Defined Forest Area Management

Information Gathering & Management

Forest Dynamics and Decision Support Activity Area Expectations

Eligible activities for this Activity Area include growth and yield; site productivity estimation; wildlife and wildlife habitat modeling; timber supply analysis to support IFPAs; and operability. Expectations for IFPAs are outlined further below.

Expectations are that Recipients will engage in activities that support the Forest Productivity Council (FPC) Strategy as well as those FPC working group strategies that have been endorsed by FPC. These include the Site Productivity Working Group (SPWG) Strategy, the Stand Level Working Group (SLWG) Strategies for growth and yield data and modelling, and the Biodiversity Working Group (BWG) Strategy.

The expectations for the Forest Productivity Council and related working group activity areas are that:

Recipients will undertake modeling projects with a specified purpose, and the methods used should be consistent with the stated purpose;

• data used in the models should have been collected or derived using the applicable standards;
• reports must document the input data, processing, analytical methods and use of the model sufficiently so that the project could be repeated;
• where Recipients are establishing ecosystem models to predict indicators of future ecosystem health, the work must be consistent with the draft Strategy for Habitat Supply Modeling for British Columbia;
• any new model development should reference guiding documents such as the Forest Productivity Councils’ Stand Level Working Group Model Strategy for growth and yield, and the Habitat Supply Model Catalogue;
• a modeling strategy must be developed that indicates the business need for a new/revised model to include data needs, validation procedures, linkages to inventory, client support and use in Timber Supply Planning;
• any proprietary information/data used in the model must be described so that the project could be repeated if similar information/data was available; and
• all models and information/data derived from the model developed through the FIA must be consistent with government custodian approved standards, and said information must be managed in publicly available warehouses (public or privately owned) specified in each activity standard.

IFPAs

The expectations for the Timber Supply Analysis to Support IFPAs activity are that:

• All expenditures in this activity area will be for the purpose of the Forest Act, Section 59.1, in particular to support allowable annual cut decisions by the regional manager.
• The Recipient must follow standards for analysis and process outlined in the Innovative Practices Agreement Handbook and the Timber Supply Analysis Standards for Innovative Forest Practices Agreements.
• All information generated, reports generated and public reviews undertaken, which are funded through FIA, will be consistent with government approved standards or guidelines, and any information or reports created will be stored in publicly available warehouses (public or privately owned).