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New articles and comments
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7BC'S current logging industry should be allowed to fail
Hi Margaret, Thank you for your well considered comment. In response to the selected quotation from your comment, I remind readers that every clearcut is approved by a government forester, who has sworn an oath of allegiance to the Crown, the trustee of public forests on behalf of the public. Further, that same forester is a member of Forest Professionals BC (new name, previously called the Association of BC Forest Professionals) to which all practising foresters belong. The Professional Governance Act, which replaced the Foresters Act, requires Forest Professionals BC to serve and protect the public interest with respect to the conduct of registered professionals. Furthermore, Forest Professionals BC has a Code of Ethical and Professional Conduct embodied within bylaw 9. Within this code of ethics, under a section titled "Standard 2 - Independence", a practising forester is required to exhibit objectivity and independence in fact and appearance by, among other requirements, upholding the public interest and professional principles above the demands of employment or personal gain. So contrary to your assertion, I find it entirely reasonable to expect practising foresters to obey provincial laws and regulations and to abide by the bylaws of their governing body by giving priority to the public interest over the private interest of employers. Most would agree that destruction of public forests (biodiversity, soil, water, carbon and air) is not in the public interest. What has happened by way of destruction to the forests of the province under the mismanagement of professional foresters over the past 50 years shows me that collectively they are a failed profession. As to the future, I will say that Professor John Innes, the former dean of forestry at UBC, did much to improve the education of forestry students. My hope is that a new generation of foresters will have a good basic grounding in conservation biology, in hydrology and in forest ecology that will enable them to abhor the extensive destruction of our forests (biodiversity, soil, water, carbon and air) perpetrated by their predecessors through excessive clearcutting and will motivate them to work towards repairing the damage. Finally, I need to acknowledge my part in the collective failure of the profession. I was a registered professional forester in B.C. for almost four decades. I resigned my membership on January 7, 2022. I resigned because, in good conscience, I could no longer belong to Forest Professionals BC when I consider that the harm done by its members to biodiversity, soil, water, carbon and air far out-weighed the good done by some members. Forest Professionals BC and some of its members had become for me agents of ecocide. -
7BC'S current logging industry should be allowed to fail
Great article, Anthony. Thanks for your commitment to increasing public awareness. The one comment I would make is that I don’t agree forestry is a failed profession. Professional reliance has failed, I think most would agree. But wasn’t it doomed to fail? It is unreasonable to expect an individual professional forester working for a corporation to serve both private and public interests in an economic/political/legislative environment where corporate directors have a fiduciary responsibility to maximize short-run ROI for their shareholders. That is prima facie in conflict with the public interest to safeguard the long-run sustainability of a healthy natural world for current and future generations of humans and all life. On top of that, we have perverse social media algorithms that do nothing to increase collective intelligence but in fact serve only to hijack our emotions and deepen polarization of the citizenry. I have watched with dismay as posts on Facebook attempting to inform people about forest practices have erupted into ad hominen attacks and created division, mistrust and deepened animosity. In the end, we have a poorly informed, rivalrous citizenry on top of the perverse market incentives with a pricing system that does not include externalities such as the impact of forest practices on water, biodiversity, etc. The failures are deep and many and professional foresters are caught in this trap, as are the rest of us. The best we can do is expose the challenges and try to make sense of why we are stuck in this dilemma, as you have done in your article. -
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7BC'S current logging industry should be allowed to fail
No question, our provincial government is insane! The people have made it clear that they are opposed to the current methods of forestry. Yet the NDP continues to blindly support the forest industry, who are intent in wrecking the forest ecosystem, and the economy with it. -
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BC'S current logging industry should be allowed to fail
The over-riding process that determines and supports the level of forest harvesting in BC is the TSR AAC Determination process. Currently and inherently, this process is designed and manipulated to keep BC's AAC as high as possible for as long as possible---and it has been and continues to be very successful in achieving these two goals. Until this process and it's associated methodology are changed, BC's forests will continue to be harvested at the rate they always have been. Far to high. To facilitate this change, a panel of three people (similar to the old Growth review panel) should be appointed and given the task of formally reviewing it. A part of this work their report should include recommendations for change. The government should then ask for public comments on it and then implement the relevant and appropriate recommendations emanating from these two processes. Doing so is, without question, in the best interests of the people of BC. Failing to do so is only in the interests of the forest licensees. I urge everyone to lobby for such a review. Fred Marshall -
7BC'S current logging industry should be allowed to fail
Well said, Anthony. Does anyone know of any other industry in BC that would so readily receive multi-million dollar subsidies from government when economic conditions go south? I don't. The construction industry, which is much larger than the logging-milling industry, is expected to downsize itself during unfavourable market conditions in BC. Construction workers migrate to other locations when the real estate market in BC slumps. The same expectation applies to all other forms of labour in BC. But for the logging industry, corporate welfare always kicks in, and quickly. This has the long-term result of exhausted forests and workers that end up believing— wrongly—that they must be foundational to the province's economic well being. Only 10 to 20 percent of what's logged in BC ends up being used in BC. This history of unrealistic and unwarranted support for the logging-for-export industry by government seems to make those working in the industry super aggressive about their right to access "fibre", and we now know they will push this sense of entitlement right to the last commercially attractive tree. I have summarized the less obvious subsidies government provides this failing industry here. Without these subsidies, which no other industry in BC could ever expect to receive, we would have a logging industry just large enough to meet the actual need for forest products in BC. -
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BC'S current logging industry should be allowed to fail
I have little sympathy left for the BC forest industry. Even forest industry union workers are engaged in a race to the bottom--membership plummeting, protecting an ever diminishing work force instead of protecting the resource itself. The NDP and Liberal governments are still living in the past, supporting an increasingly economically irrelevant industry--by default--because they always have. While the government appears blind, BC citizens are seeing that the emperor has no clothes. -
7BC'S current logging industry should be allowed to fail
Perfect Anthony. Thank you. Clearcutting has reduced our net total provincial biomass by 5-20 billion tonnes, on the order of 70% of biomass per hectare degraded. It didn't "grow back" after all. We've degraded 25 million hectares at least, almost the entire available forestry base, through clearcutting. Our goal, as you say, needs to be healing our forests back to mature stands that approach pre-contact levels of economic value and provision of ecosystem services. My shopping list for how to get our 70% of biomass back: Re-start the Forest Service under the Environment Ministry. Rescind the Tenure/Tree Farm Licence legislation, sign no new deals, let all current deals run down. (Tenure does not conform to DRIPA). Ban clearcutting, under the criminal code, citing irreparable harm to the economy, biodiversity and climate change, specifically jobs, floods and fires. Mandate Net Zero Forestry, where zero net biomass is lost in watersheds measured annually. Pass a specific law under DRIPA that First Nations must be signatories to any agreement authorising any resource extraction on their territory, with VETO power. Ban off-shore log sales. Ban exporting industrial pellets. Make Woodland Mountain Caribou protected as the provincial animal! Great minds think alike. Are any politicians ready to go down in history as visionaries who would dare save us from societal collapse due to corporate greed? -
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Secrecy and lack of oversight mark BC government’s wolf killing program
Caribou management in BC has been cloak-and-dagger for decades, so the current secrecy around the BC government's wolf kill programme should come as no surprise. Yet secrecy or no secrecy, few can fail to notice that the impetus behind the wolf kill has less to do with caribou than with the investment portfolios of a small number of corporate shareholders—people who benefit mightily from the destruction of caribou habitat and will stop at nothing to keep the cut going as long as humanly—and now inhumanely—possible. Viewed in the longer term, this is designer extinction in action.- Guest commented on Judith Lavoie's record in Journalism: Destruction of wildlife habitat and loss of biodiversity -
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The billion dollar scam
What a sordid tale. The recent Incomappleux Valley conservation announcement is a stunning example of this. We (the public) paid a private company (Interfor) millions of dollars for a national treasure/public assett which we ALREADY OWN. Unbelievable. -
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The billion dollar scam
Great explanation about how these agreements continue to line the pockets of the clear cutters. I agree that clear cutters do not have the right to sell public land and the trees. Nor should the trees be linked to jobs, as the environment will continue to pay the price for human greed. Humans need to develop the mindset that humans are part of nature and therefore need to care for it for at least seven generations, as many First Nations did before colonization. As Herb says, the clear cutters should pay for compensations for damage to the forest, rivers and wildlife. They also need be de-commission all the roads. -
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British Columbia’s Big Lie
Shocking pictures of clear-cut forestry run amok,sadly repeated all over heavily logged BC. Just because the RPFs weren't taught high-school biology should not shield them en mass from universal scorn for the results of results-based forestry nor should professional reliance shield the forest barons from paying restitution. Look at the endless rivers of taxpayers money these global pirates get especially lately after epochal profits during 2020 and 2021. What a heartless pack of whining billionaires. Now it is ok to have forest company managers run community forests too, be the mayor and hire your boss from work, hey anything goes in the Regional District of Central Interfor, sorry, the Village of Interfor, sorry the Community Forest of Interfor. What man of science would not gag on this lie? Oh by the way a better carbon sequestration plan is to stop cutting all the trees down, using all that fuel is not carbon neutral, switch to an annual Fibre source for building. Yes and one more thing, fight this stakeholder capitalism and landscape level experiment fiasco in the Kootenays and beyond in wider BC. -
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Departing BC Chief Forester Diane Nicholls allowed logging companies to profit at the expense of the public interest
This is why the human race will ultimately fail: male or female, white or black, there will always be people like Diane Nicholls who are self-serving, corrupt and rotten to the core. And as it is far easier to destroy than preserve, the destroyers have the advantage. -
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Canfor: Stop the wailing. Government: No more bailouts.
They weren't listening Fred. A government press release today announced $90 million over three years in new subsidies for the industry. The government is calling this one the "BC Manufacturing Jobs Fund". The fund "will support high-value industrial and manufacturing projects to drive clean and inclusive growth in rural, remote and Indigenous communities." But only for the logging and wood products milling industries. The kinds of hypothetical manufacturing jobs being subsidized are described in a paragraph: "For example, the BC Manufacturing Jobs Fund may provide funding to a forestry company that needs to buy new equipment to support new product lines, such as mass timber production or paper packaging, or smaller-diameter tree processing and manufacturing, or a company that wants to build or expand a plastics-alternative manufacturing facility in a rural community." The release noted that "The fund is in addition to the $185-million support package announced in Budget 2022 to ensure that co-ordinated and comprehensive supports are in place to offset any economic impacts from a changing forestry industry." That's another $275 million in public money to enrich the shareholders of logging companies just because the market value of wood products went back to normal. -
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Departing BC Chief Forester Diane Nicholls allowed logging companies to profit at the expense of the public interest (Part 2)
It's painful to see trainloads of pellets leaving Smithers to go via CN to Prince Rupert and then to by ship to through the Panama Canal to England to burn in a former coal plant and provide 25% of the UK's electricity. Financed by a greenwashing UK subsidy and enabled by BC policy captured by the forestry industry. Equally painful is to see trucks with whole logs coming into Pinnacle Pellet (now Drax's) pellet plant here in Smithers. And then heartbreaking to see the vast areas clear cut north of here to feed this greed machine. -
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United for Old Growth: 160+ organizations call on BC to follow through on old-growth commitments
untilGroups announce February 25 rally at Provincial Legislature, issue declaration calling on the Province to accelerate action for threatened forests. UNCEDED LEKWUNGEN TERRITORIES/VICTORIA—168 organizations across British Columbia have issued a declaration called United We Stand for Old-Growth Forests, calling on Premier David Eby and his government to fulfill their commitments on old-growth. Signatories of the declaration, including the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs, the Climate Caucus network of municipal elected leaders, and B.C. General Employees Union (BCGEU), are urging Eby to follow through on his October 2022 promise to “accelerate” action to protect old-growth forests within 100 days, and implement a paradigm shift in forest stewardship to safeguard biodiversity. The organizers announced plans for a mass mobilization to hold the province accountable, with a march and rally scheduled for February 25, Eby’s 100th day. “The government’s continued negligence and stonewalling on truly protecting old-growth and elder trees is endemic in its approach to climate change and the stewardship of our environment,” said Grand Chief Stewart Phillip, President of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs. “This feigned ignorance of what is happening to our forests by government and industry will be our downfall, and the impacts of this inaction will prevent us from leaving our future generations with a rich legacy of vibrant, healthy and productive forest lands.” Phillip added. “We must do everything in our power to protect these ancient giants and we cannot stop putting pressure on our governments to do their jobs: to protect us and the environment, not act as timber barons whose only concern is this year’s financial statements.” Despite promising to implement all 14 recommendations from the Old Growth Strategic Review (OGSR) in 2020, the B.C. government has permitted the destruction of thousands of hectares of the most at-risk old-growth stands in the province. The 2020 recommendations were tied to a three-year framework with the goal to have all implemented in 2023 — to date, not a single recommendation has been fulfilled. Premier Eby pledged to accelerate action upon becoming leader of the B.C. NDP, and called on Water, Land and Resource Stewardship Minister Nathan Cullen to “begin implementation of recommendations of the Old Growth Strategic Review” in his mandate letter. However, the most at-risk old-growth forests are still being clearcut while B.C. stalls on enforcing logging deferrals. The deferrals are the bare minimum and most urgent recommendation of the 2020 OGSR. “We must continue to hold our governments accountable for their contributions to the climate crisis that we are suffering through, and this environmental negligence and corporate greed must be stopped,” said Kukpi7 Judy Wilson, Secretary-Treasurer of the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs. “Our future generations are dependent on the actions we take today, and we are at a critical point in time for direct action to protect forest ecosystems. For too long we have allowed governments to tear down our ancient elders, who are our relatives, but no more. We are standing up to protect them.” Protecting the last stands of old-growth is as much an issue for human rights, labour, education, and healthcare as it is for environmental groups. Organizers say this is a movement for all people, which is reflected in the list of declaration signatories, and are inviting all individuals and groups to participate in the United for Old-Growth march and rally at the B.C. Legislature on February 25. The signatories are calling on the province to align all forest management with the principles of free, prior and informed consent for First Nations. The declaration draws on the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs Resolution 2022-32, affirmed by Chiefs in June 2022, and calls for full financial support to enable logging deferrals, and fulsome funding for First Nations-led conservation initiatives. Organizers say the declaration is open to additional signatories and invite new groups to join and demonstrate the broad support for old-growth protection in the lead-up to February’s mass mobilization. “Whether it’s youth yearning for a liveable climate, working families seeking sustainable jobs in their communities, doctors and nurses speaking up for a healthy planet, Indigenous people defending what’s theirs, or faith, environmental and community groups standing up for irreplaceable ecosystems, protecting old-growth is a movement for everyone,” said Jackie Larkin, organizer with Elders for Ancient Trees, a founding signatory on the United We Stand declaration. “From elders to the youngest children, everyone belongs and all are welcome—we invite all organizations to join this declaration, and everyone who’s able to unite with us to make February 25th a day to remember.”
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