It started with an invitation. The Nuxalk First Nation asked Greenpeace in 1994 to visit the Central Coast of British Columbia to witness the destruction of the Great Bear Rainforest.

One year later, environmental groups launched the campaign to protect the rainforests on both the North and Central Coast of BC. Soon, blockades in important valleys of the coastal rainforest would dominate the news. The widespread attention was significantly helped by protests in 1993 over logging in Clayoquot Sound on Vancouver Island, home to the largest act of civil resistance in Canadian history. When nearly 900 people were arrested, the destruction of BC’s ancient forests was beamed around the world, paving the way for the Great Bear Rainforest campaign and more protests.

In 1997, a blockade on Roderick Island would place a temporary halt on Western Forest Products clearcutting. A joint blockade with the Nuxalk First Nation at Ista (Fog Creek) on King Island would stop Interfor logging for 21 days.  After that, many protestors – native and non-native – were arrested.

From the Woods to the Marketplace

As logging blockades continued, environmentalists turned to another pressure point- the marketplace. Environmental groups organized an international markets campaign to tell the world’s pulp and paper customers what exactly was happening to British Columbia’s coastal rainforest and to urge wood product buyers to change their procurement policies.

The result: major wood buying companies like Home Depot and Ikea committed to stop buying forest products from ancient forests. Meanwhile, pulp and paper purchasers threatened to cancel contracts if logging in the Great Bear Rainforest did not change.  Soon after, environmentalists and logging companies agreed on a truce. The first step toward solution.

photos: Adrian Dorst (banner), Traver/Greenpeace (centre)