Editor:
BC Timber Sales (BCTS) recently published their five-year plan of forestry operations. I was dismayed to discover that DL 1313 is again targeted for clear-cut logging. DL 1313 is a healthy low-elevation forest with large firs and cedars that regenerated after a big forest fire in 1904. It has never been logged, except some limited hand logging before the fire and has an intact ecosystem that is typical for a maritime forest. It is one of very few remaining mature forests in our area, can be easily reached and is enjoyed by many.
Every few years residents and forest users have to petition to save this forest. Once the logging is postponed there are a few months’ reprieve and then the cycle starts again, as it appears to be doing just now (“Logging delayed one year,” March 9).
It is time to change this cycle and remove DL 1313 once and for all from the BCTS logging inventory. The forest with its rich biodiversity is an asset for all of us. Once logged, wildlife and forest diversity in our area will be lost forever. Clear-cut logging will also bring a significant risk to wells, danger of flooding and mudslides to houses and farmlands down-slope of the forest. Incidentally, DL 1313 is located right where a significant portion of the Gibsons Aquifer water supply comes from.
Economically, logging will not bring that much money, less than $2 million net gain, which pales against the permanent destruction of this beautiful 118-acre forest. The trees on lot 1313 are furthermore structurally weak as they grew very rapidly after the 1904 fire, thus limiting the usefulness of their wood for commercial purposes.
While I support a healthy forest industry and accept that some trees will need to be harvested, there also must be a balance and consideration for other forest users. A major effort must be made to protect some of the remaining coastal rainforests for future generations.
Hermann Ziltener, Gibsons
