Whereas wildfires and interface fires have caused hundreds of millions of dollars of damage to communities in British Columbia, and according to a June 2023 British Columbia Forest Practices Board report, this can be partially attributed to the way forests are managed; And whereas research shows that monoculture coniferous tree farms are more susceptible to disease, drought, and wildfire while biodiverse forests retain moisture and are more resilient to drought, disease, and wildfire, and that many deciduous trees are fire-resistant: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM call upon the Government of British Columbia to amend the Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act and the Private Managed Forest Land Act to ensure that forests in a 3-km radius surrounding communities and community infrastructure, including community drinking water reservoirs, are fire-resistant, resilient, biodiverse forests, and to ban the practice of using herbicides to kill deciduous trees and undergrowth within these fire resistant biodiversity zones.
