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Range Planning and Practices
Page Contents:
What are the changes
in December 2002?
Changes Relating
to Range Plans
All range use plans (RUP) prepared under
the Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act have
been extended to the later of the date specified in the plan
or April 1, 2005.
Minor amendments to RUPs continue to require
District Manager approval: this is the same as under the existing
Forest Practices Code.
Silviculture prescriptions are being replaced
by site plans. Site plans need to be prepared but do not require
review and comment or approval by the District Manager. Section
36.3 of the Operational and Site Planning Regulation (OSPR)
allows the District Manager to waive the requirement of a Site
Plan if harvesting timber on land used for harvesting hay or
grazing livestock in accordance with an agreement under the
Range Act.
Changes in the review and comment and approval
of silviculture prescriptions and site plans will impact ranchers.
Range tenure holders will need to work with the forest companies
in their area to communicate activities and ensure interests
and values are considered in planning and practices (e.g., impact
of silviculture activities on forage for livestock). MOF and
WLAP personnel will play a reduced role in assisting ranchers
prepare plans and communicate the proposed activities of forest
tenure holders.
Changes
Affecting Range Practices
Compliance and enforcement continues with
a two-tiered enforcement regime of administrative remedies and
prosecution. Defenses in relation to both administrative remedies
and prosecution have been expanded to include defenses of due
diligence, mistake of fact and officially induced error. If
a person can show, on a balance of probabilities, that any one
of the defences applies, the person cannot be found to have
contravened the specified provision or committed an offence.
As a result, the District Manager cannot issue the identified
orders or levy an administrative penalty against the person.
In the case of a prosecution, the person would not be subject
to a fine, imprisonment or other court-imposed punishment.
This change does not apply to any determinations
or orders made before these amendments came into force.
Applicable
Legislation
Appendix
A summarizes the amendments to the Forest Practices Code
of British Columbia Act that impact range planning and practices.
The applicable regulations for Range Planning
and Practices include the following:
- Operational
Planning Regulation—renamed to Operational and Site Planning
Regulation; and
- Range
Practices Regulation.
New and amended sections in these regulations
are listed in Appendix
B of this Primer.
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