Whereas many local governments and communities rely on the 299 million dollars the snowmobile industry provides to rural communities in British Columbia for economic stability and development; And whereas communities and snowmobile clubs care about maintaining existing meaningful Recreation Sites and Trails Partnership Agreements with the Province for respectful stewardship of the lands, and in particular BC Snowmobile Federation member Snowmobile Clubs are the largest partner of established Recreation Sites and Trails in BC; And whereas site level objectives under Section 56 of Forest Range Practices Act FRPA have not been established for snowmobile trails in BC resulting in a lack of communication or need to include consideration in Forest Stewardship Plans FSP; And whereas only a BC government authorized designated decision maker can set Individual Recreation Objectives for an established recreation trail site: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM ask the BC government to allocate the necessary resources to establish the following site level objectives on all new and existing established snowmobile sites under Section 56 of FRPA: 1. The alpine and coniferous forest features along recreation sites or trails will be retained to preserve the outdoor recreation experience and prevent early season melt on snowmobile trails. 2. Forest planning will include safety considerations for recreational access during the winter months and after harvesting is complete. This will include harvest planning consideration above and below a recreation site or trail to ensure that new exposures and avalanche paths are not created. Or that any new avalanche paths are mitigated by terrain modications such as deection berms. 3. This recreation site or trail is part of the working forest, and as such, activities that are likely to impact access or the recreation experience need to be communicated with the Designated Partner on the trail site at least six months in advance. And be it further resolved that UBCM ask the BC government to allocate the necessary resources to establish the following site level objective on all new and existing snowmobile sites that are established under Section 56 of FRPA and that are considered to be high value forest recreation sites and trails, by Recreation Sites and Trails BC or identied as an important recreational area by the FLNR Regional Executive Director: 1. Opportunities for snowmobiling, viewing and exploring must be provided on this designated snowmobile trail site during the snowmobile operating season of December 1 to March 31.
Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy Setting objectives for individual sites and trails in accordance with Section 56 of the Forest and Range Practices Act is a statutory decision that must consider the unique circumstances of each site or trail. While, snowmobile trails offer valuable recreation and access opportunities, many are also designated resource roads. Effective management must balance both uses. Recreation Sites and Trails branch will continue to work with the BC Snowmobile Federation to evaluate opportunities for recreation objectives on snowmobile trails on a case-by-case basis. As updates to the Forest and Range Practices Act resulting from the passing of Bill 23-2021 are implemented, Recreation Sites and Trails will be working with Ministry of Forests staff to identify opportunities to incorporate recreation values into forest landscape planning including management of access opportunities for snowmobiling.