Prince George, B.C. – It’s been 20 years in the making, but there is finally a deal  designed to bring an end to the  controversy over  logging in the Great Bear Rainforest.

The agreement  will allow logging to take place in about 15% of the  region,  which covers about  64,000 sq km (24,710 sq mi) .  What is critical to this agreement is the  approval and inclusion of the First Nations in the area, who will  reap benefits from the  forestry activities,  with the Province giving them  $15 million dollars as  well as boosting First Nations   share  of the timber rights in the region.

Although the agreement will allow harvesting in 15% of the  region,  but less than 0.1% per year can be harvested per year, over the next 250 years.

The agreement  is the result of  a collaborative  approach  which involved the  First Nations, Province,  Forest industries and  environmental groups.

The agreement  officially brings to an end  the “War in the Woods”  which  has raged over the past 20 years in an effort to protect  the Great Bear Rainforest.

“This ( agreement) is world class” says Dallas Smith, president, Nanwakolas Tribal Council  “The work that we’ve been able to do , the bridges  that we’ve been able to  overcome, doesn’t happen by accident.  It’s people who  are committed to understanding that there is a better way to do things  and everybody has conceded a little bit.”