Province kneels to industry

Poor forest management will see BC property values fall and insurance costs rise. Why?

Flooding from clear cuts — Anthony Britneff, retired senior official at BC Forest Service, predicts more Grand Forks style flooding. Citizens that lost their retirement, livelihood and community infrastructure must wonder how the Premier considers this sustainable. Heavy snow packs, direct sunlight on clear cuts speeds melting, rushing runoff into town. It may be your town next.

Watersheds —  only account for 1.5 per cent of BC landmass but are logged at a frenzied pace. Vancouver, Victoria, NYC, Seattle and Portland forbid logging in watersheds. Currently over 26 BC communities are fighting to protect theirs. Logging these water purifying ecosystems results in dirty water flowing to your community water system, wildlife driven into town to eat your plants and pets and costly system maintenance expenses.

Expense 1 — When forestry logs the watershed, water of poor and inconsistent quality flows to the water treatment plant, the plant cannot adequately treat water so boil water advisories result. Dirty water causes higher deterioration on water infrastructure. Soon new treatment plants and infrastructure are required. Forestry doesn’t pay for this, taxpayers do. Example: $24 million for a new water treatment plant equals $4,500 per Peachland citizen.

Expense 2  — Government subsidized spraying to kill deciduous trees. Done to improve coniferous tree harvests while negatively affecting habitats, biodiversity and community fire resistance. Deciduous trees slow and stop wildfires. Deciduous spraying is a government handout costing taxpayers; money and perhaps lives.

Tourism — "Beauty strips" support the Beautiful BC illusion. Beauty strips are unlogged forest left around communities and roadways to make the public and tourists think that they are living in an intact, well managed forest. Climb up your local ridge or go to Big White to observe vistas of clear cut. Tourists are starting to catch wind complaining that the country side looks like a patchwork quilt.

Why does all this continue?

Government is captured by industry and politicians are too soft to mount a fight. I’m not picking on the NDP. This has been going on for a long time. They are as guilty as the Liberals.

Forestry is governed by “Professional Reliance”. In other words, the companies govern themselves.

Peachland council has requested a logging moratorium from the provincial government. Minister of Forests Donaldson had a political lackey respond that logging would continue despite the moratorium request.

Donaldson’s kneeling to industry will drive BC property values down while insurance costs rise.

Get your wallet ready.

Michael Huber, Peachland, BC