On one of the first days hinting of spring, a mixed spruce-pine-birch forest on the cutbanks above the Nechako River literally breaths life for its surrounding community.
It provides habitat for animals like the squirrel scampering along the still-deep snow beneath the forest canopy, turns carbon dioxide into oxygen, and provides the stock that drives the forest industry in Prince George.
You don't have to look far to see that forest industry.
Two sawmills -- Lakeland Mills and Brink Forest Products -- are visible from the cutbanks, on the other side of the river.
Not far away, where the Nechako meets the Fraser River, are located two of Canfor Pulp's mills.
The lumber and pulp production provides hundreds of direct jobs and many more spinoff jobs for loggers, truckers, silviculture workers and anyone who supplies and services to the mills.
Beyond the mills, along First Avenue, is Celtic Reforestation, a leading silviculture firm in the community.
What better time to reflect on role that forests play in our communities than the International Year of the Forests proclaimed by the United Nations in 2011.
"Throughout the world, forests are essential to our well-being, and it is our duty to preserve them," said Christian Paradis, Canada's Minister of Natural Resources, in acknowledging the year of the forests.
"This year, let us take time to reflect on the importance of our forests and enjoy their abundance and their great beauty."
A report released by a United Nations organization to coincide with the International Year of the Forests highlights that millions of forest-dependent people play a vital role in managing, conserving and developing the world's forests in a sustainable manner.
However, the State of the World's Forests report concluded the outside world often underestimates those people's rights and benefits from local forest resources.
"What we need to do during the International Year of the Forests is to emphasize the connection between people and forests, and the benefits that can accrue when forests are managed by local people in sustainable and innovative ways," says Eduardo Rojas, UN's assistant director-general for forestry.
The report stresses the forest industry forms an important part of a greener economy. Wood and wood products, as natural materials, are made from renewable resources that store carbon and have high potential for recycling.
The report noted that many governments are promoting a greener economy, for example, through the use of bioenergy.
The increased interest in social and environmental sustainability has provided a unique challenge for the forest industry and forest managers, highlighted the report. That has been brought into particular focus in north-central B.C., the heart of a historic mountain pine beetle epidemic.
BIOENERGY PART OF THE PINE BEETLE SOLUTION
Millions of hectares of lodgepole pine have been killed, impacting not only the environment but the industry that relies on the timber.
UNBC forestry professor Kathy Lewis notes the implications of the beetle epidemic are far-reaching. It will, for example, lead to increased fire risk; and once the dead timber burns, there's a question of how long it will take to grow back if it's not replanted.
Bioenergy is part of the solution in using the deteriorating pine, but it's not a panacea, said Lewis.
It's important to not take away all the woody material needed for the forest to feed on, said Lewis.
It points to one of the province's weak points, she says: While, overall, B.C. has some of the best forest practices in the world if implemented properly; more high-level strategic planning is needed.
High-level decisions must be made on how to deal with climate change and warming temperatures in northern B.C., which may, for example, necessitate planting different types of trees for the future. Forests can adapt, but not as quickly as temperatures are expected to change.
"If we make a mistake, we won't know for 100 years," observed Lewis.
She stressed, however, that British Columbia is well positioned to take advantage of emerging opportunities -- where the forest is valued for its non-industrial assets. Markets for carbon credits are emerging, as well as far water-quality benefits.
"We are among the few places in the world that still have wilderness forests left," said Lewis.
