Enlighten Me; Can BC support logging?

[Sunwatersoil]

Foresters say their current harvesting practices are based off a replication of historical natural disturbances such as wildfires, infestation, tree pathology, and other natural events. I’ve heard that because of the wildfire suppression regime in place BC has an excess of old growth forest that can be harvested. Considering BC is currently experiencing severe wildfires and beetle kill covering much of the province is this claim still justifiable? Is logging in BC in it’s current state just flogging a dead horse?

Feel free to point me towards sources that support or disprove sustainable forestry in BC.

[Scooter]

I can't imagine that anyone (other than a logger) would say that BC has an "excess" of old growth that can be harvested. But that's just my opinion.
Try doing some research on Annual Allowable Cut, and how that gets determined.

[jdtesluk]

Good question. I would suggest that it is not only the current state of logging, but also the current state of disturbance and our capacity to adapt that has to be questioned. I would go on further here but I just don't think I could keep it short.
As for "excess old growth"....well that depends on how you define "old growth". There certainly are some "decadent" older stocks of crappy wood in the north (balsam hemi) but if you want to talk about coastal old-growth where the big value timber is (cedar, fir) there is simply no way to claim an excess without simply lying.

[Sunwatersoil]

Thanks for the responses. AAC can be exceedingly simple or intensely complex dependent on the formula used.

In my jaunt around google for information on AAC I came across a report released in Feb 2018 by the MoF about re-evaluating the AAC in the Cariboo region on account of the 2017 fires.

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/assets/gov/farmi ... _fires.pdf

Conclusion: Although the Cariboo region experienced 80% of the province’s fires in 2017 and over 1 million Ha burned, the report concluded that the present AAC does not need to be revised if logging in the area focuses on salvaging burnt timber. Although, post-salvage the impact of the fire will likely apply “downward pressure” on future AAC in the region.

[TripleS]

AAC is supposed too be based on the cumulative annual growth of the fibre in BC's harvestable forests and therefore sustainable. MPB #&*%ed everything leading to huge increases in AAC through salvage logging to at least get some economic value out of all the dead forests. This resulted in supermills to deal with the huge supply of logs. Now we have AACs below pre MPB levels to compensate for the overharvest of the last 15 years. That means not enough logs within a reasonable distance to feed the supermills so these mills are closing down in many towns and logs are travelling ridiculous distances to keep just one of these supermills going where there had previously been 3 or 4. Now we have all these fires which has led to more salvage logging and will likely again result in a lower AAC in the future. It looks like tough times ahead for logging.
When practiced with ecosystem based management in mind, logging is something BC should support as it is essential to the survival of most of rural BC, and is about as close to being a sustainable industry as you get.

[newforest]

So I have been wondering something about management in British Columbia for some time - why doesn't BC manage _FOR_ Aspen? Is there no mill base that can use the species at all? Are the distances involved too great to invest in a mill for what would turn out to be only a small supply of stems? Does the Aspen not make useable pulp somehow?

Where I live it is a major commercial species. The majority goes simply for pulp, but there is a market for sawing a portion of it. It is sometimes even given management inputs - post-harvest brushing, though only where it was neglected for too long before harvest. Also those inputs are driven by concern for total Grouse habitat quantity more than commercial ones.

Anyway I have read about the introduction of large-scale commercial herbicide application for forest stand management, in BC. I have seen that routinely in my career in the U.S. south-east, where conifer rotation time has been lowered to 25 years and is continuing to shorten; deciduous regen is routinely killed there as a standard Forestry practice. I never thought it would come to where I live, in the Great Lakes states, but it has - largely for Red Pine (P. resinosa, maybe Pr ?) plantation management (40 year rotations now, on best sites), though hardly anyone knows this.


[ this post triggered by - Today I read of a donation of 100K seedlings to a Great Lakes state (US), for "carbon offsets", by a travel agency, due to all the plane tix they sell. The state gov't agency accepting the basically $16K (few know that figure, amount not actually disclosed) donation told the press - "we have 1.5 million acres in need of reforestation" - pretty much a straight up lie, but very few would ever dispute the statement. Reforestation is quite often about controlling the species that grows, and does not always mean planting trees where none would otherwise exist; sometime yes, sometimes no. That state does not have anywhere close to 1.5 million acres without trees on it already.]

[salbrecher]

BC does manage for deciduous, just not all timber supply areas. Northern BC AAC's (I quickly just looked at Nelsons and Fort St John's) have a significant deciduous component of 30-50% of the AAC.

https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/indu ... pply-areas

[jdtesluk]

Red Alder has been one of the priciest woods to come out of BC in some recent years. High quality mature stands are desirable for cabinetry and other finishing. However, it is a challenge to convince foresters to grow large areas of it, when it's not part of their current income stream. There are hurdles with regulations associated species migration and planting different tree species than you take out. It also requires consideration of harvest plans, as mixing hardwood and softwood isn't great if they take different lengths of time to mature, and you have no inclination toward a selective harvest. Basically, our provincial engine is built to run on one fuel, and switching to another (while potentially desirable with market advantages) has significant change-over costs in silviculture, planning, harvesting, and processing.

[RPF]

Currently, most alder on the market is incidental to conifer harvesting. Unless there is a ready market for the species, it is often left at roadside as "waste". And that's the rub against managing for alder from a logging company perspective. A limited market and a relatively higher cost of managing an alder plantation are probably the main reasons alder is not looked at seriously as a long-term species. You must remember, in BC, most, if not all, logging/milling companies don't look beyond month end financial statements. And for foresters to spend the time and effort required to convince the bean counters alder management is a good thing, well guess what, those foresters will probably be looking for another job very soon. It's unfortunate, but that's reality - I've been there.

[Scooter]

I planted a couple of red alder blocks in early April, on the north Island. But it is very uncommon.

[Cyper]

BC Timber Sales has been planting red alder on the islands east and south of Port McNeill for a few years now. Not huge amounts but tens of thousands of them. They are having planters install 30 gram t-bag fertilizer with them. The seedlings are in 512A plugs. They won't allow planting before April 15th. I assume alder must be very frost intolerant. BCTS McNeill is one of the most forward thinking and planter friendly districts I've seen. They really care and go the extra mile to get the job done properly.