Entries by TJ Watt

Conservationists Commemorate 25-Year Anniversary of Clayoquot Sound Mass Protests, Call on BC Government to Finally Do the Right Thing and Protect Old-Growth Forests

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July 5th, 2018, marks 25 years since the launch of the Clayoquot Sound mass blockades against the logging of ancient forest in Clayoquot Sound on Vancouver Island in Nuu-chah-nulth First Nations territory.

Today, conservationists reflect on the impact of the historic movement and are urging the BC government to finally end the main forestry conflicts in BC.

223 international scientists call for urgent action to protect British Columbia’s endangered temperate rainforests

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A total of 223 scientists from nine countries have signed a letter urging the provincial government to take immediate action to protect B.C.'s remaining temperate rain forests!

“BC’s temperate rainforests are globally rare, they offer habitat for many imperiled species and, globally, the vast majority of these unique rainforests has already been logged. Protection of remaining intact tracts of these carbon-rich, climate saving forests is a global responsibility." – Dr. Dominick DellaSala, chief scientist at the Geos Institute in Ashland, Oregon

Veteran B.C. forester weighs in on the continued logging of ancient giants

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Veteran B.C. forester, Anthony Britneff, weighs in on the continued logging of ancient giants and the B.C. government’s attempt to skew the stats on how much old growth forest remains. 

“It is incumbent upon our provincial government to stop the arithmetic trickery and to bring intellectual honesty and scientific thinking to a resolution of the old-growth issue on Vancouver Island.”

BC Government Targets Another Old-Growth Rainforest Forest For Clearcut Logging

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VICTORIA, Unceded Lekwungen Territories – After visiting and documenting Schmidt Creek, the next valley slated for logging by government agency B.C. Timber Sales (BCTS), environmental organizations and Indigenous leaders are ramping up the call for the agency to discontinue logging permits in remaining endangered old-growth rainforests. The documentation of new BCTS logging roads in Schmidt Creek follows the recent discovery by the Ancient Forest Alliance of BCTS logging of endangered rainforest in the Nahmint Valley, near Port Alberni, including near record-sized ancient giants, wider than the biggest Douglas-fir in Cathedral Grove.

B.C. “legacy tree” policy under review after ancient fir logged

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B.C. Timber Sales is reviewing its best management practices for legacy trees with the intent of strengthening a policy brought into question by old-growth logging near Port Alberni.

The Crown agency (BCTS) and the B.C. government have been roundly criticized in recent weeks by conservationists and local First Nations for continuing to allow logging of ancient fir and cedar in the Nahmint Valley.

The fall of giants: irreplaceable trees logged

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Check out this article from Radio Canada International highlighting the contentious logging of pristine old-growth forests, including the 9th largest Douglas fir tree in Canada, in the Nahmint Valley near Port Alberni. Blame is being directed at the BC NDP, since its own logging agency, BC Timber Sales, is responsible for planning and auctioning off the cutblocks.

NDP blamed for failing to save Vancouver Island old-growth giants from logging

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Check out this CBC News article about the logging of ancient forests and near-record-sized trees in the Nahmint Valley, with quotes from Brenda Sayers of the Hupacasath First Nation.

Since the AFA uncovered the intense old-growth logging currently underway in the valley, which is targeting the grandest and highest-productivity monumental groves, the issue has generated widespread media coverage and viral social media attention among millions of people.

Blame for felled Nahmint giant placed on NDP

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Check out this article in the Alberni Valley News about logging in the Nahmint Valley near Port Alberni. 300 hectares of prime old-growth forest, including near record-breaking-sized trees, are currently being logged throughout the valley, despite BC Timber Sales (the BC government's logging agency which auctioned off the cutblocks) having a policy in place meant to protect exceptionally large trees. 

Canada’s Ninth-Widest Douglas-fir Cut Down in Old-Growth Forest Auctioned Off by BC Government’s Logging Agency

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Check out our media release about the cutting of Canada's ninth-widest Douglas-fir tree in the Nahmint Valley near Port Alberni, despite BC Timber Sales – the BC government's logging agency which auctioned off the cutblock – having a policy which is meant to protect exceptionally large trees.

The AFA is now redoubling its efforts to pressure the BC government to direct their logging agency to stop issuing old-growth cutblocks in BC, to implement a Big Tree Protection Order to protect BC’s biggest trees and grandest groves, and most importantly, to develop comprehensive, science-based legislation to protect endangered old-growth forest ecosystems across the province while ensuring a sustainable, value-added, second-growth forest industry.