Whereas the Timber Supply Areas within the province of British Columbia includes both consumptive watersheds and Old Growth Management Areas designated for the purpose of enabling and securing ecological resilience to withstand the long-term effects of forest degradation; And whereas these critical landscape elements are not protected under legislation and these watersheds are experiencing effects detrimental to slope stability, water quality and quantity which ultimately leads to forest decline and increased risk of wildfire, landslides, loss of water supply, and other effects that local governments must respond to and mitigate without having any concurrent decision-making authority over; and these areas are being traded for other areas within a tenure that do not have equivalent ecological value thereby accelerating the decline in forest resilience and ecological integrity: Therefore be it resolved that Ministry of Forest Land Natural Resource Operations implement regulations to protect Old Growth Management Areas by removing the option to trade these areas within a tenure; And be it further resolved that watersheds that are essential to land base resiliency be entrenched in legislation that requires local government consultation, consideration of community safety and water supply before resource extraction is permitted.
Ministry of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development Old Growth Management: In BC, old growth management is a critical stewardship value for our government to manage and protect forests including the old growth. We are fortunate to still have trees that have been standing in place for hundreds of years, some for more than a thousand. Old growth forests are protected from logging in parks, protected areas and old growth management areas like the Great Bear Rainforest which covers 6.4 million hectares, an area twice the size of Belgium, and fully protects 1.8 million hectares from resource development. A recent review of old growth management practices in the Kootenays in conjunction with updated biogeoclimatic zones BEC, LIDAR and inventory data identified opportunities for improved management of these OGMAs. This work has resulted in increased oversight and rigor in our Forest Stewardship Plans FSPs for old growth management and has constrained the ability for relocation of these OGMAs by industry. The region has hired a dedicated specialist who is leading a team to evaluate and refine the location of old growth management area in the Kootenays. Government announced the protection of 54 of some of the provinces largest trees each surrounded by groves to act as a buffer zones as the first step in a new approach to old-growth management. Starting fall 2019, an independent, two-person panel Garry Merkel and Al Gorley will engage with First Nations, industry, environmental organizations, stakeholders, experts and local governments on old growth management. The Old Growth Strategic Review panel will report back to Government in spring 2020 with recommendations that are expected to inform a new old growth management plan for British Columbia. We encourage local governments to participate in the Old Growth Strategic Review. Consumptive Watersheds: Access to clean water for citizens of BC is important to Government and current legislation recognizes the value of consumptive watersheds to these users. The Forest and Range Protection Act FRPA requires extra protection measures that must be carried out by licensees when proposing harvesting in consumptive watersheds. License holders engage qualified professionals to conduct hydrologic assessments of the watersheds to ensure the cumulative hydrological effects of their activities do not adversely impact the water quality or quantity. When a licensee is proposing to harvest in a consumptive watershed, they are generally obligated by their FSP commitments to refer their plans to the water users. Licensees are expected to consider the input from water users when developing their plans and to address their concerns as much as possible. Government is confident that further revisions being introduced to FRPA will further enhance public involvement and trust in our future forest management practices.