Does any of this money actually hit the ground or is it all swallowed up in bureaucracy?

Precisely.... what have they actually done? Where is the value added wood production part, for instance? How many jobs have they created that does not depend on a depleting wood resource?

Stated in another way, if we only have 50% of the normal AAC in another 5 to 10 years, for a period of some 30 to 40 years, what changes will be made so that the products which will be produced from that 50% feedstock will employ twice as many people at similar incomes to thoose presently working in the forest industry.

considering the MPB epidemic was brought on by sheer stupidity and mismanagement by BC forest companies, I'd say we're lucky we saw a dime. Canfor et al should be paying the shot. This is a bailout, no different than giving money to GM or AIG. Yet they go on with pine forest monoculture, setting the stage for another epidemic and round of public funding in 20-40 years.

"The Omineca Beetle Action Coalition has received a commitment from the provincial government on $1-million dollars a year over the next three years to continue its efforts to combat the economic impacts of the mountain pine beetle"

Economic impacts? I thought forestry "was back" and that we're all lined up for a major boom? Why the need for a handout then? LOL.

gamblor wrote: "considering the MPB epidemic was brought on by sheer stupidity and mismanagement by BC forest companies"

Shows how little you know about forests. the MPB is a natural disturbance. One way or another the forests have to renew themselves. Like every living thing on this earth, things die and things are rejuvenated through replacements. When the equilibrium of change swings one way, it will eventually swing the other.

Humans think they can fool mother nature. The reality is, they can't when it comes to major disturbances.
---------------------------

NMG, I totally agree!

Gamblor: How in the hell can humans stop a swarm of beetles. Have you ever seen a swarm of locusts? We can't stop them either - well---maybe with chemical warfare but what would the consequences from that be?

The pine beetle went from pest to epidemic in 1994 because the NDP government wouldn't let anyone log Tweedsmuir park. It was not under the management of any forestry companies. If it had been, I'm sure they would have gladly logged as much as they possibly could have got away with.

"The pine beetle went from pest to epidemic in 1994 because the NDP government wouldn't let anyone log Tweedsmuir park"

That is BS. It is political spin at its finest. We now know that there were many independent epicentres of beetle investations. That includes one as far away as Colarado which has devasted even a higher precentage of their pine stands.

http://csfs.colostate.edu/pages/mountain-pine-beetle.html

There are no NDP, BCLiberals, or any other such parties in Colorado. What is true, however, is that there are pines, there are maturing stands, there was less percipitation than was normal for a few years around 2000, all of which resulted in stressed trees ready to once more receive a pest that feeds on such trees.

Exactly gus!

"The pine beetle went from pest to epidemic in 1994 because the NDP government wouldn't let anyone log Tweedsmuir park"

In Alberta the government went aggressively after the beetles - by logging and burning any infestation as soon as it was discovered - and it made a big difference. It is still being done.

In BC the NDP government did nothing, although its own forestry ministry experts suggested it should go after the hot spots.

Then it became a huge epidemic.

So instead of the MPB killing all the pine trees in Alberta, the logging, burning and slashing will do it instead.

No, of course not! The logging of the infested hotspots prevents the other trees from being infested and killed by beetles.
It reduces the number of beetles.

Should have tried that in B.C. instead of ducking from the issue for the vote of the environmentalists.

It's never a good idea to let politicians (who are beholden to those who elected them and who are slavishly bound by some ideological mantra!) overrule the advice of their own scientists.

Prince George wrote: "In Alberta the government went aggressively after the beetles - by logging and burning any infestation as soon as it was discovered - and it made a big difference."

And then: "It is still being done." ... LOL ... I see. And this is called success.

So you think it made a big difference. I guess you do not keep up with the research, do you?

Hot off the press, although the indicators have been there for some time, resulting in this research.

Mountain Pine Beetle Jumps Tree Species
April 4, 2011 8:15 AM
http://www.genomealberta.ca/blogs/mountain-pine-beetle-jumps-tree-species.aspx

The Mountain Pine Beetle is on the move not just from one tree to another, but across tree species. A group of researchers funded in part by Genome Alberta, have conclusive evidence that the Mountain Pine Beetle is now invading jack pine.

The usual host for the Mountain Pine Beetle is the lodgepole pine, and now that the beetle has crossed over to another host, it is poised to move east across the boreal forest.

It has long been suspected that the beetle was invading hybrid tree species, but using newly developed DNA genotyping and location data, the University of Alberta team found that pure jack pine are now being attacked by the beetle and the blue-stain fungi the beetles injects into the tree.

The discovery was largely due to the work of U of A molecular ecologist Catherine Cullingham, first author of a paper published online today in the journal ‘Molecular Ecology’.

The open access version is available at http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/j.1365-294X.2011.05086.x/full

"It ain't over till the fat lady sings" In this case, Mother Nature is the fat lady and she has not sung yet.

NDP??? Gov. of Alberta? ..... LOL!!!

Oh .... do you want to bring Harper into this. After all, the feds have a forestry role to play, especially a when it comes to trans-provincial border trade in pests .... :-)

I have been fully aware for some time that the beetle has jumped species. That, however, is a different matter altogether and has nothing to do with the non-action decision of the BC government at the time of the infestation in Tweedsmuir Park.

Waht is still being done in Alberta is that a watchful eye is kept on the beetle situation and hotspots are still being looked after. That is far better than having whole forests wiped out as it happened here.

Harper? Sure. Bring him on! What is his latest spin?

as has been stated - the beetle epidemic was brought on by a province full of over-mature trees. We got too good at firefighting, too good at growing pine, too good at "treehugging". In other words, there was NOTHING natural about our forests. Enter The Beetle. The rest is history. It was as predictable as you could have planned it. You cannot stockpile living things. The disaster at Stanley Park is yet another example of the failure of our love-affair with grossly over-mature trees. BC will forever be known as the epicentre, our poor management the cause no matter what way anyone wants to spin it. You cannot say with a straight face poor management wasn't to blame.

A perfect example of humans trying to control beetles is near Bobtail Lake. They actually went in there and logged the infected trees (fir beetle) and hauled them away with helicopters at a humungus cost to us. They left many trees standing that were not attacked (big fir) but with no protection from the wind, they are pretty well all "blow down" now. They didn't have the sense to replant fir and stuck pine in there.

"Alberta’s mountain pine beetle infestation is still in its early stages, where a variety of management treatments are effective. Scientists tell us that strong action at this time is our most effective tool to control the spread of pine beetles in our forests. The greatest potential for success in managing mountain pine beetle populations is when the populations are relatively small. Timing is critical for controlling infestations. Early detection is essential, because treatment of infested trees at the onset of an infestation is the only proven control method.

No one can predict the future. Alberta’s approach is based on the best available science, surveys and expert advice. Specialists from British Columbia and Canadian Forest Service agree that Alberta should continue with its existing approach and action plan.

The forested landscape we know today will change over the coming years regardless of beetles or the actions we take. Our approach to beetle infestations is to act before Mother Nature forces a more catastrophic change on the landscape."