Residents stop for a chat amid the country ambience of Jordan River, where land-use issues remain a hot topic.

Waterfront reserves urged as part of Jordan River area land sale

The zoning of much of Western Forest Products' land now up for sale between Sooke and Jordan River would allow homes to be built on four-hectare lots, blocking off waterfront traditionally used for recreation.

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Central Saanich is home to numerous farms and is known for its rural character.

CRD resists Vantreight plan

There is no way an 89-unit mix of houses, duplexes and townhouses on a rocky knoll in Central Saanich could be considered rural, says a Capital Regional District committee.

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Emergency!

Spill is one of worst on the North Slope

A BP pipeline burst today, creating a massive spill on the North Slope in Alaska. Pipelines across BC's salmon streams still seem like a good idea?

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Oil tanker traffic: a risk that the vast majority of British Columbians are not willing to take.

Ottawa to hear case for pipeline

An oil pipeline to the West Coast moved a step closer to fruition after regulatory agencies Friday geared up to begin considering Calgarybased Enbridge's plans to build the $4-billion Gateway line to Kitimat, but environmental and native groups in British Columbia are already lining up against the project.

rotation: pause | resume

Lands and Forests

BC’s lands and forests define our province. A vital part of our collective history, it is up to all of us to ensure their sustainable future.

With the cumulative pressures and turbulence from the global economic crisis, the US housing downturn, climate change, the pine beetle epidemic, corporate control of forests and real estate developments, BC’s forests and forestry industry are in need of innovative solutions.

"From Jan. 1, 2003 to June 1, 2008, Canada's forest-products industry saw 38,428 layoffs and 207 mill closings – 90 permanent and 117 indefinite, ... Of these lost jobs, 10,367 were in B.C.", Globe and Mail.

It won’t be easy, but recognizing the challenges we face in BC's forests, and seeing those challenges as opportunities is the first step towards realizing positive change.

Local and diverse control of tenure, a focus on domestic markets, value-added production, revenue sharing for resource based communities, and recognizing forests multiple values and economic uses, are all parts of the solution.

We are all in this together. And we have gained significant successes.

Real solutions do exist in BC's ongoing forest crisis. The Coalition for Sustainable Forest Solutions, along with ordinary British Columbians, are taking part in a growing provincial movement to usher in local, sustainable control of our forest legacy.

More about Lands and Forests...