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Concerns Raised over State of British Columbia's Great Bear Rainforest
ForestEthics news release
January 14, 2003
San Francisco - Responding to Clearcutting Canada's Rainforest, a report released by three Canadian environmental organizations today, ForestEthics committed to ensure that the information reaches buyers of British Columbia (BC) forest products.
"While we are pleased that the pristine valleys in BC's Great Bear Rainforest remain intact, we're concerned about the continuation of clearcutting in the rest of these temperate rainforests," said Merran Smith, Director, BC Coastal Program, ForestEthics.
ForestEthics remains a partner in the Joint Solutions Project, the BC government's land-use planning tables, and First Nations pilot projects working toward coastal conservation solutions. However, ForestEthics is concerned that the process has been slow, and hopes that by the end of this year, ecosystem-based management will be the method of managing forests throughout the Great Bear Rainforest.
"We are in close contact with hundreds of customers of BC wood and paper products. We will be mailing this report to them as they have a right to know the true status of logging in the Great Bear Rainforest," said Smith. In April 2001 the Great Bear Rainforest area made headlines with the announcement that the BC government, environmental organizations, native people, and the timber industry had forged a landmark Phase One agreement. The signatories agreed to place 1.5 million acres under preliminary protection, develop a conservation plan for another 2.2 million acres, and move towards "ecosystem-based" logging everywhere else.
In order to ensure resolution of environmental conflicts on the coast of BC, and the full implementation of the April 2001 agreement: - Agreements on conservation status for the pristine valleys and high biodiversity areas in the Great Bear Rainforest must be reached; - Ecosystem-Based Management must be implemented across the Great Bear Rainforest, including an end to clearcutting; - Adequate support from government and other sources must be given to First Nations and coastal communities to help the transition to a diversified and sustainable economy.
Clearcutting Canada's Rainforests is based on research conducted by the David Suzuki Foundation, Raincoast Conservation Society and Forest Watch of British Columbia, including analysing 227 logging plans and conducting aerial surveys of the forests and ground visits to logging sites. Clearcutting was defined as removing more than 80% of the trees.
Background information on the Great Bear Rainforest is available at www.forestethics.org/forests/gbr.html.
The report can be downloaded from www.canadianrainforests.org.
January 14, 2003
San Francisco - Responding to Clearcutting Canada's Rainforest, a report released by three Canadian environmental organizations today, ForestEthics committed to ensure that the information reaches buyers of British Columbia (BC) forest products.
"While we are pleased that the pristine valleys in BC's Great Bear Rainforest remain intact, we're concerned about the continuation of clearcutting in the rest of these temperate rainforests," said Merran Smith, Director, BC Coastal Program, ForestEthics.
ForestEthics remains a partner in the Joint Solutions Project, the BC government's land-use planning tables, and First Nations pilot projects working toward coastal conservation solutions. However, ForestEthics is concerned that the process has been slow, and hopes that by the end of this year, ecosystem-based management will be the method of managing forests throughout the Great Bear Rainforest.
"We are in close contact with hundreds of customers of BC wood and paper products. We will be mailing this report to them as they have a right to know the true status of logging in the Great Bear Rainforest," said Smith. In April 2001 the Great Bear Rainforest area made headlines with the announcement that the BC government, environmental organizations, native people, and the timber industry had forged a landmark Phase One agreement. The signatories agreed to place 1.5 million acres under preliminary protection, develop a conservation plan for another 2.2 million acres, and move towards "ecosystem-based" logging everywhere else.
In order to ensure resolution of environmental conflicts on the coast of BC, and the full implementation of the April 2001 agreement: - Agreements on conservation status for the pristine valleys and high biodiversity areas in the Great Bear Rainforest must be reached; - Ecosystem-Based Management must be implemented across the Great Bear Rainforest, including an end to clearcutting; - Adequate support from government and other sources must be given to First Nations and coastal communities to help the transition to a diversified and sustainable economy.
Clearcutting Canada's Rainforests is based on research conducted by the David Suzuki Foundation, Raincoast Conservation Society and Forest Watch of British Columbia, including analysing 227 logging plans and conducting aerial surveys of the forests and ground visits to logging sites. Clearcutting was defined as removing more than 80% of the trees.
Background information on the Great Bear Rainforest is available at www.forestethics.org/forests/gbr.html.
The report can be downloaded from www.canadianrainforests.org.