Events planned to convince provincial delegates to call for end to old-growth logging

VICTORIA – Councillors from Vancouver Island will attempt to pass a motion calling for an end to old-growth logging on Vancouver Island at the Union of BC Municipalities (UBCM) convention this week, Sept 26 - 30.

The motion – championed by Metchosin Councillor Andy MacKinnon –  was passed in April at the Association of Vancouver Island and Coastal Communities (AVICC) convention. It was set to be voted on at this year’s UBCM convention. However, the UBCM’s resolutions committee deemed the issue a regional one and removed it from the voting agenda – a move MacKinnon and others will attempt to reverse.

“Industry logs over 9,000 hectares of old-growth on the Island each year, and that’s a problem that impacts all of BC,” MacKinnon said. “Our opportunity to protect these significant ecosystems decreases by the day.”

The effort is supported by environmental groups like the Wilderness Committee, which works to protect old-growth rainforests in the Walbran Valley as well as in other BC wilderness areas. The Wilderness Committee and other groups are organizing a rally to demonstrate support for Vancouver Island councillors outside the convention (Victoria Conference Center, 720 Douglas St) at noon on Tue, Sept. 27.

“We’re at the point where old-growth has far more benefit to communities as standing forest rather than as timber,” said Torrance Coste, Vancouver Island Campaigner at the Wilderness Committee. “Municipal leaders here get that, and we encourage delegates from across BC to support the call to protect these endangered forests.”

The effort to return the old-growth motion to the resolutions list will be supported by Ben Isitt, Victoria City Councillor and Capital Regional District Director. Isitt and MacKinnon will present ideas for alternatives to industrial old-growth logging at a public event this evening at 7 p.m. at the Victoria Event Centre (1415 Broad St). The event is organized by Island Forest Futures, an initiative advocating for a swift transition to sustainable second-growth forestry.

“Regional governments and First Nations are best positioned to manage local forests," Isitt said. "We need to the reject liquidation of the last stands of old-growth rainforest, and we’re hopeful our counterparts from across BC will do just that.”

A similar motion was also passed by the BC Chamber of Commerce in the spring, but neither the provincial government nor the Opposition has indicated support for protecting these rare ecosystems.

–30–

For more information, please contact:

Andy MacKinnon | Councillor, District of Metchosin
250-478-8232, metchosinmacs@gmail.com

Torrance Coste | Vancouver Island Campaigner, Wilderness Committee
250-516-9900, torrance@wildernesscommittee.org

Ben Isitt | Councillor, City of Victoria 
250-882-9302, ben@isitt.ca

Additional Media Resources:
DOCUMENT: Motion for Old-growth protection 
EVENT: Island Forest Futures Public Forum
EVENT: Rally for Old-Growth Rainforests