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Environmental protesters give Premier Campbell Valentines gift at the Legislature
by WCWC Media •
Wednesday February 13, 2008 at 03:12 PM
Victoria, British Columbia - About 50 environmental ralliers unfurled giant banners and brought a Valentines gift for the BC Liberal government during the opening ceremony of the 2008 spring legislative session: A Giant Green Heart filled with old-growth trees, endangered species, and a call for the BC government to end old-growth logging on Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland. This gift to the BC government is intended to replace Forest Minister Rich Colemans Small, Black, Shrivelled Heart filled with stumps and $$dollar signs, which was also on display at the rally ...
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Environmental Protesters Give Premier Campbell Valentines Gift of a Giant Green Heart at BC Legislature Opening Ceremony
Today about 50 environmental ralliers unfurled giant banners and brought a Valentines gift for the BC Liberal government during the opening ceremony of the 2008 spring Legislative session: A Giant Green Heart filled with old-growth trees, endangered species, and a call for the BC government to end old-growth logging on Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland. The Giant Green Heart was signed by supporters at the event. This gift to the BC government is intended to replace Forest Minister Rich Colemans Small, Black, Shrivelled Heart filled with stumps and $$dollar signs, which was also on display at the rally.
“Gordon Campbell is trying to race ahead to promote his green image based solely on climate change policies – but theres a giant pitbull latched on to his leg, and thats the issue of old-growth logging on Vancouver Island. If he doesnt deal with this issue environmentally, itll be the pitbull that will ultimately drag down his green image, as it has done to all previous governments…I guarantee it,” states Ken Wu, campaign director of the Western Canada Wilderness Committee in Victoria.
The BC governments new Coastal Forest Action Plan released in October places no new restrictions on the logging of old-growth forests, but instead simply speeds up the logging of second-growth forests. As such, the logging companies will continue to high-grade log the highest value old-growth species – the last of the giant redcedars, Sitka spruce, and Douglas firs – while also logging second-growth forests at breakneck speeds.
“Campbells emphasis on planting more seedlings to counteract climate change while doing nothing to stop the logging of Vancouver Islands magnificent old-growth forests which sequester far more carbon than younger forests do, is like saying Im going to spend all of my life savings and my inheritance, then get a job flipping burgers to build-up my fortune over the next several centuries – its totally irrational,” states Wu.
Several weeks ago Forests Minister Rich Coleman told a convention of the BC Truck Loggers Association,“We have enough protected areas and parks” and that he was “frustrated with the people on the coast of British Columbia who keep saying quit cutting all the old-growth forest.”
On Vancouver Island, satellite photos reveal that about 75% of the original productive old-growth forests have already been logged, including 90% of the valley-bottoms where the largest trees grow. In the Lower Mainland, due to the logging of its old-growth forest habitat, the spotted owl population has declined from an original estimated population of over 1000 individuals to only 17 individuals in 2008. Unfortunately, only 6 to 8% of Vancouver Islands and the Lower Mainlands original, productive old-growth forests are protected in parks.
As such, the Wilderness Committee is calling on the Campbell government to:
-Enact concrete timelines to quickly phase-out the logging of the remaining old-growth forests on Vancouver Island and the Lower Mainland where old-growth forests are now scarce.
-Ensure that second-growth forests are logged sustainably.
-Ban raw log exports and assist in the development of a second-growth manufacturing industry to sustain the jobs of BC forestry workers.
Already, most of the forest cover in southern BC is second-growth forests and almost two-thirds of the logging taking place on Vancouver Island is in second-growth forests. Other jurisdictions such as New Zealand and southwestern Australia have ended old-growth logging recently, and BC can feasibly do the same in the southern part of the province.
The BC governments Coastal Forest Action Plan states that the coast of BC has 4 million hectares of old-growth, while only 769,000 hectares are available for logging. These figures give one the impression that the BC government has protected over 80% of BCs coastal old-growth forests in parks and protected areas!
However, the BC governments statistics are a public relations spin. They fail to mention that the vast majority of these 4 million hectares of old-growth forests are economically marginal to worthless to the logging companies, as they largely consist of stunted trees growing in the cold subalpine zone, on rocky/boggy sites and areas with poor growth rates. The classic giant redcedars, Sitka spruce, and Douglas firs in the productive, lower elevation old-growth forests where logging historically occurred now constitute only a small fraction of our remaining old-growth forests, especially on the southern coast.
Government and industry analysts often neglect to mention that the main “constraint” facing the timber industry that makes it the “highest cost producer” is the industrys own history of overcutting and mismanagement. The timber corporations have largely logged-off the biggest and best trees at the lower elevations, leaving behind the expensive to reach, smaller, lower value trees high up steep mountainsides in remote areas.
The BC governments statistics also dont make any distinction between the southern coast (Vancouver Island and the Southwest Mainland) where very little old-growth remains and where very little is protected, and the northern coast (Queen Charlotte Island and the Great Bear Rainforest) where old-growth forests and protected areas are significantly more extensive as a result of major campaigns by environmental groups and First Nations. One cannot justify the liquidation of the scarce old-growth forests on the southern coast – which has the largest trees and is home to many species not found farther north - with statistics from the northern rainforests.
Old-growth forests are important for harbouring many unique and endangered species, sequestering carbon to counteract climate change, acting as fundamental pillars for BCs multi-billion dollar coastal tourism industry, providing clean water for salmon, and as important parts of many First Nations cultures.
Contact: Ken Wu, Campaign Director, Western Canada Wilderness Committee – Victoria office
250-388-9292
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