The B.C. government laid out its plan Tuesday for the first overhaul of forest policy in 20 years, with a shift to Indigenous control of Crown resources, and two more years of consultation on extending temporary protection of old-growth forests to more areas of the province.
Old-growth areas deferred from logging last year will be added to, but they will be further deferrals, not bans on logging, as the province redistributes its vast public forest lands, Forests Minister Katrine Conroy said.
Conroy and Premier John Horgan released the governmentB次元官网网址檚 20-point policy paper June 1, setting a target to increase the Indigenous share of timber cutting rights to 10 per cent of the total. Horgan emphasized that the province wonB次元官网网址檛 move unilaterally to ban logging, because that would be another colonial-style imposition on Indigenous peopleB次元官网网址檚 land rights.
The policy framework was released as daily arrests continue at a set of logging protest roadblocks the premierB次元官网网址檚 Vancouver Island constituency, with police enforcing a court injunction granted to Surrey-based Teal Jones Group to harvest areas containing trees that are 250 years old or more. The protests have continued despite objections from the Pacheedaht Nation, which has demanded the protesters leave the territory.
Horgan said an independent report by foresters created deferral areas of 2,000 square kilometres, as big as most of Metro Vancouver, and further deferrals of logging are possible, but discussions with the Pacheedaht and other area Indigenous groups are confidential until they are complete.
B次元官网网址淚n a time of gang violence, where we are deploying more law enforcement to address the challenges of criminals, itB次元官网网址檚 very difficult to watch law enforcement being utilized to address the passions of people in old growth forests,B次元官网网址� Horgan said. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 hard work, and it involves not going back to our colonial past and dictating to Indigenous communities what they can and cannot do.B次元官网网址�
B.C. Green Party leader Sonia Furstenau echoed the environmental groups staging the blockades, calling the NDP governmentB次元官网网址檚 plan B次元官网网址渘o actionB次元官网网址� on old growth preservation.
B次元官网网址淭oday Premier Horgan said it will be 2023 by the time a new old growth plan is introduced.B次元官网网址� Furstenau said. B次元官网网址淚n the meantime, we will continue to lose irreplaceable ancient forests because of his broken promises and refusal to take meaningful action.B次元官网网址�
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