WHEREAS new information from the provincial government documents that the Pine Beetle infestation has now spread throughout most of the interior of BC, covering an area seven times the size of Vancouver Island, and will result in approximately 200 million m3 of unsalvageable forest in excess of the area that will be salvaged as part of normal forestry operations; AND WHEREAS the federal government has signed the Kyoto Protocol and has made a public commitment to sustainability; AND WHEREAS a dead and idle forest is a net contributor of carbon dioxide, while conversely a healthy forest represents a significant carbon sink and contributes to sustainability; THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that the Union of BC Municipalities immediately lobby the federal government to: - significantly increase its investment in rehabilitation and reforestation with a focus on regenerating those areas of the forest that have lost market value and will not be returned to productivity as part of normal forest operations; and - include in that discussion the issue of financial assistance to local governments and private property owners negatively impacted by this natural disaster; AND BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Union of BC Municipalities pursue this action both directly and in conjunction with BC area associations, the Federation of Canadian Municipalities, First Nations, Industry, and the provincial government.
MINISTRY OF FORESTS We support UBCM in its efforts. Federal assistance would be welcome to deal with the mountain pine beetle epidemic, which has evolved into a forest health crisis of huge proportions. Forest Minister Michael de Jong is travelling to Ottawa later in October to pursue federal funding for this major issue.
NATURAL RESOURCES CANADA Officials at Natural Resources Canada NRCan continue to work with their provincial counterparts, industry and stakeholder groups to identify and assess options for federal assistance on the mountain pine beetle infestation. The federal governments Mountain Pine Beetle Initiative MPBI announced in October 2002, was an early result of that dialogue. The six-year, 40-million MPBI includes a research program focussed on producing information to reduce current infestation impacts and the risk of future beetle epidemics. The MPBI also includes a suite of programs assisting beetle control and forest rehabilitation on federal and private forestlands. Federal reforestation activity is limited to First Nations reserve lands, federal parks in the Rocky Mountains, three large blocks of federal forestlands and private non-industrial forestlands. In British Columbia, forestland management on provincial Crown lands, including harvest scheduling, determination of the allowable cut, forest health and silviculture are part of the provincial governments mandate. Under the provincial forest legislation, major licence holders are required to carry out basic silviculture, at their own expense, on harvested land. Thus, forest replanting and ensuring replanted trees are successfully established is the responsibility of forest licensees. The provincial beetle response is benefiting from the NRCan and MPBI research activity. Priorities for the MPBI research program were identified, in part, through a series of regional forums with sector stakeholders. Ongoing research will improve the abilities to detect, map and predict forest pest outbreaks. This information is critical to timely and efficient control work. Research is also underway to measure the time of merchantability for beetle-kill timber and how to integrate increasing volumes of salvage timber into existing processing facilities and markets. These considerations are fundamental to harvest planning and economic stability in communities. Research is also focussed on forest management options to reduce infestation risk and forest ecology impacts. Clearly, a forest pest infestation on this scale has and will create major challenges for pine forests and the communities working with these forests. NRCan remains committed to providing its scientific expertise to assist in responding to these challenges.
FEDERATION OF CANADIAN MUNICIPALITIES Resolution B86 was reviewed by the Rural Forum and the National Board of Directors and adopted at the September 2004 meeting. The resolution was then forwarded to the Minister of Natural Resources for comment.