NOW OPEN! AFA Office Cubicle in Downtown Victoria!

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If you’re in Victoria, feel free to come visit the AFA in the Habitat Acquisition Trust / Nature Conservancy building between 12-6 pm, Mon-Sun., until Dec. 23 at 827 Broughton St. (between Blanshard and Quadra). Pick up great holiday gifts such as our new and beautiful 2013 calendars, ancient forest greeting cards, big tree posters, prints, and more!

For a sample of our products, or to order online, check out our new online store!

Price list:

  • NEW! Ancient Forests of BC CALENDARS: $20.00 each; 5 or more $15.00
  • CARDS (for special occasions including the holiday season): 3.95 each; 6 for $20.00; 12 for $36.00
  • POSTERS (Avatar Grove’s Gnarly Tree, San Juan Spruce, or Canada’s Largest Tree the Cheewhat Giant): 12.50 each; 3 for $30; quantity of 3 or more $10 each
  • POSTCARDS: $10 each; quantity of 3 or more $9.00 each
  • MATTED PRINTS: $40 each; quantity of 3 or more $ 35.00 each

Political leadership needed to resolve Cortes Island’s "War in the Woods"

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The conflict over the past week between local Cortes Island residents and Island Timberlands over the company’s contentious plans to log endangered forests has conservationists renewing their call for political leadership in BC to resolve the “War in the Woods”.

Last week, local residents on Cortes Island repeatedly blocked Island Timberlands’ attempts to begin logging. Earlier this week the company withdrew its workers from the island and have postponed pursuing a court injunction against the protesters for one week while negotiations resume with Cortes residents.

“What is needed now is leadership from the BC Liberal government to help resolve the War in the Woods by committing funds to purchase endangered ecosystems on private lands, including old-growth forests on Cortes Island and throughout the southern coast where communities are fighting Island Timberlands’ old-growth logging plans,” stated Ken Wu, Ancient Forest Alliance executive director.“The province hasn’t had a dedicated annual fund to purchase and protect private lands in years, despite that fact that for every $1 invested in new parks in BC, another $9 is generated in revenues in the provincial economy, according to studies. Island Timberlands also has an obligation to log according to community, ecosystem-based forestry standards on Cortes Island.”

The Ancient Forest Alliance is calling for a $40 million annual BC park acquisition fund, which would amount to about 0.1 per cent or 1/1000th of the province’s $40 billion annual budget.Over 10 years, $400 million would be available for purchasing critical habitats on private lands throughout the province. The last time the provincial government had a dedicated land acquisition fund was in the 2008 budget. A similar battle on Salt Spring Island over a decade ago between local residents and a logging/development company was resolved through funding from the provincial, federal and regional governments and local citizens to purchase the endangered lands around Burgoyne Bay and on Mount Maxwell.

Park acquisition funds already exist in several Regional Districts in BC, including the Capital Regional District (CRD) in the Greater Victoria region, which has a Land Acquisition Fund of about $3.5 million each year. The CRD has spent over $34 million dollars since the year 2000 to purchase over 4500 hectares, including lands at Jordan River, the Sooke Hills, the Sooke Potholes, Thetis Lake, Mount Work, and Mount Maxwell on Salt Spring Island, to expand their system of Regional Parks.
“While private land trusts are vital for conservation, they simply don’t have the capacity to quickly raise the tens of millions of dollars needed each year to protect most endangered lands before they are logged or developed —only governments have such funds,” stated TJ Watt, Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner and photographer.
Logging giant Island Timberlands, which owns about 260,000 hectares of private forest lands on Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast, is entangled in battles with communities throughout the region. The company is also one of the largest exporter of raw, unprocessed logs to foreign mills in the USA and Asia. Currently, the Chinese government is looking to buy a major stake of Island Timberlands through the China Investment Corporation, one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, and is expected to close a $100 million deal with the company soon.
Contentious old-growth forests and endangered ecosystems owned by Island Timberlands include (see beautiful photos in the following links):

Old-growth forests are vital for supporting endangered species, tourism, recreation, the climate, clean water, wild salmon, and many First Nations cultures. On Vancouver Island, 75 per cent of the original, productive old-growth forests have already been logged, including 90 per cent of the most productive old-growth forests in the lowlands where the largest trees grow. Well over 90 per cent of the old-growth “Dry Maritime” and Coastal Douglas-fir forests on BC’s southern coast have already been logged.

Some youngsters joined the protest against Island Timberlands logging operations on Cortes Island this week.

Loggers leave Cortes … but promise to return

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An unofficial time out is being observed in the standoff between Cortes Island environmental activists and Island Timberlands over the company’s plans to log its private land which contains old growth stands.

Last week, Cortes environmentalists, residents and supporters repeatedly blocked Island Timberlands’ crews from beginning logging operations near Basil Creek. Zoe Miles, a member of Wildstands, says the community has attempted to work with the company for more than four years to develop an ecosystem-based approach to forestry. “The community is now left with no choice but to stand in Timberlands’ path to defend these ecologically significant forests.”

The group lifted its blockade after frustrated logging crews left the island, but the company’s Director of Human Resources Mark Leitao says they are simply assessing their options. One of those options is a court injunction. Behind the scenes efforts were being made to bring the two sides together for talks.

West Vancouver environmental lawyer Joe Spears, who has been hired by the environmentalists, tells the Mirror: “Situation normal, trees standing.”

“This goes way beyond private property rights,” the lawyer says. “There is so little coastal old growth left.” Spears says there needs to be an informed discussion about the best use of the resource – “a source of raw logs for China or deferred forestation that gives rise to carbon credits?”

Ken Wu, Executive Director of Ancient Forest Alliance, says: “What is needed now is leadership from the Liberal government to help resolve the war in the woods by committing funds to purchase endangered ecosystems on private lands, including old-growth forests on Cortes Island.

The alliance is calling for a $40 million annual park acquisition fund. The last time the provincial government had a dedicated land acquisition fund was in the 2008 budget, Wu says.  A similar battle on Salt Spring Island over a decade ago between local residents and a logging company was resolved through funding from the provincial, federal and regional governments and local citizens to purchase the endangered lands around Burgoyne Bay and on Mount Maxwell.

Meanwhile, the Private Forest Landowners Association has taken Cortes activist Leah Seltzer to task for her claim that “privately managed forest companies (do not have) any legally binding regulations on their lands.”

There are more than 30 acts and regulations that apply to managed forest land, the association says, “and successive independent audits show the protection … on private managed forest land meets or exceeds the standard of protection on public lands.”

Seltzer counters: “The industry uses a model of ‘professional reliance’ which means that there is no real government oversight.  So, technically on the books, there is ‘legally binding legislation,’ but ultimately the forest professionals determine what compliance looks like and for us this feels a lot like the fox is watching the hen house.

[Campbell River Mirror online article no longer available]

NEW! Ancient Forests of BC Calendars for Sale!

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We’re proud to present the Ancient Forest Alliance’s premier calendar! It highlights some of the special places on British Columbia’s coast that we’ve explored as we work towards securing provincial legislation to save our endangered old-growth forests and forestry jobs.

The calendar features beautiful photos of many incredible places including Echo Lake, the Cameron Valley Firebreak, San Juan Valley, Cortes Island, Avatar Grove, Mossy Maple Grove, Cathedral Grove Canyon, Upper Walbran Valley, Flores Island, the Gordon River Valley, and more! It’s also printed on 100% post-consumer recyled paper with vegetable based inks.

You can order one today for $20 through our new online store, by phoning 250-896-4007, or, if you’re in Victoria, you can come by our temporary office cubicle in the Habitat Acquisition Trust office and Nature Conservancy of Canada building between 12-6 pm, Mon.-Sat., until December 23 at 827 Broughton St. (between Blanshard and Quadra St.)

Cortes Island residents seek compromise with loggers

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Cortes Island residents who blockaded roads for a week in a fight to modify logging plans say they are hopeful talks with Island Timberlands can lead to a compromise.

But Mark Leitao, a spokesman for the company, said Thursday no commitment has been made to meet with the islanders, who are organized under the banner, Wildstands Alliance. The group lifted its blockade Wednesday, after logging crews withdrew from the island. But Mr. Leitao said the crews will be back.

“We’re resolute that we’re going to harvest and continue to manage our properties on Cortes over the long term,” he said. “At this point we’re sitting back and assessing our options.”

Mr. Leitao said the company has considered an injunction against the blockaders, if necessary, but isn’t in a rush.

“We’ll be on Cortes for the long term, and so a week here and there is not going to really affect the overall long-term scheme of things,” he said. “First and foremost we want to make sure that when we go to harvest, that we can do that safely.”

Island residents blocked roads to protest company plans to log privately owned forest lands on Cortes Island, which is in the Strait of Georgia, east of Campbell River. About 1,000 people live on the bucolic island, which is home to Hollyhock Farm Ltd., a well-known retreat that features workshops on writing, dance and yoga among other things.

Leah Seltzer, of the Wildstands Alliance, said the group took down the blockade with the expectation that a meeting with the company would follow.

“We hope that will happen in the near future,” she said, adding that island residents are not asking for an end to logging, just that plans be changed to ensure sensitive areas are protected. “We are definitely a community that is made up of people that includes loggers. We are interested in some logging … but it has to be selective logging.… We want their forests to be managed in a way that maintains ecological integrity.”

Ms. Seltzer said she is concerned the lack of dialogue between residents and Island Timberlands will worsen if a reported deal goes through in which China Investment Corp. is proposing to purchase timber assets from Brookfield Asset Management Inc. The Toronto-based company owns Island Timberlands, which is headquartered in Nanaimo, on Vancouver Island.

“It is hard enough to communicate with them now. Imagine if their offices were in China,” she said.

Ron Croda, a long-time resident, said a bitter battle was fought over the forest lands on Cortes Island in 1991, when MacMillan Bloedel Ltd. sought to log the area. “We put it off for 20 years,” he said. “That was a measure of some success.”

Mr. Croda said the battle divided the community then, and may do so again, because the issues are the same: The company has the legal right to log its forest lands, but many in the community want to protect the natural beauty of the island. “This is an example of corporate exploitation where the law is entirely on their side – but it’s leading to an environmental tragedy,” he said.

Ken Wu, a director of the Ancient Forest Alliance, called on the provincial government to end the dispute before it grows into a bigger confrontation. “Without the government taking action this will escalate into a war in the woods,” he said. “The BC Liberal government needs to show some leadership. They should not keep their heads down on the Cortes Island issue.”

Mr. Wu urged the government to set aside $40-million a year for park land acquisition.

Read more:  https://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/british-columbia/cortes-island-residents-seek-compromise-with-loggers/article6071710/

Old-growth Douglas-fir trees in the Squirrel Cove Ancient Forest on Cortes Island.

Tiny Cortes Island girds for battle with China’s huge CIC wealth fund

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Residents of an idyllic island off the west coast of Canada are facing off against corporate opponents set to include a Chinese sovereign wealth behemoth, the US$480 billion China Investment Corporation (CIC).

Environmental activists and Cortes Island residents last week blockaded land owned by the Island Timberlands (IT) company, in a bid to prevent logging. They object to the environmental impact of felling on the island and fear that jobs and economic benefits will be sent to China.

Cortes Island activist Zoe Miles said that a reported deal for CIC to buy a 12.5 per cent stake in IT was a “huge part of the issue”. She also said that because IT was exporting raw logs to China, not finished products, the bulk of the economic benefits were being exported, too.

With a population of about 1,000, the British Columbia (BC) island is known for its natural beauty and thriving arts community.

“We aren’t anti-logging. We’re opposed to Island Timberlands’ model of industrial-scale logging,” said Miles, who was raised on the island, 160 kilometres north of Vancouver.

“The jobs after the cutting of the trees aren’t staying in BC,” she said. “Our concerns are both ecological and economic. We want to preserve the ecosystem and jobs for locals.”

She said the activists wanted IT to produce a logging plan “that meets the community’s desires”. That included preserving old-growth forest, setting logging back from waterways and not clear-cutting.

Some activists, including Ken Wu from the Ancient Forest Alliance, want the provincial government to protect parts of Cortes by purchasing it.

“You ultimately have to buy the private land that you want protected,” said Wu, whose group wants to re-establish a BC parks acquisition fund. “The government isn’t going to expropriate it.”

The Wall Street Journal reported last month that CIC was negotiating with Brookfield Asset Management to buy one-eighth of IT. Brookfield, with US$150 billion in assets under management, is a general partner and “significant majority shareholder” in IT said Brookfield senior vice-president for communications, Andrew Willis.

Willis said he could not comment on the reported US$100 million CIC deal. He said other investors in IT currently include Canadian provincial retirement funds. CIC did not respond to a request for comment.

The blockade last week resulted in IT withdrawing work crews sent to carve out logging roads. IT, the second-largest private landholder in BC, owns about 1,000 hectares on Cortes.

Mark Leitao, director of human resources at IT, said the firm was considering its next move, but still intended to log its land. “At the moment we are taking a rest and exploring our options … but our plan is to harvest those two blocks, safely,” he said.

IT workers were blocked last week by protesters lying in front of vehicles. Some protesters brought placard-waving children to the site.

Leitao said that the land in question was not virgin forest, having been through “at least one rotation” of logging, perhaps as long as 100 years ago. He said the firm was committed to saving “veteran” trees older than 250 years old.

He said that the land would not face clear-cut logging, in which most or all trees are razed.

“We are managing this tree by tree,” Leitao said. “We believe we have done right.”

Although the goal was to replant, he said that some of the felled land could be sold for property development.

Miles, the activist, said that singling out old trees to be saved was not good enough. “We’d draw a distinction between saving individual old growth trees and saving the old growth forest as a whole,” she said.

Link to original online article.

Cortes Island resident and activist

Media Release: BC’s War in Woods on Cortes Island needs Political Leadership

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For Immediate Release

December 6, 2012

Political Leadership Needed to Resolve Cortes Island’s “War in the Woods” and other Island Timberlands battles

Conservationists renew call for BC Liberals to commit to restoring and expanding a “BC Park Acquisition Fund” to purchase and protect endangered forests on private lands

NOTE: Media are free to reprint any photos, credit to “TJ Watt” where possible.
“What is needed now is leadership from the BC Liberal government to help resolve the War in the Woods by committing funds to purchase endangered ecosystems on private lands, including old-growth forests on Cortes Island and throughout the southern coast where communities are fighting Island Timberlands’ old-growth logging plans,” stated Ken Wu, Ancient Forest Alliance executive director. “The province hasn’t had a dedicated annual fund to purchase and protect private lands in years, despite that fact that for every $1 invested in new parks in BC, another $9 is generated in revenues in the provincial economy, according to studies. Island Timberlands also has an obligation to log according to community, ecosystem-based forestry standards on Cortes Island.”
The Ancient Forest Alliance is calling for a $40 million annual BC park acquisition fund, which would amount to about 0.1% or 1/1000th of the province’s $40 billion annual budget. Over 10 years, $400 million would be available for purchasing critical habitats on private lands throughout the province. The last time the provincial government had a dedicated land acquisition fund was in the 2008 budget.  A similar battle on Salt Spring Island over a decade ago between local residents and a logging/development company was resolved through funding from the provincial, federal and regional governments and local citizens to purchase the endangered lands around Burgoyne Bay and on Mount Maxwell.
Park acquisition funds already exist in several Regional Districts in BC, including the Capital Regional District (CRD) in the Greater Victoria region, which has a Land Acquisition Fund of about $3.5 million each year. The CRD has spent over $34 million dollars since the year 2000 to purchase over 4500 hectares, including lands at Jordan River, the Sooke Hills, the Sooke Potholes, Thetis Lake, Mount Work, and Mount Maxwell on Salt Spring Island, to expand their system of Regional Parks.

“While private land trusts are vital for conservation, they simply don’t have the capacity to quickly raise the tens of millions of dollars needed each year to protect most endangered lands before they are logged or developed —only governments have such funds,” stated TJ Watt, Ancient Forest Alliance campaigner and photographer.

Logging giant Island Timberlands, which owns about 260,000 hectares of private forest lands on Vancouver Island and the Sunshine Coast, is entangled in battles with communities throughout the region. The company is also one of the largest exporter of raw, unprocessed logs to foreign mills in the USA and Asia. Currently, the Chinese government is looking to buy a major stake of Island Timberlands through the China Investment Corporation, one of the world’s largest sovereign wealth funds, and is expected to close a $100 million deal with the company soon.
Contentious old-growth forests and endangered ecosystems owned by Island Timberlands include (see beautiful photos in the following links):
–          Day Road Forest near Roberts Creek on the Sunshine Coast: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/day-road-forest/
–          Stillwater Bluffs near Powell River on the Sunshine Coast: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/stillwater-bluffs/
–          McLaughlin Ridge near Port Alberni on Vancouver Island: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/mclaughlin-ridge/
–          Cameron Valley Firebreak near Port Alberni: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/mclaughlin-ridge/
–          Cathedral Grove Canyon near Port Alberni: https://16.52.162.165/photos-media/cathedral-grove-canyon/
–          Lands directly adjacent to Cathedral Grove in MacMillan Provincial Park near Port Alberni
–          Labour Day Lake near Port Alberni
–          Pearl Lake adjacent to Strathcona Provincial Park on Vancouver Island
–          Eagle Ridge Bluffs near Shawnigan Lake on Vancouver Island
Old-growth forests are vital for supporting endangered species, tourism, recreation, the climate, clean water, wild salmon, and many First Nations cultures. On Vancouver Island, 75% of the original, productive old-growth forests have already been logged, including 90% of the most productive old-growth forests in the lowlands where the largest trees grow. Well over 90% of the old-growth “Dry Maritime” and Coastal Douglas-fir forests on BC’s southern coast have already been logged.

See the Ancient Forest Alliance’s petition for a BC Park Acquisition Fund at www.BCParkFund.com [Original article no longer available] and a recent newsletter at https://www.bcparkfund.com/newsletter/June-2012-Parks-Acquisition.pdf [Original article no longer available].

 

 

Flagging tape marked "Falling Boundary" in a threatened area of mature forest of Cortes Island.

Cortes Island residents rejoice as Island Timberlands temporarily withdraws logging crew

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Link to Vancouver Observer article.

Cortes Island forest activists and residents celebrated today as Island Timberlands (I.T.) withdrew crews and announced that they would not attempt to move forward with operations for at least a week.Tensions on the island had been rising since the residents gathered to stage a logging blockade broke at the end of last week.

“We are feeling pleased that our efforts have kept these forests standing, which is a win for the community,” community organizer Leah Seltzer said.

“But we are also aware that I.T. crews could return to the island as early as next week.  We are continuing to organize on the ground, expand the movement and prepare for all possibilities.”

The protests were the latest in an ongoing effort by Cortes Island residents to stop logging on their island, which was originally scheduled to begin in January.

Island Timberlands, which plans to industrial log Cortes Island is owned by Brookfield Asset Management with $110 billion in managed assets and bcIMC with $92 billion in managed assets. Recently, China Investment Corporation, a sovereign wealth fund which manages China’s foreign exchange reserves, has negotiated for a 12.5 per cent stake in Island Timberlands.

Island Timberlands expressed a desire to return to negotiations with Cortes Island residents, and their lawyers will be meeting with legal counsel from Straith Litigation Chambers of West Vancouver, who have been retained by Cortes community stakeholders.

Residents of Cortes Island, BC and supporters from across the province began the blockade in late November, in response to the arrival of contractors.

“This follows years of attempts to get Island Timberlands to join us in an ecosystem-based approach to forestry,” Cortes-raised forest activist Zoë Miles said.

“But we have not been met with willingness on the part of I.T.  In fact, their logging plans have consistently failed to meet the wishes of the community.”  Islanders’ stated wishes are to conserve provincially designated sensitive ecosystems and old-growth stands, protect wetlands and salmon-bearing streams, and agree to no clear-cut logging.

Many Cortes residents have made it clear that they not categorically opposed to all types of logging: they said they would support it if done in a sustainable manner.

At stake are some of the last 1 per cent of old-growth Coastal Douglas-fir forests, a number of documented threatened species, and provincially designated sensitive ecosystems.  Also at stake is a local and provincial economy that could use the long-term forestry jobs, say residents who believe I.T.’s industrial forestry model employs few locals, and only for the short term, while shipping most of their logs raw to Asian markets.

Community members hope that the situation can be resolved in a way that meets local needs.  Until then, islanders will be standing in the way of the equipment, and keeping a close eye on any further signs of I.T. activity on the island.