Forest Practices Code and Forest and Range Practices Act

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. 

Both Acts provide some special tools to protect certain resources, by designating a particular area under the Code.  It is not currently clear who will be responsible for creating these designations.  These land use designations include:

·                       Community Watersheds – Under the Code, logging plans in designated Community Watersheds received a higher level of government supervision, including sign-off from a representative of the Ministry of Environment.  Under the FRPA it appears that industry will need to meet more stringent results, although these results have not yet been made publicly available. 

·                       Wildlife Habitat Areas – Under the Code it was possible to designate an area of critical wildlife habitat as a Wildlife Habitat Area.  This would involve setting key objectives for protecting the habitat of the identified species.  Wildlife Habitat Areas are not the same as Wildlife Management Areas under the Wildlife Act; WHAs only provide protection against operations under the Forest Practices Code, whereas the WMAs provide a higher level of protection.  The province is in the process of identifying wildlife habitat areas through its Identified Wildlife Management Strategy. 

·                       Watersheds with Significant Downstream Fisheries Values – A discussion paper on the FRPA indicated that Watersheds with Significant Downstream Fisheries Values would be a significant type of land use designation under the FRPA.  Presumably industrial actors in such a watershed will need, as with community watersheds, to meet special results or rules.  However, the relevant regulations are not yet publicly available.

Related Guide Pages:

·          Forest Practices Code

·          Wildlife Act

·          Wildlife Protection

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

·          Ministry of Water, Land and Air Protection’s Identified Wildlife Management Strategy website.

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

·          West Coast Environmental Law’s Comments on the Identified Wildlife Management Strategy