Ancient Forest Alliance Photographer & Campaigner TJ Watt stands atop an 8ft wide old-growth redcedar stump in a recent clearcut by Teal-Jones on Edinburgh Mt near Port Renfrew.
Sep 22 2016

Old-Growth Clearcutting Fragments “Big Lonely Doug’s Mountain” as Calls for Protection Expand during National Forest Week and before UBCM Annual General Meeting

New clearcuts and roads are fragmenting Edinburgh Mountain, one of the largest contiguous blocks of old-growth forest left on southern Vancouver Island, home to the spectacular Eden Grove ancient forest (aka “Christy Clark Grove”) and Big Lonely Doug, Canada’s 2nd largest Douglas-fir tree. In addition, the mountainside above Eden Grove and Big Lonely Doug are threatened with two new planned clearcuts. Conservationists are renewing their call for the provincial government to protect Vancouver Island's old-growth forests during National Forest Week (Sept.18 to 24) and before the Union of BC Municipalities AGM (Sept.26 to 30) next week. 

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A screenshot from the new Climbing Big Lonely Doug: Round 2 drone video filmed by the Ancient Forest Alliance.
Aug 14 2016

New Spectacular Drone Video of Tree Climbers Scaling Canada’s 2nd Largest Douglas-fir Tree, “Big Lonely Doug”

Today the Ancient Forest Alliance is releasing a spectacular new HD drone video of tree climbers scaling the second largest known Douglas-fir tree in Canada, “Big Lonely Doug”, in a clearcut on Vancouver Island. Remotely-piloted drones equipped with high definition video cameras are a new tool being used by conservationists like the AFA to monitor and document endangered ecosystems such as Vancouver Island’s old-growth temperate rainforests.

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A rare photo of a cougar captured in the endangered Walbran Valley through the front window of AFA photographer TJ Watt's car.
Aug 4 2016

Rare cougar sighting – Mother and juvenile filmed and photographed in the Walbran Valley’s endangered old-growth forest

This past weekend in the Walbran Valley’s endangered old-growth forest, conservation photographer TJ Watt of the Ancient Forest Alliance captured a photograph and video of a rare cougar encounter – two cougars in fact, a large and smaller one, likely a mother with her juvenile offspring. In the brief encounter, the large adult cougar casually bounded across the road, pausing in one instant long enough for Watt to get a somewhat blurry photo through his front window, while the juvenile meandered for about 20 seconds along the road, allowing Watt to capture several seconds of shaky video.

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Jul 7 2016

Rare Lowland Old-Growth Forest at Risk – Road-building and Logging Surveys Underway at Echo Lake, the World’s Largest Night-Roosting Site for Bald Eagles, east of Vancouver

Road-building is scheduled to begin this week and preliminary logging surveys of the old-growth redcedars are underway by Echo Lake, an extremely rare, lowland old-growth forest about 2 hours east of Vancouver between Mission and Agassiz. Echo Lake is part of the drinking watershed for local people, is home to the largest night-roosting site for bald eagles on Earth, and harbours much wildlife including bears, cougars, bobcats, wintering black-tailed deer, osprey, numerous bats, and various Species at Risk. Local landowners and conservationists are redoubling efforts to convince the BC government to protect the endangered north and west sides of the lake.

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Port Renfrew is home to some of the finest ancient forests and largest trees in Canada
May 31 2016

Historic Leap for Old-Growth Forests – BC Chamber of Commerce Passes Resolution for Expanded Protection

The BC Chamber of Commerce passed a resolution at its annual general meeting in Kelowna yesterday calling on the provincial government to increase protection for the province’s old-growth forests. The resolution calls on the province to: “Support the increased protection of old-growth forests in areas of the province where they have or can likely have a greater net economic value for communities if they are left standing for the next generation and beyond.”

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Ancient Forest Alliance
May 19 2016

The WestShore Chamber of Commerce Supports Port Renfrew’s Call for the Protection of the Central Walbran Valley’s Old-Growth Forest

Conservationists are delighted that the WestShore Chamber of Commerce, representing almost 400 businesses in the western suburbs of Victoria has issued a letter in support of the Port Renfrew Chamber of Commerce’s request to the province of British Columbia that it protect the Central Walbran Valley from old-growth logging.

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Feb 26 2016

Old-Growth Momentum Grows as Businesses, City Councils, and Naturalists Speak Up & Renowned Filmmaker Comes to Port Renfrew

Interest and concern for the fate of Vancouver Island’s endangered old-growth forests is on the rise, as a renowned filmmaker and his crew arrived earlier this week from the US to do a piece about the old-growth forests around Port Renfrew. In addition, a growing and diverse base of businesses, municipal councils, and natural history associations have joined the chorus of concerned citizens calling on the province to protect the endangered old-growth forest in the Central Walbran Valley on Vancouver Island near Port Renfrew.

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Port Alberni Watershed Forest-Alliance's Jane Morden stands amongst old-growth Douglas-fir trees in the Cameron Valley Firebreak
Jan 21 2016

Support Grows Among Major Conservation Groups for a Provincial Fund to Buy New Parks

Momentum is growing as 16 major BC conservation and recreational groups have now signed onto the call for the BC government to establish a dedicated provincial fund that can be used to purchase and protect endangered private lands of high environmental and recreational significance.

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Dec 14 2015

Port Renfrew Chamber of Commerce Calls for the Protection of the Central Walbran Valley’s Old-Growth Forest

Great news! The Port Renfrew Chamber of Commerce, representing 73 businesses, is calling for the protection of the Central Walbran Valley's old-growth forests! See here for today's media release.

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Dec 12 2015

Conservationists Call for Innovative Fund to Buy New Parks

Victoria, BC – Conservationists are calling on the BC government to establish a Natural Lands Acquisition Fund. In a new report (https://www.elc.uvic.ca/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2015/12/FindingMoneyForParks-2015-02-08-web.pdf) prepared for the Ancient Forest Alliance, the UVic Environmental Law Centre (ELC) is calling on the Province to establish an annual $40 million Natural Lands Acquisition Fund to purchase and protect endangered ecosystems on private lands.

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