By Sydney Lobe, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter CANADAB次元官网网址橲 NATIONAL OBSERVER

Years ago, ecologist Dr. Karen Price walked through a forest ravaged by wildfire that had been logged and replanted. It was a uniform mass of pine trees, devoid of birds and wildlife B次元官网网址� it was B次元官网网址渆cologically boring,B次元官网网址� she recalls.

By contrast, the nearby eco reserve B次元官网网址� which had also burned, but was left undisturbed B次元官网网址� was a sound bath of bird calls and rustling leaves, and home to rare wildlife like goshawks.

She notes that while this is just an anecdote, the juxtaposition was a more powerful illustration of the difference between a forest logged for B次元官网网址渟alvage lumberB次元官网网址� and one left to regrow naturally than sheB次元官网网址檇 seen in any graphs of young forests.

Price, alongside other experts, is expressing concern that salvage logging B次元官网网址� the process of logging wildfire-disturbed forests B次元官网网址� has no ecological benefit and contradicts B.C.B次元官网网址檚 promise to prioritize ecosystem health over timber. They say, in that context, the process should be reconsidered.

However, the B.C. government released new regulations in April that expedite the practice.

The 2023 wildfires were the most destructive in B.C.B次元官网网址檚 history, and burned out more than 2.8 million hectares of forest. In April, the provincial government introduced new measures that make logging wildfire-damaged timber easier and B次元官网网址渕ore economicB次元官网网址� for forestry operations and First Nations, according to a press release accompanying the change.

The release explains that B次元官网网址渟alvage allows for quicker reforestation efforts and land recovery after wildfires,B次元官网网址� and the new measures streamline the process to allow for these outcomes.

In a panel facilitated by Conservation North, an environmental group, many experts agreed that salvage logging is carried out to compensate for lost timber profits post-fire, but reforestation and land recovery actually occur more productively without such interference.

B次元官网网址淲e always think we have to do something, that we have to fix something,B次元官网网址� Price told CanadaB次元官网网址檚 National Observer. B次元官网网址淥ften, the best action to restore an ecosystem is to let it restore itself. Nature does better than humans.B次元官网网址�

The Draft B.C. Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health Framework, introduced in 2023, describes a vision for resource management that focuses on protecting biodiversity and ecosystem health.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檝e come from a long history of industrialized forestry,B次元官网网址� says Lennard Joe, CEO of the BC First Nations Forestry Council, as well as a registered professional forester and member of the NlakaB次元官网网址檖amux First Nation. B次元官网网址淣ow weB次元官网网址檙e being faced with changes in climate, and itB次元官网网址檚 extreme. WeB次元官网网址檝e got to find ways to move forward.B次元官网网址�

The Old Growth Strategic Review, another effort to reevaluate the provinceB次元官网网址檚 natural resource priorities and old growth management, acknowledges that B次元官网网址渟ociety is undergoing a paradigm shift in its relationship with the environment, and the way we manage our old forests needs to adapt accordingly.B次元官网网址�

Price says the move to streamline salvage logging is B次元官网网址渧ery concerning, because it goes against any potential `paradigm shift.B次元官网网址滲次元官网网址�

Eddie Petryshen, a conservation specialist with environmental advocacy group Wildsight, says the continued practice of salvage logging hinges on a misunderstanding. Also sometimes called harvest or sanitation logging B次元官网网址� and said to promote B次元官网网址渞enewalB次元官网网址� and B次元官网网址渞ecoveryB次元官网网址� B次元官网网址� the implication is that the practice fosters a healthier, more resilient ecosystem, he says.

B次元官网网址淲eB次元官网网址檙e acting like thatB次元官网网址檚 a really good thing to be happening on the landscape and that we need to streamline it to make it easier to incentivize it,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淭his is what some of the worldB次元官网网址檚 best forest ecologists call `attacks on natural ecological recovery.B次元官网网址滲次元官网网址�

Price agrees. B次元官网网址淟ogging is logging,B次元官网网址� she says. B次元官网网址淵ouB次元官网网址檙e removing trees from an ecosystem. And in that perspective, it doesnB次元官网网址檛 matter if youB次元官网网址檙e removing it from a live forest or dead forest.B次元官网网址�

Price explains that actually, dead trees often have as much or more ecological value as live trees. They continue to store carbon, benefit species that rely on dead or burnt wood and create a biodiverse environment.

Areas where salvage logging and replanting occurs often become B次元官网网址渂iological deserts,B次元官网网址� she says, removing natural complexity that is essential for the wellbeing of forests. Disturbed trees, fallen logs, and snags (dead trees left upright to degrade) all contribute to a healthier ecosystem than those that develop after salvage and replanting.

The ministry argued in a statement that salvage logging makes forests more resilient against wildfire.

B次元官网网址淏y salvaging dead and dying trees, we are reducing fuel and the risk of future wildfires,B次元官网网址� the ministry said in a statement. Experts outside the government disagree, saying salvage and replanting can actually increase that fuel, as well as the severity of future burns. On the other hand, burned forests left alone can resist wildfire for at least 20 years.

A 2021 study from Forest Ecology and Management concludes that B次元官网网址渟alvage logging does not necessarily prevent subsequent disturbances, and sometimes it may increase disturbance likelihood and magnitude.B次元官网网址�

For Price, a wealth of factors B次元官网网址� the primary values of the specific ecosystem in question, what kinds of trees are being harvested and fire severity B次元官网网址� need to be considered for salvage to take place in a way that honours a shift away from timber-centric values.

But Petryshen explains that the province incentivizes salvage by reducing fees for logging burned wood and making regular adjustments to the amount of timber logging companies are allowed to log each year on the basis of how much burned wood is available to salvage B次元官网网址� such as the changes made in April.

Since natural resources are managed provincially, salvage logging regulations vary province to province in Canada. In general, salvage logging is noted in different provincesB次元官网网址� forest legislation as an option following wildfire or other natural disturbances. Many provinces, including B.C., provide incentives for salvage, like reduced fees for harvesting, or adjusting a predetermined harvest volume to allow for salvage. In Alberta, Manitoba, Ontario and Quebec, the amount of harvest allowed per year can also be adjusted to account for the salvage of wildfire-burned areas.

Salvage logging is an economically important practice across the country. In B.C., companies and First Nations rely on salvage logging to compensate for timber lost to wildfires.

Joe, with the First Nations Forestry Council, notes that for the majority of First Nations reserves in rural areas in B.C., forestry is a primary economic business.

B次元官网网址淪alvage is a part of the process,B次元官网网址� he says. B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 a number of things you have to balance when you look at it. B次元官网网址� You canB次元官网网址檛 just do a simple brushstroke.B次元官网网址�

The Ministry of Forests said in its statement that values such as B次元官网网址渞etention, watershed health, water quality, wildlife habitat, biodiversity, burn severity, hydrological systems, soil productivity, cultural values and reforestationB次元官网网址� must be considered when salvage logging.

For Price, the solution isnB次元官网网址檛 to do away with salvage logging altogether, itB次元官网网址檚 to reconsider the approach from a perspective thatB次元官网网址檚 B次元官网网址渆cologically based, so it puts ecological values at the forefront, adding timber as a service that the ecosystem provides for humans.B次元官网网址�

B次元官网网址淲e are living amidst biodiversity and climate crises,B次元官网网址� she adds. B次元官网网址淓very decision we make should be in that context.B次元官网网址�

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