While he won't be chaining himself to a tree anytime soon, Roberts Creek resident Ross Muirhead is hoping to use a different tactic to encourage more eco-conscious logging.
Muirhead recently founded Elphinstone Logging Focus, a sort of one-man watchdog and clearing house for information on logging on Mount Elphinstone.
"I'm not against logging outright. I'm trying to promote alternatives such as eco-forestry as a way to manage our forestlands," Muirhead said.
Mainly, Muirhead said he'd like to see an end to clear cuts, which devastate the local ecology and leave a cut block area looking like a moonscape.
"I think it's a poor practice. There's a real concern about loss of biodiversity. When there's a clear cut, it pretty much destroys everything. It's taking a forest back to ground zero," he said.
Eco-forestry, the concept of logging in ways that are sustainable, can be achieved through selective cutting, something Muirhead has been busy lobbying for with managers of private forests on Elphinstone. While some definitions of eco-forestry include leaving 25 per cent of trees in place, Muirhead said he'd like to see that number as high as 50 to 70.
But Muirhead isn't trying to organize a revolt against B.C. Timber Sales or Island Timberlands, both of which have cut blocks on Elphinstone. Instead, he is simply passing on information through his Elphinstone Logging Focus group on Facebook.
"They could take it upon themselves to write to B.C. Timber Sales or Island Timberlands to voice their concerns. I think they do listen if there is a groundswell of opposition," Muirhead said.
The Facebook page features updates on specific plans for future cut blocks, photos from previous ones and a call for a moratorium on clear cuts on Mount Elphinstone's slopes.
Muirhead said in the communications he's had with B.C. Timber Sales and walkabouts he's done with an Island Timberlands manager, there is some indication the message is getting through.
Makenzie Leine, manager of sustainable timberlands for Island Timberlands, said the company does practice clear cuts with reserves, but it takes things like biodiversity, water and soil quality and recreational value into consideration when planning a cut. She said there is an argument to be made that Island Timberlands is already practicing eco-forestry.
"When we do our planning in an area like this, we look at the values that are there and then manage for those values," she said. "I think we have to be sure that we're not choosing arbitrary percentages based on retention."
She said the company currently retains about 25 per cent of timber for biodiversity and riparian areas already, adding that selective cutting isn't always the best way to ensure a new generation of trees and growth from an old cut block.
As for public opposition, Leine said the company welcomes input from the public and will incorporate specific concerns into any cut plans, but the company still has a mandate to be economically viable at the same time.
"This is managed forest. It was designated by the province as managed forest and we're going to manage it as responsible managed forest landowners," she said, "Anybody can phone us and talk to us. We have a really good open book policy with the public."
