This summer, Minister Doug Donaldson announced the appointment of a two-person panel to lead an Old Growth Strategy Review.
The panel members, Al Gorley, a professional forester with 45 years of experience, and Garry Merkel, a registered professional forester also with 45 years of experience in the industry, have instructions to lead an Old Growth Strategy Review and report back to Hon. Doug Donaldson, Minister of Forests, Lands, Natural Resource Operations and Rural Development.
The Ministry has opened the consultation process and is seeking public input on the Review.
I have heard British Columbians’ overwhelming concerns about how the province is managing the few remaining old-growth forests in our province.
Over several months, frustration has been growing on how the provincial government protects high productivity old-growth. Pressure is building with every series of photos and video streams showing clearcuts of massive stumps.
My opinion of the BC NDP government’s perspective on old-growth is well established. I believe their framing is all wrong. The Minister consistently frames the delicate balance of employment and economic values with the ecological ones. It’s identified in the mandate given to the panel in the Ministry press release.
“The panel was tasked with looking at old-growth management from a variety of perspectives, including employment and economic benefits, social, cultural, and environmental value and the need to address climate change.”
In the government communications, the ecological, environmental and climate change issues are always subordinate to resource harvesting. With this perspective, we are on track to “manage” our old-growth resource to zero.
Please participate!
Many people have contacted me about how they can compel the BC NDP to change their old-growth policy. Please participate in the consultation!
For more information about the consultation, you can visit the consultation website. The Minister is inviting British Columbians to complete a questionnaire, provide written submissions (see the guidelines) or send an email.
I was forwarded an invitation to participate in this consultation by my local Regional Director.
I followed the instructions to submit my “expression of interest” in participating at the meetings to be held in my area. I submitted this earlier this week.
I have had no response, no reply, no communications whatsoever as to my request to speak to the consultants when they hold their meeting. Nor any information as to where the meeting would be held for north island. I said I could be available for a telephone meeting, but again, no response. Could you please let me know what course of action I should take. If in the form of a written statement, where should I direct my comments, for the umpteenth time? Many thanks, and just to be clear, I recently voted Green in the federal election….
More talk while the trees come down. It’s a ruse so they can keep on doing what they be been doing for….ask Indigenous folks and Vicki Husband how long we’ve been fighting in the woods and watching them disappear.
Moratorium now! Then sit down and chit chat about the obvious.
And yes I will continue to do all of the above efforts for all the good it does.
Amazon of the North. Horgan is Bolsonaro.
Mr. Olsen,
Can you tell me, as a board member of the North Columbia Environmental Society, in Revelstoke, BC, if you believe the two foresters on the panel are bias toward seeing trees as an economic resource, and if you think this effort to get public feedback is simply to waste time? We are so tired of seeing logging truck after logging truck empty our forests of every last piece of wood.
I agree it is very tiring. I am always hoping for the best outcomes of these processes. We will see the quality of this process when the report is tabled. Until then I am encouraging everyone to participate in the process and have their voices heard.