Closing Letter: Bastion Creek Community Watershed
In April 2019, the Forest Practices Board received a complaint from a business owner and an environmental society (the complainants) who requested access to a hydrological assessment prepared for the Bastion Creek community watershed. The assessment was commissioned jointly for BC Timber Sales and Canoe Forest Products (the licensees). The licensees offered to review the report […]
Forestry Activities in the Peachland and Trepanier...
In November 2017, the Forest Practices Board received a complaint about impacts to water quality in the Peachland and Trepanier community watersheds. The complainants asserted that forestry activities in the watersheds have negatively affected the quality of drinking water and increased the number of boil water advisory notices, resulted in stream bank erosion and caused […]
Board Comments on Amendments to FRPA
Public Engagement on Amendments to the Forest and Range Practices Act (June 2019) As part of government’s public consultation on proposed amendments to FRPA, the Forest Practices Board submitted comments on the need for modernized planning under FRPA. READ Board Submission Priorities for Strengthening the Forest and Range Practices Act (August 2019) This letter provides […]
Closing Letter: Planning for Landscape-level Biodi...
In April 2018, the Forest Practices Board received a complaint from the Lhtako Dene Nation alleging that Tolko (the forest licensee) did not follow through on commitments it made as part of the resolution of a previous complaint to the Board. The new complaint also said that the Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations […]
Strategic Plan 2019-2022
The Forest Practices Board strategic plan for 2019-2022 will guide our work and help us to focus on priority issues for the next three years.
Pacheedaht Andersen Timber Holdings LP - TFL 61 -...
For its first compliance audit of 2019, the Board selected Pacheedaht Andersen Timber Holdings Limited Partnership’s (PATH) tree farm licence (TFL) 61 for audit. PATH is a partnership between Pacheedaht First Nation and Andersen Timber. TFL 61 is located on southwestern Vancouver Island between Port Renfrew and Jordan River. This was a full scope compliance […]
Tactical Forest Planning: The Missing Link Between...
Planning for forest management in BC is currently missing a critical level between strategic processes for setting direction (such as land use planning) and operational planning. This tactical level of planning is essential if we are going to move towards a desired future forest for all values. In this special report, the Board has outlined […]
Road Deactivation and Impacts to Fish Habitat near...
In November 2017, the Forest Practices Board received a complaint from a member of the public alleging that culverts at stream crossings on a section of forest road were removed and the channels filled with dirt, causing harm to fish and damage to fish habitat. The complaint also alleges that, despite reporting the situation to […]
Peace Natural Resource District - Woodlot Licence...
As part of the Forest Practices Board’s 2018 compliance audit program, the Board randomly selected the Peace Natural Resource District as the location for a full scope compliance audit. Within the district, the Board selected five woodlot licenses near Fort St John for audit: W0604, W1780, W1781, W1950 and W2101. This report covers W2101. W2101 […]
Peace Natural Resource District - Woodlot Licences...
As part of the Forest Practices Board’s 2018 compliance audit program, the Board randomly selected the Peace Natural Resource District as the location for a full scope compliance audit. Within the district, the Board selected five woodlot licenses near Fort St John for audit: W0604, W1780, W1781, W1950 and W2101. This report covers W0604, W1780, […]
Follow-up Report on Forest Stewardship Plans: Are...
In 2015, the Forest Practices Board published a special investigation report on forest stewardship plans (FSPs). The 2015 report findings were substantial, and the recommendations triggered a quick response from government in the form of non-legal direction and training for practitioners and government staff. Since the 2015 report came out, many FSPs have expired and […]
Audit of Small Scale Salvage in the Cariboo Chilco...
In September 2018, the Forest Practices Board audited the Small Scale Salvage program in the Cariboo Chilcotin Natural Resource District. Small scale salvage is the harvest of individual trees or small patches of dead or damaged timber. During the one-year audit period, almost all small scale salvage activity in the district was aimed at addressing […]
Appropriateness of Government’s Compliance and Enf...
The Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development is British Columbia’s land manager, responsible for stewardship of provincial Crown land, cultural and natural resources. The Compliance and Enforcement Branch (C&E) is the law enforcement arm of the ministry and is responsible for ensuring compliance with natural resource legislation. In 2013, the Board […]
Forestry Audit: BCTS and Timber Sales Licensees...
As part of its 2018 compliance audit program, the Board randomly selected the Arrow Field Unit portion of BC Timber Sales’ (BCTS) Kootenay Business Area for audit. The Arrow Field Unit covers the Arrow Lakes and is approximately 1,350,000 hectares, starting at the US border and stretching north towards Revelstoke. BCTS has several operating areas […]
Fire Hazard Abatement and the Shovel Lake Wildfire
In October 2018, the Board received a complaint from a member of the BC Wildfire Service team that managed the Shovel Lake wildfire, near Fraser Lake. The complainant alleged that logging debris and old, decked timber contributed to the severity and spread of the wildfire. The Board investigated whether licensees assessed and abated the fire […]
