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AUDIT SUMMARY

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What is this audit about?

The Board carried out a full-scope compliance audit of the Douglas Lake Cattle Company’s range agreement RAN076915 in the Cascades Natural Resource District near Merritt. Covering 217 556 hectares, it is one of the largest range agreement areas for livestock grazing in BC. The audit examined all planning and activities carried out under the agreement between August 1, 2022, and August 23, 2024.

What did the Board find?

The audit found that the company complied with many requirements within the Forest and Range Practices Act and Range Planning and Practices Regulation, including maintaining upland areas, protecting fish habitat and water quality, and meeting stubble height standards in all 24 pastures examined.

Auditors identified three areas of significant non-compliance:

Riparian Areas

Livestock use resulted in approximately 6.7 kilometres of riparian area around nine wetlands being in a not-functional condition.

General Wildlife Measures

One wetland within a designated wildlife habitat area for Great Basin spadefoot toad suffered extensive damage from livestock use.

Range Use Plan Requirements

Douglas Lake Cattle Company did not fully comply with range use plan actions intended to protect riparian and aquatic habitat for Great Basin spadefoot toad in two pastures.

The audit also noted areas requiring improvement, including occasional grazing outside of approved schedules and some fence maintenance issues. These did not result in impacts to range resources and were not significant in relation to the size of the agreement area and overall extent of fence infrastructure.

Key Takeaways

• Most of Douglas Lake Cattle Company’s range practices met legal requirements across a large agreement area.
• Riparian damage and non-compliance with wildlife measures were significant but localized, underscoring the need for stronger livestock management around wetlands.
• Some elements of the range use plan were written in ways that are not measurable or enforceable, limiting the Ministry of Forests’ and Board’s ability to assess compliance.

Acknowledgement

The range agreement area is within the territories of 19 First Nations. These Indigenous Peoples have been stewards of the land since time immemorial, and the Forest Practices Board recognizes their deep connection with the land that continues to this day.