When forestry activities in coastal British Columbia are among the most sustainable in North America, a major component of the solution will have been achieved. 

Historically, heavy logging took precedence over ecological integrity and community stability. Most of the benefits, particularly employment, flowed out of the coast to other parts of BC. And the sensitive ecology in the Great Bear Rainforest was jeopardized when wildlife and ecological reserve requirements were capped to maintain an unsustainable Allowable Annual Cut.

Government and industry plans in the late 1990s showed that virtually every valley in the rainforest was slated for road building and clearcutting. If these logging practices were allowed to continue, the Great Bear Rainforest, and the species and communities that depend on it, would have not survived another ten years.

When the environmental groups have completed their work, forestry practices throughout the Great Bear Rainforest will have to meet stringent requirements set out under Ecosystem-Based Management.  EBM contains significantly more effective conservation measures than provincial environmental legislation and regulations.  It also balances socio-economic and environmental outcomes, while emphasizing the restoration of ecological integrity.

The groups working on the coast believe that companies should also seek the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) Certification.  FSC is the internationally recognized symbol of sustainability and the only system that certifies the actual implementation of logging plans on the ground. Its use will gain BC secure market share in a world increasingly demanding green products.

photos: Adrian Dorst (banner), Mike Wigle/Jumping Mouse Studio (centre)