BC’s Forestry Practices Board (FPB) has concluded an investigation into Quadra Island’s old-growth forest management after receiving a complaint.
The FPB is an independent watchdog for sound forest and range practices who report their findings and recommendations to the public and government.
In the matter of Quadra Island’s old-growth preservation, they found that the practices to ensure there are enough old-growth groves “needs to be improved”.
Specifically, the complaint came from a representative of the Discovery Islands Forest Conservation Project who said the remnants of old forest on Quadra Island are at risk of being harvested by logging companies.
As part of the investigation, the FPB looked into the practices of timber harvesting companies TimberWest Forest Corp., Okisollo Resources Ltd. and Younger Brothers Holdings.
“While we found that each of the licensees did not comply with some aspect of forestry legislation, the bigger issue is that no one is responsible for monitoring or ensuring that Quadra Island’s old forests are conserved, or that enough mature forests are protected from logging so they can develop into old forest in the future,” said Keith Atkinson, chair, Forest Practices Board.
The FPB says that Quadra Island has a long history of harvesting and natural disturbance, such as wildfires that burned much of the island in the mid-1920s.
Because of these factors, there is very little forest older than 250 years. However, there is an abundance of mature forest, being 80 to 120-years-old.
In order for the Province to meet their goals of biodiversity and protected old-growth, much of this mature growth will have to be protected from harvesting companies.
According to the FPB, the investigation found that TimberWest does not have an effective strategy to ensure that adequate amounts of mature forest will be conserved within the area granted to them by their harvesting license.
They added that the two other licensees hold lots that the provincial requirements do not apply to.
Despite this, the investigation found that both Okisollo and Younger Brothers have committed to not harvesting old forests.
“The report includes a recommendation that TimberWest amend its forest stewardship plan to include a strategy for the recruitment of old forest that describes how it will ensure the full target amount of old forest is achieved in the Quadra landscape unit,” Atkinson said.
“In the board’s view, the solution for Quadra Island is a planning process to identify and conserve old forests and priority recruitment areas.”
They added that the onus is on the Province to ensure that forest licensees’ plans include measurable or verifiable commitments to manage old-growth expectations.”
The FPB did not include in their report whether these three companies would face any ramifications for their lack of planning and preservation.
