A range of input was received regarding the timber supply analysis conducted by the Forest Service. The input is summarized under the following topics:
harvest profile
Four respondents comment on the extensive backlog of older, decaying forests that has resulted from past high-grading. They state that these forests need to be replaced with young, healthy stands and add that the problem this creates for future timber supply is not fully acknowledged in the timber supply analysis.
The Gitxsan Treaty Office says the proportion of sawlogs in the harvest (65 per cent) exceeds the proportion of sawlogs in the inventory (54 per cent). In their opinion, the timber supply area is being high-graded and overcut because of sawmill overcapacity.
estimates of growth and volume
One individual submission questions the assumption that productivity will be maintained through several harvests, given the loss of soil fertility with each rotation.
Another respondent believes the net volumes achievable from forests over 200 years old in the northern part of the timber supply area are overestimated by about 25 per cent. He says that, in his experience, the factors used to reduce volume for decay, waste and breakage are insufficient for these forests.
Another submission states that information presented to the Kispiox Harvest Level Committee in 1992 indicated volume estimates for hemlock were 24 per cent higher than actual harvested volumes. This indicates a reduction of 15 per cent in available timber, according to the respondent.
An industry submission states that in the Bulkley Forest District, use of the biogeoclimatic classification system to estimate productivity produced a 25 per cent increase in long range timber supply, compared to productivity estimates based on inventory data.
size of the timber harvesting land base
One industry respondent agrees with the size of the timber harvesting land base used in the Forest Service analysis.
An individual response says it is not acceptable to assume that problems in accessing undeveloped portions of the timber harvesting land base north of the Babine River can be compensated for by continued overharvesting in the southern portion of the timber supply area.
deductions for roads and landings
According to one submission, recent research reports indicate that, relative to the Forest Service analysis, a much greater deduction is required for loss of productive land to roads and landings, as well as for not-satisfactorily-restocked areas.
commercial thinning
One individual expresses surprise that the Forest Service analysis anticipates very little volume from existing stands younger than 50 years. He says early investment in spacing and commercial thinning can increase the final merchantable volume, as well as improving species selection and stand health, and increasing windfirmness.
utilization
One respondent notes that pulpwood is left on site and/or burned because it is not economical to ship to the pulpmill in Prince Rupert. He sees the need for a higher-value processing facility for pulpwood (such as oriented strand board), as well as for obtaining higher value from sawlogs.
wildlife habitat
One submission asserts that wildlife studies in the timber supply area are very sketchy and only look at a very few species.
Another respondent says grizzly habitat must be assessed immediately since bears adapt more poorly to harvesting than do other animals, such as deer and moose. According to this submission, short-term job losses from habitat protection may result, but in the long term forestry and tourism can co-exist if prime habitat is treated very sensitively, particularly in the area north of the Babine River.
visual quality objectives
One individual suggests that preservation should be an option to protect visual quality. Although portions of highway corridors can be logged without severe impact, others cannot and should be acknowledged as unlikely to contribute to timber supply.
An industry submission questions the 1115-year rotation used in areas designated for retention visual quality management in the Forest Service analysis. The company believes the maximum biological life span of all species in the timber supply area is far less than 1000 years and questions whether a 1000-year rotation is even possible, let alone a good idea.
maintaining older forests
Two submissions express the opinion that the Forest Service analysis doesn’t provide for protection of sufficient area of older forests, while a third believes the area is excessive.
One individual says old-growth values appear not to have been factored into the timber supply analysis. If forests outside the timber harvesting land base contribute one-half of the required old growth, the other half still needs to be included in the analysis, according to this submission.
Another submission contends that the goal of 12 per cent deferral should not be provided by dispersed forests outside the timber harvesting land base but by contiguous forests designated as part of total chance planning. To do otherwise contravenes the Kispiox Land and Resource Management Plan, according to the respondent.
An industry respondent states that, of the forested area removed from the timber harvesting land base because it is environmentally sensitive or uneconomic to harvest, 23 per cent has forests older than 250 years. The company points out this is twice the 12 per cent requirement and four times the area assumed by the Forest Service analysis to be older than 200 years. Over the next 60 years, this 23 per cent will increase to at least 41 per cent, according to the submission.
maintaining biodiversity
One submission questions why only 4.5 per cent of the land base was deducted to account for management of biodiversity and riparian areas. This individual says the area to be deducted shouldn’t be based on large-scale mapping that misses smaller features or on current practices rather than the practices required to achieve objectives. According to this submission, the management of biodiversity at a minimum level—in order to limit reductions in timber supply—is inadequate.
In order to achieve both landscape-level and stand-level biodiversity, this individual estimates a 30 per cent reduction in available timber from the timber harvesting land base will be necessary. This estimate is based on experience, literature review and discussions with ecologists.
green-up requirements
One submission states that the Forest Service analysis did not comply with the Kispiox Land and Resource Management Plan. The plan says green-up constraints should be applied on a watershed basis—rather than over the entire timber harvesting land base—in order to protect other resource values and prevent flooding. This approach results in a six-pass harvest system that must be factored into any timber supply analysis.
In addition, the respondent maintains the effects of green-up requirements will be greater than considered in the Forest Service analysis because almost 30 per cent of the land base is less than 17 years old.
