Union of BC Indian Chiefs passes old-growth forest resolution

Exciting news! The Union of BC Indian Chiefs (UBCIC) has passed a resolution calling on the BC Government to work with First Nations to protect old-growth forests while engaging and supporting Indigenous communities.

The resolution, passed last month at the UBCIC AGM, follows the BC government’s Sept 11 release of a report by an independent panel tasked with reviewing BC’s forest policies. The panel’s report contains 14 recommendations that form a blueprint for a new BC forest regime that is centred on Indigenous involvement and puts ecosystem health ahead of timber values.

In the resolution, the UBCIC Chiefs-in-Assembly call on the province to implement all 14 of the panel’s recommendations and to expand logging deferrals to encompass “all threatened old-growth forests” in consultation with First Nations.

They also call for funding to support First Nations-led land-use plans, Indigenous Protected Area management, private land purchase, and conservation economies.

Read the full resolution here: