Forest Practices – Government Objectives

Forest law in British Columbia is currently in a state of flux.  The Forest Practices Code (the “Code”) has for almost a decade set out what planning has to be done before logging takes place.  However, the current government has introduced new legislation, the Forest and Range Practices Act (the “FRPA”), which, once the regulations are developed, will replace the Forest Practices Code.  The two pieces of legislation are significantly different in the detail of planning required under each. 

Under both the Code and the FRPA government may set objectives for forest practices in a particular area.  This is done through “strategic planning” – a process by which government (often with consultation with the public, First Nations and other interests) sets out its goals and intentions for a particular area.  Strategic planning should be contrasted with operational planning which focuses on how government-set goals and results are to be met.  Strategic planning is overseen by the Ministry of Sustainable Resource Management.

While there have been different types of strategic planning (and other forestry planning) in the past, it appears that there will be two main types for the immediate future.  These are:

·          Land and Resource Management Plans (LRMPs) – LRMPs are plans that cover a large area and state generally what the goals for the area will be.  They are developed through discussions facilitated by the government, but with participants from industry, recreational, environmental, First Nations and other sectors of the public.  These plans have generally identified areas that should be:

·          protected;

·          managed taking into account non-timber values (Special management zones);

·          managed in an ordinary way (general management zones); or

·          managed intensively for timber production (enhanced management zones). 

Under the Code these plans were then translated into “higher level plans” – objectives to guide industry planning.  Under the FRPA they will apparently be translated into objectives. 

·          Landscape Units – Landscape units are more specific than the objectives identified at the LRMP level.  They may relate to a single stand or watershed, and usually involve much more specific objectives.  For example, to date landscape unit planning has been used to identify “old growth management areas” – stands of trees necessary for protecting representative samples of old growth forest to ensure biological diversity is protected.  These areas have been identified as part of the Code’s Biodiversity Guidebook.  However, the current government has proposed using them to identify timber targets, that would ensure that a certain level of logging is maintained in an area, raising concerns that environmental objectives may take a back seat to economics.  The government proposes that private parties might partner with government to develop landscape unit objectives through a process called Sustainable Resource Management Planning.  Environmental organizations have expressed strong reservations about turning over planning for public values to logging companies. 

The Acts also provide for various land use designations designed to protect particular values from logging.  The objectives given on this page can be used to similar effect, but government actions to protect community drinking water, fish bearing streams and endangered wildlife are more likely to be dealt with through these land use designations.   

This page will be rewritten, along with other Guide pages about forest legislation and planning, as the regulations for the FRPA become available and come into force.  In the meantime, please consult West Coast Environmental Law’s Guide to Forest Land Use and Planning for information about plans and other legal requirements under the Code. 

Related Guide Pages:

·          Forest Practices Code

·          Sustainable Resource Management Planning

For more information about the Forest and Range Practices Act and the Forest Practices Code:

·          West Coast Environmental Law’s Guide to Forest Land Use and Planning (1999)

·          Resource Management Division of the Ministry of Sustainable Resource Management.