposed within 200 to 300 meters of a hiking trail, a red flag would pop up. That would activate lower level logging and recreation and tourism plan would kick in.
All plans should have these characteristics:
1. Easy to read and understand.
2. Flexibility built in.
3. Easy to implement.
4. Make plan as simple as possible.
5. Focus on results on the ground, what should the end result be or look like.
6. Transparency.
7. Results should be descriptive enough to prevent different interpretations.
8. Continually try to improve communication between the public and the forest company.
9. Make sure that all community groups have equal access when it comes to communicating with the forest company. All community groups should have easy access to information from the logging companies.
10. Set up a resolution dispute structure that can mediate a resolution among all parties.
11. Every three years the large logging companies on the Sunshine Coast should be required to produce a satellite map of the Sunshine Coast forest district. They can all share in the expense of this. This will give the public an oversight view of what kind of logging has taken place in the backcountry and it will show how Greenup is coming along. This is needed for proper and easy oversight by the public.
Other things that should be part of the plan:
First we need to examine the Stillwater Pilot Project plus all the other landscape level plans that exist in the Sunshine Forest District thoroughly so we do not have to re-invent the wheel.
1. Long term plan. Because the government is permitting 40 to 50 year rotation forests, we need at least a 160 year plan and 200 years is better. A report on how fast the planted trees are growing every ten years would indicate how good the soil condition is.
2. The Alder tree is a nitrogen fixer, meaning it puts nitrogen back into the soil unlike most plants. Small bumps, called nodules on the roots house an organism that converts the nitrogen in the soil into a form plants can absorb. The dead leaves also produce nitrogen indirectly. Clumps of alder should be left in logged areas to regenerate the soil. Is this happening?
3. Should 80 and 120 year plantations be considered since we do not know what the demand for trees will be in the future.
4. No more logging of old growth on the Sunshine Coast until a modified LRMP is in place. We, have very little old growth left, so until we can sort things out we do not want to eliminate our options.
5. Any old growth trees at lower elevations that are single should have 30 to 40 meters of second growth buffer left around them for their survival. A wild life tree patch would work. If there are few more giants close together a small grove should be created with a buffer around them.
6. Sustainable second growth logging plan.
7. Keep the Old Growth forest of hemlocks on Mount Troubridge intact.
8. Black bear and Grizzly habitat at the estuary of a river must be protected, so the spawning salmon can thrive and the bears can drag the fish up the banks to eat and be protected by the big trees. No logging should take place in the spawning season around these areas so the fish, bears, eagles, and other birds and animals are not disturbed at that crucial time.
9. Buffers of second growth should be kept around lakes and inlets. These should be large enough to protect against erosion and runoff. In the interface areas these buffers are a visual feature for recreation and should be more extensive.
10. Wildlife tree patches must be representative of the cut block not just stick poles or scrub brush.
11. Cut blocks can be larger in size if they have large inclusions of second growth. This inclusion into the cut block must be large enough to be able to withstand blow-downs around the edges. Any variable retention island must be large enough to withstand blow downs around the edges. The idea is to create the illusion of smaller clear cuts from different view points.
12. Start using selective logging close to trails and lake shores.
13. Smaller cut blocks close to hiking trails.
14. Water in rivers must not be restricted as that impairs salmon from swimming up the river and spawning. In salmon streams and rivers a continuous flow of water must be maintained all year around. Establish strict water flow tables. Question: is the Plutonic Run of the river projects letting enough water run down the river at all times?
15. Take second look at existing OGMAS to be sure they consist of the best old growth trees and make revisions to accomplish this. Some OGMAS have no old growth in them at all. Lower elevation old growth trees should have their own small OGMAS.
16. Plant native berry bushes along logging roads for bears and other wildlife after logging is complete. No blackberries. Give a little back.
17. Create an integrated logging and recreation, tourism lower level plan that accommodates both logging and hiking trails and recreational inventory.
Lars
To Round-table participants and the public:
Please add your thoughts about what a modified LRMP should contain and look like, so we can jointly come up with a written comprehensive plan that we can present to the Integrated Land Management Bureau. This is your chance to express your vision on paper and give specific situations you would like to see on the ground. Do not worry if your draft is organized, just put down your thoughts on paper. We will put it all together in a comprehensive format once we have input from everybody. You can write down your immediate thoughts and add more at a later date.
It might be interesting to start with lower level plans first focusing on exactly what we want to achieve on the ground. In other words, what do we want as an end result and what is already in place at lower level plans, like the Bunster Plan. To do this we need to integrate all the competing interests such as logging and all community values. How can these co-exist, and what should the landscape look like now, and over time. Achievable results will entail compromises from all sides. Not only do we need to examine the environment but we need to look at the economics of logging in this forest district. What would a real sustainable logging industry and job situation look like down the road? How much money will logging make for government? What are the problems for the forest industry now and in the future? What is an appropriate annual cut so all the community values can be accommodated? All of this has a large impact on the final outcome. What type of real-estate development do we want and what do we want the landscape to look like when it happens. Granted, the real-estate development will occur on private land and a better land use plan should be set up by the regional district. So many private Island Timberlands Limited Partnership (ITLP) parcels are surrounded by crown land and need to be part of the planning process. All of this will affect the forest and if we do not think about this somebody else will. Once these specific issues are looked at and dealt with then one can move up the ladder and talk about a higher level zoning land use plan.
Modified LRMP criteria.
This includes both a higher level plan giving guidance to lower level plans that will be implemented on the ground. A higher level plan might be a zoning plan with boundaries drawn on a map. The Stillwater Pilot Plan is a good example. Another example of a higher level plan would be a descriptive set of circumstances which would raise a red flag. For example, any time logging was proposed within 200 to 300 meters of a hiking trail, a red flag would pop up. That would activate lower level logging and recreation and tourism plan would kick in.
All plans should have these characteristics:
1. Easy to read and understand.
2. Flexibility built in.
3. Easy to implement.
4. Make plan as simple as possible.
5. Focus on results on the ground, what should the end result be or look like.
6. Transparency.
7. Results should be descriptive enough to prevent different interpretations.
8. Continually try to improve communication between the public and the forest company.
9. Make sure that all community groups have equal access when it comes to communicating with the forest company. All community groups should have easy access to information from the logging companies.
10. Set up a resolution dispute structure that can mediate a resolution among all parties.
11. Every three years the large logging companies on the Sunshine Coast should be required to produce a satellite map of the Sunshine Coast forest district. They can all share in the expense of this. This will give the public an oversight view of what kind of logging has taken place in the backcountry and it will show how Greenup is coming along. This is needed for proper and easy oversight by the public.
Other things that should be part of the plan:
First we need to examine the Stillwater Pilot Project plus all the other landscape level plans that exist in the Sunshine Forest District thoroughly so we do not have to re-invent the wheel.
1. Long term plan. Because the government is permitting 40 to 50 year rotation forests, we need at least a 160 year plan and 200 years is better. A report on how fast the planted trees are growing every ten years would indicate how good the soil condition is.
2. The Alder tree is a nitrogen fixer, meaning it puts nitrogen back into the soil unlike most plants. Small bumps, called nodules on the roots house an organism that converts the nitrogen in the soil into a form plants can absorb. The dead leaves also produce nitrogen indirectly. Clumps of alder should be left in logged areas to regenerate the soil. Is this happening?
3. Should 80 and 120 year plantations be considered since we do not know what the demand for trees will be in the future.
4. No more logging of old growth on the Sunshine Coast until a modified LRMP is in place. We, have very little old growth left, so until we can sort things out we do not want to eliminate our options.
5. Any old growth trees at lower elevations that are single should have 30 to 40 meters of second growth buffer left around them for their survival. A wild life tree patch would work. If there are few more giants close together a small grove should be created with a buffer around them.
6. Sustainable second growth logging plan.
7. Keep the Old Growth forest of hemlocks on Mount Troubridge intact.
8. Black bear and Grizzly habitat at the estuary of a river must be protected, so the spawning salmon can thrive and the bears can drag the fish up the banks to eat and be protected by the big trees. No logging should take place in the spawning season around these areas so the fish, bears, eagles, and other birds and animals are not disturbed at that crucial time.
9. Buffers of second growth should be kept around lakes and inlets. These should be large enough to protect against erosion and runoff. In the interface areas these buffers are a visual feature for recreation and should be more extensive.
10. Wildlife tree patches must be representative of the cut block not just stick poles or scrub brush.
11. Cut blocks can be larger in size if they have large inclusions of second growth. This inclusion into the cut block must be large enough to be able to withstand blow-downs around the edges. Any variable retention island must be large enough to withstand blow downs around the edges. The idea is to create the illusion of smaller clear cuts from different view points.
12. Start using selective logging close to trails and lake shores.
13. Smaller cut blocks close to hiking trails.
14. Water in rivers must not be restricted as that impairs salmon from swimming up the river and spawning. In salmon streams and rivers a continuous flow of water must be maintained all year around. Establish strict water flow tables. Question: is the Plutonic Run of the river projects letting enough water run down the river at all times?
15. Take second look at existing OGMAS to be sure they consist of the best old growth trees and make revisions to accomplish this. Some OGMAS have no old growth in them at all. Lower elevation old growth trees should have their own small OGMAS.
16. Plant native berry bushes along logging roads for bears and other wildlife after logging is complete. No blackberries. Give a little back.
17. Create an integrated logging and recreation, tourism lower level plan that accommodates both logging and hiking trails and recreational inventory.
Lars
Sunday, November 25, 2007
Sunshine Coast forest plan drops community values
Subject : Sunshine Coast forest plan drops community values
Forest Practices Board
See below for the news release and link to the full report: Full Report (381 KB) http://www.fpb.gov.bc.ca/complaints/010304/129/IRC129/IRC129ml.pdf
For Immediate Release
November 22, 2007
Sunshine Coast forest plan drops community values
VICTORIA - A new forest stewardship plan in the Stillwater lands on the Sunshine Coast no longer addresses the full range of values that were determined through public input and involvement, according to a newly released Forest Practices Board report.
"Given the effort that members of the public put into the Stillwater Pilot Project, they reasonably expected that government would ensure that commitments made under the pilot planning agreement would be effectively and faithfully transferred and officially sanctioned under B.C.'s new forestry legislation," said board chair Bruce Fraser.
The investigation resulted from public complaints about the new plan, prepared under the Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA). The earlier plan was produced under the Forest Practices Code as part of a pilot project government set up to test a results-based approach to forest regulation.
Since the original Stillwater plan was approved by government, the forest licence has changed hands twice and the legislation governing forest practices changed from prescriptive to results-based. The complaints that prompted the board investigation were about the difficult format of the new forest stewardship plan, changes made to the membership of the local community advisory group, and the loss of objectives that were in the pilot plan.
While the board noted that both the licensee and the forest district had made efforts to make the new plan more accessible, it also found that the planning requirements have changed under FRPA from providing clear, detailed information about proposed forest practices and community values to providing broad and more general objectives. This made it difficult for the public to interpret and provide meaningful comment on> the forest stewardship plan or to track existing commitments.
The plan also covered all of the licensee's coastal operations including Vancouver Island, the Queen Charlotte Islands and the mainland, which> added to the difficulty.
The result is a plan that obscures at least some of the values identified by the community with its pilot plan, putting at risk public confidence in forest management for the area.
"As we continue to develop and implement FRPA-based forest stewardship plans and to rely on voluntary advisory processes as the primary vehicle for more detailed public involvement, we need to ensure that we maintain the public trust," said Fraser.
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;
* audits appropriateness of government enforcement;
* investigates public complaints;
* undertakes special investigations of current forestry issues;
* participates in administrative appeals; and
* makes recommendations for improvement to practices and legislation.
-30-
This news release and more information about the board are available on the Forest Practices Board website at http://www.fpb.gov.bc.ca/, http://www.fpb.gov.bc.ca/ or by contacting:
Helen Davies
Communications
Forest Practices Board
Phone: 250 356-1586 / 1 800 994-5899
Forest Practices Board
See below for the news release and link to the full report: Full Report (381 KB) http://www.fpb.gov.bc.ca/complaints/010304/129/IRC129/IRC129ml.pdf
For Immediate Release
November 22, 2007
Sunshine Coast forest plan drops community values
VICTORIA - A new forest stewardship plan in the Stillwater lands on the Sunshine Coast no longer addresses the full range of values that were determined through public input and involvement, according to a newly released Forest Practices Board report.
"Given the effort that members of the public put into the Stillwater Pilot Project, they reasonably expected that government would ensure that commitments made under the pilot planning agreement would be effectively and faithfully transferred and officially sanctioned under B.C.'s new forestry legislation," said board chair Bruce Fraser.
The investigation resulted from public complaints about the new plan, prepared under the Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA). The earlier plan was produced under the Forest Practices Code as part of a pilot project government set up to test a results-based approach to forest regulation.
Since the original Stillwater plan was approved by government, the forest licence has changed hands twice and the legislation governing forest practices changed from prescriptive to results-based. The complaints that prompted the board investigation were about the difficult format of the new forest stewardship plan, changes made to the membership of the local community advisory group, and the loss of objectives that were in the pilot plan.
While the board noted that both the licensee and the forest district had made efforts to make the new plan more accessible, it also found that the planning requirements have changed under FRPA from providing clear, detailed information about proposed forest practices and community values to providing broad and more general objectives. This made it difficult for the public to interpret and provide meaningful comment on> the forest stewardship plan or to track existing commitments.
The plan also covered all of the licensee's coastal operations including Vancouver Island, the Queen Charlotte Islands and the mainland, which> added to the difficulty.
The result is a plan that obscures at least some of the values identified by the community with its pilot plan, putting at risk public confidence in forest management for the area.
"As we continue to develop and implement FRPA-based forest stewardship plans and to rely on voluntary advisory processes as the primary vehicle for more detailed public involvement, we need to ensure that we maintain the public trust," said Fraser.
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;
* audits appropriateness of government enforcement;
* investigates public complaints;
* undertakes special investigations of current forestry issues;
* participates in administrative appeals; and
* makes recommendations for improvement to practices and legislation.
-30-
This news release and more information about the board are available on the Forest Practices Board website at http://www.fpb.gov.bc.ca/, http://www.fpb.gov.bc.ca/ or by contacting:
Helen Davies
Communications
Forest Practices Board
Phone: 250 356-1586 / 1 800 994-5899
"Public trust in forestry could be threatened"
"Public trust in forestry could be threatened"
The above is a headline in Friday's Vancouver Sun, in the Business section.
The article talks about Powell River's loss of Community Values that had been enshrined in provincial law in the Stillwater Pilot until last summer. The legal protections on the Sunshine Coast Trail, on the Canoe Route, on Old Growth, Habitat and Recreation/Tourism zones are gone in the new Western forest stewardship plan, and we are now beginning to see the unwanted results of that.
The article is a result of Thursday's release of a report by the Forest Practices Board, which we have also posted. 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.
http://www.fpb.gov.bc.ca/complaints/010304/129/IRC129/IRC129ml.pdf
Please read the full Forest Practices Board Report to get a complete appreciation of all the details.
Our position of promoting and defending community values has been vindicated.
Cheers,
Eagle
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=1e190060-df04-41e5-991c-2692f612de5d&k=1576
Forest plans could damage public trust: report
Forest management regime faulted for failing to protect public values
Gordon Hamilton, Vancouver Sun
Published: Friday, November 23, 2007
An investigation into a Sunshine Coast logging plan has found that the public trust in what's going on in the woods could be compromised by planning requirements introduced by Victoria three years ago.
In a report released Thursday on the plan -- called the Stillwater forest stewardship plan -- the Forest Practices Board found that public values included in an earlier plan have been dropped and replaced with goals that appear to be obscure and are difficult to translate into on-the-ground activities.
Forest stewardship plans are a relatively recent requirement that are focused on enforcement rather than detailing on-the-ground situations. Also, licensees tend to use legalistic language to meet legislated requirements.
Forest Minister Rich Coleman said he is concerned about the board's findings.
"We have to address it," he said, but added that addressing the use of legal language could be a challenge. "We are learning as we go on some of these. I am going to sit down with my senior staff next week with the report and say, 'How are we going to improve this?'
"If there is a concern that some of the information that was put in by the parties wasn't taken into consideration, I want to know why not, I want to know how we address that in the future."
The board report sheds light on what NDP forests critic Bob Simpson said is the failure of the government's results-based forest management regime to protect public values.
He called for a review of all forest stewardship plans to find out if the issues on the Sunshine Coast are being repeated elsewhere. He said if the plans are too obscure for people to know what they mean, then it is likely to show up as well in what takes place on the ground.
"The board isn't looking at the land-based implications of this. They are just looking at the paper. But ultimately the paper is what will be used to enforce compliance. So if the paper is nebulous or misses values, then you have lost control over what happens on the land base."
The board launched an investigation in the Stillwater plan after receiving three complaints from citizens and organizations in the region.
"The public went from having a plan with clear objectives, legally endorsed by means of government regulation, to a plan with broad general objectives that did not address all of the original Stillwater objectives," the report states.
Under the Forest and Range Practices Act, implemented in 2004, companies are required to develop forest stewardship plans. The plans are results-based, replacing a regulatory regime that forest companies argued was costly to adhere to. The public is to have input through voluntary advisory committees.
Forest Practices Board chair Bruce Fraser said the earlier plan, under previous legislation was easy to read but the forest stewardship plan was obscure. Further, he said, agreements on land-use zones, protection of trails and protection of old-growth that local residents thought were in place had been dropped.
"People had every right to expect that the deal they had negotiated under the pilot would be faithfully rendered under the new product and that wasn't entirely the case. That's where a lot of the angst and confusion occurred," Fraser said.
The licensee, Western Forest Products, explained to investigators that it followed regulations but the Forest and Range Practices Act focuses less on planning objectives and more on enforcement. As a result the licensee needs to use legal language. Further, the licensee explained that public objectives that were not in the plan were included elsewhere, such as the company's forest certification program.
mhtml:%7BFCA52C8E-C4CD-4556-A089-C3FFA23670A7%7Dmid://00000010/!x-usc:mailto:ghamilton@png.canwest.com
© The Vancouver Sun 2007
The above is a headline in Friday's Vancouver Sun, in the Business section.
The article talks about Powell River's loss of Community Values that had been enshrined in provincial law in the Stillwater Pilot until last summer. The legal protections on the Sunshine Coast Trail, on the Canoe Route, on Old Growth, Habitat and Recreation/Tourism zones are gone in the new Western forest stewardship plan, and we are now beginning to see the unwanted results of that.
The article is a result of Thursday's release of a report by the Forest Practices Board, which we have also posted. 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.
http://www.fpb.gov.bc.ca/complaints/010304/129/IRC129/IRC129ml.pdf
Please read the full Forest Practices Board Report to get a complete appreciation of all the details.
Our position of promoting and defending community values has been vindicated.
Cheers,
Eagle
^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^
http://www.canada.com/vancouversun/news/business/story.html?id=1e190060-df04-41e5-991c-2692f612de5d&k=1576
Forest plans could damage public trust: report
Forest management regime faulted for failing to protect public values
Gordon Hamilton, Vancouver Sun
Published: Friday, November 23, 2007
An investigation into a Sunshine Coast logging plan has found that the public trust in what's going on in the woods could be compromised by planning requirements introduced by Victoria three years ago.
In a report released Thursday on the plan -- called the Stillwater forest stewardship plan -- the Forest Practices Board found that public values included in an earlier plan have been dropped and replaced with goals that appear to be obscure and are difficult to translate into on-the-ground activities.
Forest stewardship plans are a relatively recent requirement that are focused on enforcement rather than detailing on-the-ground situations. Also, licensees tend to use legalistic language to meet legislated requirements.
Forest Minister Rich Coleman said he is concerned about the board's findings.
"We have to address it," he said, but added that addressing the use of legal language could be a challenge. "We are learning as we go on some of these. I am going to sit down with my senior staff next week with the report and say, 'How are we going to improve this?'
"If there is a concern that some of the information that was put in by the parties wasn't taken into consideration, I want to know why not, I want to know how we address that in the future."
The board report sheds light on what NDP forests critic Bob Simpson said is the failure of the government's results-based forest management regime to protect public values.
He called for a review of all forest stewardship plans to find out if the issues on the Sunshine Coast are being repeated elsewhere. He said if the plans are too obscure for people to know what they mean, then it is likely to show up as well in what takes place on the ground.
"The board isn't looking at the land-based implications of this. They are just looking at the paper. But ultimately the paper is what will be used to enforce compliance. So if the paper is nebulous or misses values, then you have lost control over what happens on the land base."
The board launched an investigation in the Stillwater plan after receiving three complaints from citizens and organizations in the region.
"The public went from having a plan with clear objectives, legally endorsed by means of government regulation, to a plan with broad general objectives that did not address all of the original Stillwater objectives," the report states.
Under the Forest and Range Practices Act, implemented in 2004, companies are required to develop forest stewardship plans. The plans are results-based, replacing a regulatory regime that forest companies argued was costly to adhere to. The public is to have input through voluntary advisory committees.
Forest Practices Board chair Bruce Fraser said the earlier plan, under previous legislation was easy to read but the forest stewardship plan was obscure. Further, he said, agreements on land-use zones, protection of trails and protection of old-growth that local residents thought were in place had been dropped.
"People had every right to expect that the deal they had negotiated under the pilot would be faithfully rendered under the new product and that wasn't entirely the case. That's where a lot of the angst and confusion occurred," Fraser said.
The licensee, Western Forest Products, explained to investigators that it followed regulations but the Forest and Range Practices Act focuses less on planning objectives and more on enforcement. As a result the licensee needs to use legal language. Further, the licensee explained that public objectives that were not in the plan were included elsewhere, such as the company's forest certification program.
mhtml:%7BFCA52C8E-C4CD-4556-A089-C3FFA23670A7%7Dmid://00000010/!x-usc:mailto:ghamilton@png.canwest.com
© The Vancouver Sun 2007
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