Williams Lake To Apply For Community Forest Agreement

By 250 News

The Ministry of Forests has invited the City of Williams Lake to apply for a probationary Community Forest Agreement.

The agreement would carry an initial five-year term and would grant the city the rights to harvest up to 20-thousand cubic metres of timber per year on public forest lands within the Williams Lake timber supply area.  

"The provincial government is committed to increasing the involvement of communities in the forest sector across British Columbia," says Forests Minister Rich Coleman.  "This opportunity will provide the people of Williams Lake with continued benefits from forestry in the years ahead."     

“We identified a community forest agreement in our economic development strategic plan,” says Mayor Scott Nelson. “It is worth investigating as an opportunity to continue to diversify our economy. We appreciate this opportunity to partner with the Province.”

The City of Prince George was issued a Community Forest Licence in late 2006, but the City's Environment Manager Mark Fercho says the purpose of the local licence is somewhat different, at least initially.  Fercho says, right now, the City has the right to harvest 12-thousand cubic metres annually for interface fire fuel control purposes. (click here for original story)

He says harvesting began in March of this year and, unlike most agreements which are money-making for the communities, removing the beetle kill from Crown land within the city is a money-losing venture.  (The province provided an initial $1.2-million dollar grant.)

But Fercho says two years from now when the licence is reviewed, it's hoped moving to harvesting that generates revenue will be a viable option for the City.

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