Forested Land and Old Growth

Healthy forest lands are key to maintaining healthy watersheds and healthy communities.  There is a tension between the ecological value of forested land and the value of ensuring that forests are properly managed to supply economic products forever.  B.C. has mechanisms in place that reflect both values. 

Forested lands provides important habitat for various plant and animal species, protecting the biological diversity of an area.  The trees and ground-cover protect the soil, preventing erosion and the run-off of silt into streams and lakes.  Some studies suggest that the economic benefits of standing trees far outweigh their value as timber. 

Old growth forests are particularly valuable for protecting biological diversity because:

·         Old growth forests include a range of different types of trees, usually including a wide range of species and ages.  This means that different species are more likely to be able to find an environment that suits them. 

·         Some species depend on the large branches and other characteristics of old trees;

·         The species that are attracted to recently logged forests are aggressive pioneers, unlikely to be at risk anytime soon.  By contrast, old growth forests provide a more reliable environment for less aggressive and more niche specific species – the very species most likely to be threatened by change.  (See the Endangered Species page);

Of course there are different types of old growth forests.  The forest industry often talks about the amount of old growth which will not be logged, but this includes land which is only marginally forested, or which includes only trees considered uneconomical for logging.  The fact is, it is the land that is good for logging that also produces the big trees suited for spotted owl habitat and in many cases for other species.  That’s not to say that high-elevation old growth forests are not important, but the valley bottoms must be protected as well. 

At the same time, some second growth forests – particularly older forests that were selectively logged and/or naturally reseeded (which results in more diversity than manual replanting) – do provide important habitat for species.

Public Forests

95% of the province of British Columbia is publicly owned.  Forested land can be protected through one of the many land-use designations intended for use on public lands.  The most common of these is the provincial park designation, which has been used to protect significant areas of forested and other land from industrial development. 

Outside parks and other protected areas, most provincial forest lands are regulated under the provincial Forest Act and Forest Practices Code.  These statutes require various types of forestry planning.  For more information about legislation governing forestry generally see the Guide page on Forestry.  However there is one tool under the Forest Practices Code and its policies that specifically aims to protect representative samples of old growth and other stages of forest development.  The Biodiversity Guidebook (a policy document) requires government to identify “old growth management areas” or OGMAs and to designate them as Landscape Units under the Forest Practices Code.  The old growth character of the area must be maintained in any logging operations that take place.  The Biodiversity Guidebook was supposed to also require landscape units to be identified to protect mature and other types of forest that were younger than old-growth.  However, the government has announced that only the OGMA planning will be implemented at this time. 

Private Forests

The law presumes that a private land owner has the right to choose what is done on his or her land.  As a result, government is often reluctant to meddle in a landowner’s decision to log a property. 

Forestry may be regulated under the Forest Land Reserve Act, which gives a logger tax breaks in return for committing to replant after logging and filing logging plans.   However, the requirements are minimal.

If the logging is being done to clear land for development, a local government may be able to pass zoning-bylaws that prevent (or allow) the intended development, thereby indirectly affecting the financial rewards of clearing the land.  In addition, local government may be able to pass by-laws regulating the cutting of particular trees.  However, local governments cannot pass by-laws specifically regulating forestry. 

Other Tools

If the forested land you are interested in has other features (for example, it is home to endangered species, it shelters a stream, etc.), try looking up the Guide pages related to those features.  If the forest land is protected by a particular type of development, read the Guide pages on that type of development.  

Related Guide Pages:

·         Forestry

·         Forest Act

·         Forest Land Reserve Act

·         Forest Practices Code

·         Forest Planning

·         Sustainable Forest Management Plans

For more information on Forested Land and Old Growth:

·         B.C. Ministry of Forests website, including the Biodiversity Guidebook. 

·         “Top 10 Forestry Fables” by Jim Pojar, forest ecologist. 

·         British Columbia Environmental Network Forest Caucus

·         A Cut Above – A David Suzuki Foundation Report on an ecosystem based approach to forestry