Standing Up For The North

By 250 News

Conference attendees listen to panel discuss background on beetle battle

A two day conference is underway at the college of New Caledonia, looking for ways to renew and strengthen northern communities in the wake of the mountain pine beetle infestation.

The first day long session got underway with a presentation by Steffan Lindgren, Forestry Professor at UNBC.  He pointed out the mountain pine beetle is not new to the area and shared an entry in a diary dated 1836.  The writer says there was a bark eating beetle, and when it has finished with the trees in the area “New Caledonia will be a bleak area indeed.” There was a second report of a significant outbreak recorded in the early 1900’s another recorded in the 40’s early 50’s and the one which has caused the current crisis.  Lindgren says while the infestation has hit 8.7 million hectares, those numbers need to be broken down to see what has really happened. He says there are 1.2 million hectares where the infestation is severe, and less than 0.8 million hectares of very severe. 

The mountain pine beetle prefers older pine, and we are victims of own success says Lindgren.  He says as our forest fire ability improved, more trees were able to get older, and more inviting to more beetles. Combined with a warming of the climate, the beetles are able to make the best of improved living conditions and more of their favourite type of tree.  What has happened is that with conditions so good, they have been able to multiply at record pace.

The good news, most of the areas impacted (63%) is not pure pine it is a mixed stand, so the landscape would not necessarily be clear cut. “It would be a real crime in my opinion, if these saplings and seedlings were pulled out” says Phil Burton, adjunct professor at UNBC and expert with the Canadian Forestry Service.  He says it is a shame that when we are doing inventories of forest, we don’t count birch “I’m a big fan of birch” says Burton.  He notes that while our practices see birch cut up and piled by the side of the road for locals to pick up for firewood, wood specialty stores “are selling birch panels for $45 dollars a sheet, and that birch is coming from China!”

Burton says all is not lost, he says there needs to be a prioritizing of logging, a protection of the id term supply, and a diversification of fibre. He pointed out that there is no reason not to include other species like aspen and hemlock and birch in our forest inventories and develop new industry.

The conference continues this afternoon with discussions on timber cutting practices, raw log exports, super-mills, reinvestments of governments and companies.

Tomorrow, the focus shifts to visions for the future.

The conference is a grassroots effort, it continues through to 4:30 this afternoon, resuming Sunday morning at 9:00.  There is no charge to attend the conference.

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