u/ForestBlue46

Via @reshare_app From @ancientcoast.bc on Instagram

Until recently, this ancient forest was protected. 69.9 hectares (15.4%) of this Old-Growth Management Area was deleted last year to allow logging, one of the largest such amendments in the region. 🌲🪓 The only public notice for this change was an ad in the local newspaper…

Replacement areas are proposed elsewhere, but that data isn’t public yet - only the deletion shows. In any case, splitting one of the region’s largest OGMAs into smaller, disconnected pieces isn’t equivalent. Large, intact old-growth supports interior habitat that fragments can’t replace.

The yellow cedar in this forest have largely hollowed out with age, which is completely normal; some BC yellow cedars are documented at over 1,800 years old! As the video shows, heart rot doesn’t kill the tree; fungi break down the dead core while the tree keeps living. 💚 It’s also what creates cavity habitat for species like the Vancouver Island pygmy owl we heard calling - a blue-listed species already declining from habitat loss.

Comments on FOM # 40310 are open until August 20, 2026:

- Email FOM-MID@westernforest.com
- IMPORTANT: Include “FOM # 40310” in your comment
- Comments are reviewed and forwarded to the Ministry of Forests, so they do matter
- A comment that speaks to something specific - the habitat, the connectivity, the OGMA alteration with minimal notice, anything else that stood out to you - carries much more weight than a generic line

This cutblock is one of several old-growth cutblocks in this new proposal. Links in bio to view the full proposal, or try Cutblock Watch - a new tool by @4theloveofbc that makes tracking harvest proposals in BC much easier.

Missed the deadline? Consider contacting Minister of Forests Ravi Parmar about OGMA notification standards, or contact your local MLA.

#oldgrowth #rainforest #bcpolitics

Old growth forest logging in BC is making international news again.

https://www.pbs.org/newshour/world/british-columbia-is-logging-its-last-old-growth-forests-protesters-are-sleeping-in-the-road-to-stop-it

The BC NDP government promised to phase out its use in forestry, but decades of herbicide spraying has reduced biodiversity and the potential for wildfire mitigation

"For decades, forestry companies in B.C. have used chemical herbicides like glyphosate to kill off plants that might compete with trees destined for timber. Trembling aspen, named for its almost heart-shaped leaves that seem to quiver in the wind, is often on the hit list.

But after years of destructive wildfires that have wiped out whole neighbourhoods and sometimes whole towns, more and more people are questioning the wisdom of killing off this tree. Because when wildfires sweep across the landscape, aspen can help calm the flames."

From 2024.

https://thenarwhal.ca/bc-glyphosate-forestry-impact-aspen/

The country still lacks the people and equipment to handle our record-breaking wildfires

While some provinces have cut firefighting budgets and others are shifting to 'mitigation' rather than suppression people continue to lose their homes and suffer from the effects of smoke.

"Currently, Canada is the only G7 country that does not have a national agency to respond to wildfires. After the devastating 2023 fire season, then BC member of Parliament Richard Cannings called on the government to establish a national, non-military forest fighting force to be deployed when needed to support provincial teams."

Are provincial governments shifting to avoiding suppressing wildfires? Because that's what it looks like.

"For this reason, calls from all corners and angles for better fire management and shifting the focus from suppression to mitigation have risen in recent years to a chorus. In a 2024 report, the Canadian Council of Forest Ministers stated, “Suppression alone is no longer adequate to address the growing challenges from wildland fire. Wildland fire management in Canada needs to be transformed.”"

In realty fuel mitigation increases the intensity of wildfires. And while smaller indigenous-led prescribed burns can work, larger ones don't, but they are doing it anyway rather than dropping water on wildfires.

https://thewalrus.ca/canada-wildfires/

Fuel mitigation increases intensity of wildfires.

https://johnmuirproject.org/scientific-research/the-truth-about-thinning/

Larger burns are often making things worse.

https://www.theage.com.au/national/victoria/can-we-really-fight-fire-with-fire-why-pre-burning-is-no-magic-bullet-20250109-p5l321.html

Via resha.re • From @ancientcoast.bc on Instagram.

Only 1 day left to comment on this proposal. If you haven't commented already after the previous post on Cutblock 30027 please consider sending your comments in, even after the comment period.

Cutblock 30027 is the largest proposed old-growth cutblock in WFP’s new mid-island Forest Operations Map: a stand of yellow cedar, hemlock, and balsam fir sitting at 1100m elevation.

This forest is slow-growing and centuries in the making. It sits on a steep slope, right next to a valley that’s already been clearcut. Being on a steep slope, there is a high risk of landslides once the forest is logged. Old-growth rainforests of this size are increasingly rare on Vancouver Island, and it deserves to be fought for.

A few other smaller old-growth cutblocks (30803, 22291, 11531) are also proposed in this FOM.

Comment period closes July 10, 2026. Comments may be emailed to FOM-PMQ@westernforest.com. Link to the maps and more info on how to comment in their bio. 🌲

If you miss the comment period, it doesn’t hurt to submit a comment regardless!

vancouverisland oldgrowthbc bcpolitics rainforest oldgrowth

https://www.instagram.com/reel/DadEGTSh1NC/

The rise of antibiotic/antimicrobial resistance is a huge threat to public health. Herbicides, including those sprayed on forests and on our food, can be a key driver for antimicrobial resistance spread.

https://www.frontiersin.org/journals/microbiology/articles/10.3389/fmicb.2026.1740431/full

Market forces will be capitalizing on wilderness areas to build the 'Internet of Forests.' Nothing is sacred when it comes to profits and control over every bit of life on this planet.

They will be using the excuse of carbon credits/markets to fill forests with wireless sensors, LiDAR and machine learning.

https://www.media.mit.edu/publications/technology-roadmap-the-internet-of-forests/

"The Internet of Forests integrates internet-based modules into trees, enabling the detection and monitoring of key environmental parameters, such as temperature, wind speed, relative humidity, and carbon dioxide levels. This technology provides real-time data on land conditions, enabling early detection of forest fires, deforestation, and illegal logging.

By integrating land sensors, cameras, LiDAR satellite data, and high-resolution imagery, combined with machine learning and artificial intelligence (AI), the IoF system analyzes the relationship between landscape dynamics, environmental conditions, human activities, biophysical variables, and natural reserves."

https://www.tomorrow.city/internet-of-forests-tech-to-protect-colombias-rainforests/