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November 25, 2005: Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) eyes logging partnership

B.C.

WHISTLER QUESTION

Friday, November 25, 2005

RMOW eyes logging partnership

 

By David Burke

Reporter

 

Local control over management decisions key to Community Forest plan

dburke@whistlerquestion.com

If all goes according to plan, the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) could be in the logging business by early 2007.

But the primary aim of the Whistler Community Forest wouldn't be making money by cutting down the Whistler region"s considerable forestry resources, although officials wouldn’t mind seeing its project at least pay for itself.

No, the primary objective is local government control over how the region’s resources — including flora, fauna and aquatic environments — are allocated and managed.

Using the award-winning Whistler 2020 sustainability document as a guide, RMOW officials are forging ahead with a plan that, if approved by the B.C. Ministry of Forests (MOF), would see the RMOW enter into a partnership with B.C. Timber Sales (BCTS) to jointly manage the harvesting of 10,000 cubic metres of timber per year in an area covering 55,000 hectares surrounding the community.

MOF an d RMOW officials who presented the plan at a sparsely attended open house last Thursday at Spruce Grove Field House said a lot has to happen for Whistler’s Community Forest to become a reality. However, Heather Beresford, RMOW stewardship coordinator, said she’s confident it’ll eventually be approved — a realistic expectation for completion is early 2007, she said.

"We’re excited about the partnership with B.C. Timber Sales because they have been operating in this area and they have a lot of expertise," she said. "The main point is not to make big dollars. We obviously want to recover costs, and there will be a revenue sharing sharing agreement with BCTS. But the main objective is forest and watershed management."

Don MacLaurin, the RMOW’s contract forester, said that in the first few years, it might be somewhat difficult to find adequate timber to cut and markets for it, especially with the U.S.-Canada softwood lumber dispute still unresolved.

Balvinder Biring, an MOF Squamish Forest Di strict officer, said recent changes in forestry legislation are designed to make the rules surrounding annual allowable cut (AAC) more flexible. Now, instead of being required to cut 10,000 cubic metres per year, for example, tenure holders are allowed to cut 50,000 cubic metres over a five-year period.

"Now, the decision on how much to cut can be based more on market conditions," he said.

MacLaurin said that once the Community Forest tenure is signed, the RMOW will be seeking to manage the harvesting of trees based on the principles of sound ecosystem management — not cutting in areas important for their watershed or wildlife values, cutting only in areas considered less sensitive.

"Where we want to protect is old growth. Some of those bands are crucial to maintain from a watershed management and wildlife perspective," he said.

Beresford said protecting the community against wildfire is also an important consideration. She said the Community Forest management plan will also have to take into account the draft Wildfire Management Plan being formulated by RMOW officials.

During the past year, since MOF officials notified the RMOW, the Village of Pemberton and the District of Squamish that they were eligible to apply for Community Forest tenures, RMOW officials have been involved in discussions with its neighbours about the potential for community-to-community partnerships. Those discussions are ongoing, but for now the applications are proceeding separately, Beresford said.

The RMOW has also looked into partnerships with First Nations — whose forestry tenure rights are being dealt with in a separate MOF initiative. Such partnerships could be beneficial to all parties, Beresford said.

"We all have to do similar stuff to administer our land base," she said. "We’re saying, 'Are there things we can do together? Are there economies of scale that can be achieved?’"

Beresford said RMOW officials are preparing their Community Forest application in anticipation of receiving a formal inv itation from the MOF in early 2006. But it’s likely to be early 2007 until issues surrounding First Nations and the Sea to Sky Land Resource Management Plan (LRMP) process — which is still awaiting approval from Victoria — are resolved, she said.

"Those are bigger, regional issues that the Ministry of Forests needs to resolve before finalizing these Community Forest tenures," she said.

The RMOW’s boundary for the area it’s proposing as its Community Forest tenure area was first drawn up in 1987 as the Local Resource Use Plan (LRUP) area.

For the past 18 years, the RMOW has had some say over the management of those resources. In applying for a Community Forest, municipal officials want to increase the amount of input the community can have in that process.

If the tenure agreement goes through, she said, RMOW officials will want to update their 1995 Forest Recreation Master Plan. They’re proposing to set up a community advisory committee to draw up a business plan and advise Council on how best to manage the project. They’ll also want to appoint a person to monitor the project and serve as a liaison with BCTS, she said.

RMOW officials are looking for input on the plan. For information, please contact Beresford at (604) 935-8322 or call hberesford@whistler.ca.

http://www.whistlerquestion.com/madison%5CWQuestion.nsf/0/EA5B0AA22D7F1DF7882570C3006C8BF8?OpenDocument

Topic(s): Forestry News, Tourism News

Posted By EcoBC

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