National Forest Week

September 23 to September 29, 2012

National Forest Week is held each year to encourage greater awareness and recognize the importance of Canada's forests to our nation. This year’s theme is Healthy Forests – Healthy Communities and provides a great opportunity to reflect on how forests, people and communities are connected. British Columbians make millions of trips into the forests each year for work, recreation, and pleasure. During National Forest Week, get out into the woods and take time to enjoy our forests firsthand.

Minister Thomson’s National Forest Week Statement

• Minister Thomson’s National Forest Week Statement

Kids’ Activities

• Smokey the Bear – games, facts and fun
• The Tree Book
• Canadian Forestry Association Education Resource
• BC Archives Virtual Time Machine – visit our province at any time in history
• Go Forestry
• Discovertheforest.org

Teachers’ Activities – Lesson Plans from Kindergarten to Grade 12

• Association of BC Forest Professional Resources
• Smokey Bear Teacher's Resources
• Tree Canada Resources
• Wild BC Resources
• B.C. Forest Discovery Centre Resources
• Council of Forest Industries Education Resources
  • Elementary School Teaching Resources
  • Secondary School Teaching Resources
• learnforestry.com Education Resource
• Canadian Forestry Association Resources
• Mystery Tree Challenge
• Forestinfo.org Education Resource
• Project Learning Tree
• Society of American Foresters Education Resource

Video Vault

Click on the links to short videos about different aspects of B.C.’s forests and B.C. forestry

• British Columbia Historic Places – this is a collaboration of photos and information put together by the ministry’s Heritage Branch to commemorate National Forest Week.

BC Forest Service Centenary

• BC Forest Service Celebrates 100 Years of Excellence – On February 27, 2012, the Province celebrated a historic milestone; the 100th anniversary of the BC Forest Service.

Utilizing Wood Waste

• Pellets and Pacific BioEnergy – Interview with Pacific Bioenergy CEO Don Steele and how they’re turning wood residue and logging debris into a source of wood bioenergy.

Growing Trees

• Cone and Seed Services, Tree Seed Centre – A profile of this finalist in the 2009/10 Premier’s Awards for Service Excellence and how they help make B.C. a leader in growing trees.
• Zero Net Deforestation – Shawnigan Lake School students afforest a field and Dr. Werner Kurz, forest carbon research scientist, talks about the role zero net deforestation plays in mitigating the impacts of climate change.

International Markets

• Wenchuan Earthquake Relief Project – View reconstruction efforts in the May 2008 Wenchuan earthquake zone in China. Instead of steel and concrete, key new buildings are being built from wood from Canada and B.C.

First Nations

• Huu-ay-aht First Nation Signs Woodland Licence – The First Nation signed the first-ever Woodland Licence with the Province of British Columbia.

Wood First

• Six-Storey Shake Test – A six-storey wood frame building proves its seismic resistance by withstanding a simulated earthquake equivalent to a one-in-2,500-years earthquake.

Wildfire Management

• Wildfire videos – An assortment of clips and fire management stories.
• Martin Mars at Olympic Forestry Day – See one of the world’s largest waterbombers in action over the Vancouver skyline as part of a firefighting aircraft demo during the 2010 Winter Olympics.
• Arrow Boundary Fire Zone Primary Attack Base – Check out the new $2-million Arrow Fire Zone Primary Attack Base located in Shoreacres. The base is a provincial standard for future primary attack bases and addresses the long term sustainability of managing wildfires in the Southeast.

Mountain Pine Beetle

• MPB Epidemic – A look at the infestation and what is being done to manage its impacts.

Mills

• Western Forest Products Upgrades Saltair Mill – $16 million investment will help protect jobs on Vancouver Island.

Photo Gallery - 2011

	Sept. 20, 2011 – Students from Christ Church Cathedral School in Victoria celebrate National Forest Week with a forest tour that included an opportunity to learn more about B.C.’s forests. People: Capital Regional District Interpreter, students from Christ Church Cathedral School
	Sept. 20, 2011 – As part of National Forest Week, students from Christ Church Cathedral School get up close and personal with nature as they examine a burned out tree at Francis/King Park. The tree is now habitat for bats. People: students from Christ Church Cathedral School
	Sept. 22, 2011 – Students from Sunset Elementary School in Port McNeill celebrate National Forest Week with a forest tour that included an opportunity to plant trees and learn about the importance and benefits of B.C.’s forests. People: Barb Drennan, students from Sunset Elementary School
	Sept. 28, 2011 – Students from Woss Lake Elementary School are treated to a forest tour led by Western Forest Products staff and Smokey the Bear.
	Sept. 22, 2011 – As part of National Forest Week, students from Sunset Elementary School in Port McNeill get hands-on by planting seedlings, doing their part to ensure B.C.’s forests are here for future generations to enjoy. People: students from Sunset Elementary School

Forest Trivia – Did you know...?

• Explorer Captain Cook was the first European to make use of B.C.’s forest products. Sailing masts were fashioned from the tallest Douglas-firs.
• B.C. lumber was used for trestles, ties and bridges on the Canadian Pacific Railway.
• B.C.’s first sawmill was built in 1847 at Esquimalt Harbour.
• B.C. is the world’s largest exporter of softwood lumber.
• Less than 1% of forest land is harvested each year.
• B.C. is Canada’s most ecologically diverse province, with temperate rainforests, dry pine forests, alpine meadows and more.
• B.C. has more than 40 different species of native trees.
• B.C. spruce was used to build British Mosquito fighter bombers during the Second World War.
• The masts and booms of the famous Bluenose schooner, pictured on the dime, were made from B.C. Douglas-fir.
• One metric tonne of dry wood pulp will make...1 tonne of newspaper, 1,400 lbs of magazine paper and 0.9 tonne of toilet paper.
• Sawmills use computers and lasers to get the most value out of every log.
• Roofing shakes are made from blocks of wood too small to cut into lumber.
• An average house requires 15,000 board feet of lumber.
• Tree cellulose is a thickening ingredient in ketchup, ice cream and thousands of common foods.
• Disposable medical lab coats are made from the woven fibres of western redcedar.
• Wood is the only renewable, biodegradable, natural and non-toxic building material in the world.
• B.C. planted its six billionth tree in 2008.
• The first lumber sawn in B.C. was floor planks for a Vancouver Island dairy farm.
• B.C.’s first pulp mill was built in 1894 at Port Alberni.
• More than half of B.C.’s old growth forests are protected in parks or otherwise off-limits to harvesting.

Related Links

• Association of BC Forest Professionals
• BC Forest Information
• BC Forest Safety Council
• BC Forest Service Centenary Society
• Canadian Institute of Forestry
• Canadian Register of Historic Places
• Ministry of Environment
• Canadian Forestry Association
• Canadian Forest Service
• Pacific Forestry Centre
• BC Forest Discovery Centre
• Canada’s 2010-2011 Forest Capital – B.C.’s Cariboo Regional District
• Tree Canada Foundation
• Wild BC
• State of B.C.'s Forests Reports

Other Ideas

• plant a tree
• take a walk in the woods nearby and get to know your forest
• care for a newly planted or neglected tree, and study its species
• identify all the things at home or school that are made of wood
• learn about organizations that demonstrate sustainable forest management
• tour a local mill, tree farm, woodlot or nursery
• use wood to create fun items such as bird and bat houses
• learn about the prevention of forest fires