With a discussion paper in hand, the provincial legislature's timber supply committee is about to hit the road.
The committee will hold a series of public hearing across northern B.C. in two weeks time and will be in Prince George on Thurs., June 21, at the Ramada from 8 a.m. to 1 p.m.
The seven-MLA committee, made up of four Liberals and three New Democrats, was established
last month after a leaked report warned about thousands of job losses due to a declining amount of wood caused by the mountain pine beetle epidemic.
The report suggested easing restrictions on logging in areas to protect wildlife and old growth stands.
Options set out in the discussion paper include:
- harvesting some of the areas currently constrained from timber harvest in order to support other resource values, such as visual quality objectives, preserving old-growth forest and providing corridors for wildlife.
- increasing the harvest of marginally economic timber;
- changing the flow of timber by adjusting administrative boundaries or accelerating timber availability;
- shifting to more area-based tenures and associated more intensive forest management;
- increasing the level of intensive forest management through fertilization and other advanced silviculture activities.
It's expected the there will be a period when the beetle-killed pine is no longer salvageable, and the overall supply of mature timber will be reduced by as much as 20 per cent below pre-infestation levels, and may last as much as 50 years, according to the discussion paper.
"Given the severity of the situation, many people are asking whether there is anything that can be done to mitigate or reduce the severity of this natural catastrophe," the paper states.
Nechako Lakes MLA John Rustad heads the committee, which is expected to deliver a report to the legislature by Aug. 15.
The other committee members are Donna Barnett (Liberal, Cariboo-Chilcotin); Eric Foster (LIberal, Vernon-Monashee); Ben Stewart (Liberal, Westside-Kelowna); Harry Bains (NDP, Surrey-Newton); Norm Macdonald (NDP - Columbia River-Revelstoke); and Bill Routley (NDP- Cowichan Valley).
The discussion paper and further information on how to participate in the public consultation can be found at www.leg.bc.ca/timbercommittee. The deadline for submissions is July 20.
