Area-Based Audit of Forest Planning and Practices, and Enforcement of the Forest Practices Code in a Portion of the Kispiox Forest District
This is the Board’s report on the area-based audit of licensees’ compliance with, and government’s enforcement of, the Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act and related regulations, in the western portion of the Kispiox Forest District. As of April 1, 2003, the Kispiox Forest District was incorporated into the new Skeena Stikine Forest District.
The audit examined field activities and obligations of the following parties for the period of July 1, 2001, to July 25, 2002, to determine compliance with Code requirements:
- Kispiox Forest District, including responsibilities of both the Small Business Forest Enterprise Program (SBFEP, now the BC Timber Sales Program) and the district manager
- Bell Pole Company
- C GED Forest Products Ltd.
- Canema Timber Ltd.
- Kipiox Forest Products Ltd.
- Kitwanga Lumber Co. Ltd.
- Skeena Cellulose Inc. (now New Skeena Forest Products Inc.)
- Five woodlot tenure operators
The audit also examined the appropriateness of government’s enforcement of the Code, including planning, management direction and operational activities related to enforcement, for the period July 1, 2001, to July 25, 2002. The activities of two Code enforcement agencies, the Ministry of Forests and the Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection were examined. There were no activities within the audit area for which the Ministry of Energy and Mines had enforcement responsibilities.
Area-Based Audit of Forest Planning and Practices, and Enforcement of the Forest Practices Code in a Portion of the Kispiox Forest District
Audit of Timber Harvesting and Road Construction, Maintenance and Deactivation: Skeena Cellulose Inc. – FL A16829
This is the Board’s report on a compliance audit of Forest Licence A16829, held by Skeena Cellulose Inc. (Skeena). The operating area for this licence is located in the Bulkley Forest District, primarily northwest of the town of Smithers.
Skeena Cellulose Inc. – FL A16829
Forest Practices and Planning in the Sustut Valley North of Smithers, BC
This special investigation examines a series of complaints made by the An Dsap Wilp Society (the society), a group of First Nations people who use forest land 200 kilometres north of Smithers, in north-central BC. Society members live near Bear Lake at various seasons of the year. They claim traditional territories in the Sustut, Minaret, Bird Flat and Bear Lake areas where they currently hunt, fish and trap.
Two licensees, Takla Track and Timber Ltd. and Rustad Bros. & Co. Ltd. (the licensees), began timber harvesting in 1995 in the Bear Lake/Sustut area. In 1993 and 1994 they constructed local roads and an airstrip, using a BC Railway line for access to the operating area. Society members believed that their interests were adversely affected by the licensees’ forest practices. They remain concerned about the impacts of timber harvesting and road construction on forest resources in the area.
Forest Practices and Planning in the Sustut Valley
Audit of Forest Planning and Practices: Pacific Inland Resources – FL A16830
This is a report on a compliance audit of Forest Licence A16830 held by Pacific Inland Resources, a division of West Fraser Mills Ltd. The audit examined operational planning, timber harvesting, silviculture, fire protection, and road construction, maintenance and deactivation for the period July 1, 1998, to July 1, 1999, to assess compliance with the Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act and related regulations (the Code).
Pacific Inland Resources – FL A16830
Approval of a Bridge Across the Babine River, near New Hazelton, BC in the Kispiox Forest District
In August 1996, the Forest Practices Board (the Board) received a complaint about the construction of a bridge across the lower Babine River near its confluence with the Skeena River. Several potential locations for the bridge had been the subject of discussion and public planning meetings between government agencies, First Nations, and a number of public organizations for many years. A final location for the bridge was approved in March 1996 and construction began in August 1996. The approved location for the bridge was different from the location identified previously in public planning reports released in 1992 and 1994.
The complainant asked the Board: “…to investigate and determine why the bridge crossing was approved without undergoing the proper public review process, and to take appropriate action so that it does not occur again.”
