In September 2014, the Forest Practices Board audited range planning and practices on three licences for grazing and one for hay cutting, all located about 20 kilometers northeast of 100 Mile House, south of Canim Lake. The audit involved assessing compliance with the Forest and Range Practices Act including the required content of range use plans and whether license holders met practice requirements such as protection of drinking water quality, riparian areas, fish habitat and upland areas.
The audit found that all four licensees had plans that met the required content. Grazing licensees ensured that minimum stubble heights and maximum browse utilization in its plans were not exceeded. Range practices provided for the protection of water quality, licensed waterworks, riparian areas, fish habitat and upland areas. Also, range developments were functional and maintained. The hay cutting licensee had not cut hay for the past several years and no issues were identified.
In October 2014, the Forest Practices Board (Board) conducted a full scope audit of forest planning and practices on Kenkeknem Forest Tenure Ltd. (Kenkeknem) in the 100 Mile District. Kenkeknem’s activities were located in the Drewry Lake and Canim Lake areas. This was a full scope compliance audit with a two-year timeframe. All harvesting, road, silviculture, and protection activities carried out between January 1, 2013, and October 7, 2014, were included in the audit.
In January 2013, the Tsq’escenemc people of the Canim Lake Band were issued a First Nations woodland licence (FNWL) N1I covering 21 400 hectares of land within their traditional territory. The allowable annual cut for this licence is approximately 20 000 cubic metres. The tenure is managed by Kenkeknem Forest Tenures Ltd. and is a Band-owned company established to house and manage all forest tenures and forestry obligations. Kenkeknem manages approximately 24 000 cubic metres of allowable annual cut, of which the majority is within the woodland licence.
The audit found that the planning and field activities undertaken by Kenkeknem Forest Tenure Ltd. complied in all significant respects with the requirements of the Forest and Range Practices Act, the Wildfire Act and related regulations, as of October 2014.
As part of the Forest Practices Board's 2013 compliance audit program, the Board randomly selected the Quesnel District as the location for a full scope compliance audit. Within the district, the Board selected forest licences (FLs) A65926 and A81934, held by Ndazkhot’en Forest Management Ltd. (NFM) and located in the Quesnel Timber Supply Area (TSA), for an audit.
NFM operates on two forest licences within the TSA. Forest Licence A65926 was issued on February 15, 2002, with a term of 15 years and FL A81934 was issued on January 1, 2008, with a term of 5 years. The licences have an allowable annual timber harvest volume of 70 000 cubic metres and 125 000 cubic metres respectively. Most of NFM’s operations are near the village of Nazko, approximately 100 kilometres west of Quesnel. During the two-year audit period, NFM harvested 441 000 cubic metres; 221 000 cubic metres from FL A65926 and 220 000 cubic metres from FL A89134. All harvesting was carried out using ground-based systems, and mountain pine beetle infested lodgepole pine accounted for 88 percent of the harvested volume.
This is the Board's closing letter for the investigation of a complaint about harvesting associated with cutting permit 17 issued to Interwest Timber Ltd. (the licensee) under forest license A80509.
This complaint arose when Interwest planned six cutblocks in the vicinity of Tyaughton Lake. Residents at Tyaughton Lake became aware of this planned activity when they noticed harvest boundaries marked in the forest above their properties in early 2011. The Tyax Ratepayer's Association was formed in the spring of 2011 to represent the residents and their concerns regarding this development.
