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Regulations
- Forest Practices Code of BC ActBARK BEETLE REGULATION
B.C. Reg. 286/2001 Deposited December 10, 2001
O.C. 1062/2001 effective December 10, 2001
Consolidated to December 12, 2003
- 1 (1) In this regulation:
"coordinator" means the beetle management coordinator appointed by the minister to help create and oversee bark beetle management efforts;
 "commencement date" means,
(a) for an area to which section 7 (2) applies, the date when timber harvesting, excluding road and landing construction, begins,
(b) for an area to which section 7.1 applies, a date that is two years after the date when timber harvesting, excluding road and landing construction, began on the first exempted area, and
(c) for an area to which section 7.2 applies, the date specified in the notice referred to in that section, which date must be a date when timber harvesting, excluding road and landing construction, began on the affected opening.
"emergency bark beetle management area" means an area that is designated as an emergency bark beetle management area under section 2;
"emergency management unit" means an area designated as an emergency management unit under section 3;
"exempted area" means means an area in an emergency management unit with respect to which a person, including the district manager, is exempted under section 4 (1) or (1.1) from the requirement for a silviculture prescription;
"exempted person" means a person, including the district manager, exempted under section 4 (1) or (1.1), and for the purposes of sections 4 (3) and (5), 4.1, 5 and 6, includes a person carrying out a forest practice on an exempted area under a timber sale licence;
"free growing", with respect to trees means trees that have achieved a minimum height for their species as determined in accordance with Schedule A, and a height relative to competing vegetation within a 1 m radius of their tree trunk of 125% for the ESSF, IDF, MS, MH, PP and BG biogeoclimatic zones, and 150% for the CDF, CWH, BWBS, ICH, SBPS and SBS biogeoclimatic zones;
"net opening to be reforested" means the portion of an opening in an exempted area that does not include
(a) an area occupied by permanent access structures, or
(b) an area of rock, wetland or other area that in its natural state is incapable of growing a stand of trees that meets the stocking requirements specified in section 7 (4);
"preferred and acceptable species" means
(a) lodgepole pine or interior spruce, if lodgepole pine or interior spruce is ecologically suitable considering the site factors, or
(b) a species approved by the district manager, if the district manager is satisfied that another species is ecologically suitable considering the site factors;
"Schedule A" means Schedule A of the Woodlot Licence Forest Management Regulation;
"well spaced", with respect to trees, means trees that are at least 2 m apart;
"wildlife tree" means a tree or group of trees with suitable characteristics that provide a present or future wildlife habitat.
- 1.1 The district manager, in a written notice given to the holder of a timber sale licence, may vary the standards set out in Schedule A.
- 2 The minister, by order, may designate on a map, an area as an emergency bark beetle management area, if satisfied that an emergency exists because of an infestation of bark beetle in the area or a danger of such an infestation.
- 3 The coordinator, by order, may designate an area in an emergency bark beetle management area as an emergency management unit and must state in the order which of the following 2 categories apply to all or part of the unit;
(a) aggressive, in which all forest health treatments, including harvesting, may be used to control the infestation;
(b) sanitation, in which harvesting is the primary forest health treatment used against the infestation.
- 4 (1) The district manager
(a) may exempt a person from the requirement to prepare a site plan under section 21.1 of the Act for an area in an emergency management unit, if the district manager is satisfied that the criteria in subsection (2) are met, and
(b) is exempt from the requirement to prepare a site plan under section 21.1 of the Act for an area in an emergency management unit, if the district manager is satisfied that the criteria under subsection (2) (b) and (c) are met.
(1.1) An exemption in effect under subsection (1) as that subsection was immediately before the coming into force of this section continues in effect on and after that date.
(2) The district manager may exempt a person under subsection (1) (a) if
(a) the person applies to the district manager for an exemption,
(b) the person satisfies the district manager that, based on the most recent detailed forest health survey, the area is likely to contain trees which are infested with larvae or adult bark beetles, and
(c) the district manager is satisfied that the exemption is necessary to expedite measures to be taken to limit the spread of the bark beetle.
(3) Within an exempted area, an exempted person is exempt from the following requirements of the Act:
(a) to provide maps and schedules in a forest development plan under section 10 (1) (b) (i):
(b) to identify a road on a logging plan or silviculture prescription in order to construct or modify the road under section 58 (2) (b) (iii);
(c) to obtain the consent, under section 68, of the district manager to the construction of an excavated or bladed trail.
(4) The following applies to an exempted area:
(a) harvesting in an exempted area is limited to
(i) trees that are infested with larvae or adult bark beetles, as determined by an on the ground survey, and
(ii) those trees that must be removed incidently to facilitate removal of the infested trees;
(b) no more than 5 000 m3 of timber may be harvested under the exemption from an individual opening in an exempted area, excluding the volume harvested from any road clearing width, if the road is required to facilitate the removal of timber from the area;
(c) an opening in an exempted area may not be clearcut unless the opening, together with any adjoining opening that has been clearcut and is subject to an exemption under this section, will result in a contiguous clearcut not exceeding 15 ha.
(5) If a district manager exempts a person under subsection (1), the district manager may impose conditions to the exemption, and the exempted person must comply with the conditions.
- 4.1 An exempted person must not carry out harvesting in a riparian management zone, known forest ecosystem network, wildlife tree patch, known old-growth management area or known ungulate winter range unless
(a) the exempted person has received in writing from the district manager authorization to carry out harvesting in the area,
(b) the authorization
(i) acknowledges that the area is within a riparian management zone, known forest ecosystem network, wildlife tree patch, known old-growth management area or known ungulate winter range, and
(ii) provides conditions that apply to the carrying out of the operation in that area, and
(c) the exempted person carries out theoperationn in accordance with the conditions.
- 5(1) An exempted person must ensure that soil disturbance in an opening in the person's exempted area does not exceed 10 percent, or a greater amount authorized in writing by the district manager, of the net opening to be reforested that is 2 hectares or larger in area
(2) The district manager may authorize a greater amount of soil disturbance than allowed by subsection (1) if
(a) the disturbance is unavoidable in the process of managing the beetle infestation, and
(b) the proposed activities will not cause or increase the risk of damage to other resource values.
(3) An exempted person must not exceed the limit for soil disturbance specified in subsection (1) or (2).
(4) If the limit for soil disturbance specified in subsection (1) or (2) is exceeded, the exempted person must
(a) promptly notify the district manager, and
(b) carry out any site rehabilitation measures required by the district manager.
- 6 (1) In this section "access trail" means a trail in an emergency management unit that
(a) provides access for equipment between openings, or between openings and roads or landings, and
(b) is constructed, modified or bladed, or through frequent use has become established.
(2) An exempted person must carry out measures on an access trail in the person's exempted area in accordance with subsections (3) and (4) when the trail is no longer required for the access referred to in subsection (1) (a).
(3) Despite subsection (2), the district manager may give the exempted person notification of a time period following completion of harvesting when the measures in subsection (4) must be completed, and the exempted person must comply with the notice.
(4) When required under subsection (2) or (3), an exempted person must carry out whatever measures are necessary on an access trail to
(a) re-establish natural surface drainage,
(b) minimize soil erosion and the risk of sediment delivery to streams, and
(c) prevent subsurface seepage water, intercepted by the trails, from being diverted into areas that would not naturally have received the water, and that are
(i) slopes that are unstable or potentially unstable or subject to a moderate or high likelihood of landslides, or
(ii) stream channels orgulliess.
- 7 (1) In this section "free growing stand" means a stand of trees where the trees have achieved a minimum height for their species as determined in accordance with Schedule A, and height relative to competing vegetation within a 1 m radius of their tree trunk of 125% for the ESSF, IDF, MS, MH, PP and BG biogeoclimatic zones, and 150% for the CDF, CWH, BWBS, ICH, SBPS and SBS biogeoclimatic zones.
(2) An exempted person must establish a free growing stand on the net opening to be reforested in the person's exempted area if the opening is larger than 1 hectare.
(3) When establishing a free growing stand under subsection (2), the exempted person must establish a stand, within 7 years from the commencement date for the opening, that meets the minimum number of healthy well spaced trees of the preferred and acceptable species per hectare as determined in accordance with Schedule A.
(4) When establishing a free growing stand under subsection 2), the exempted person must establish the free growing stand, within 15 years, that meets the minimum number of healthy well spaced trees of the preferred and acceptable species per hectare, as determined in accordance with Schedule A.
(5) Sections 38, 41 and 46 of the Timber Harvesting and Silviculture Practices Regulation apply to an exempted person who is required to establish a free growing stand in an opening, as if the opening were an area to be reforested under section 69.1 or 70 of the Act.
(5.1) Despite subsection (5), the district manager may authorize a later reporting date than specified under section 46 of the Timber Harvesting and Silviculture Practices Regulation.
(6) The exempted person must carry out a survey within 7 years from the commencement date, containing sufficient information to enable the district manager to determine if the stand meets the requirements of subsection (4).
(7) The exempted person must carry out a survey within 15 years from the commencement date, containing sufficient information to enable the district manager to determine if the stand meets the requirements of subsection (4).
(8) On or before May 31 in each year, the exempted person must submit to the district manager a report in the form of a map for each area subject to an exemption under section 4 (1) or (1.1) that has been harvested in the previous year, containing all of the following information:
(a) the area and location of openings that have been harvested and are less than a hectare;
(b) the area, location and shape of openings that have been harvested and are larger than a hectare;
(c) the location of roads and access trails;
(d) mappable reserves, including wildlife tree patches and riparian reserve zones.
- 7.1 (1) An exempted person may notify the district manager that the person has prepared a site plan for an area that contains one or more exempted areas.
(2) On the district manager receiving a notice under subsection (1), the holder, in respect of the area under the site plan,
(a) is subject to the requirements of the Timber Harvesting and Silviculture Practices Regulation, and
(b) is exempt from the requirements of this regulation that had previously applied to the exempted areas referred to in subsection (1).
(3) If the district manager prepares a site plan for an area that contains one or more exempted areas, the government, in respect of the area under the site plan,
(a) is subject to the requirements of the Timber Harvesting and Silviculture Practices Regulation, and
(b) is exempt from the requirements of this regulation that had previously applied to the exempted areas referred to in subsection (1).
(4) Despite section 2.1 of the Act, the site plan referred to in subsection (1) need not be prepared before harvesting of the exempted areas referred to in that subsection.
- 7.2 (1) In this section "affected opening" means an area
(a) comprised of one or more areas that have been harvested or are proposed to be harvested in an exempted area, and
(b) that is, or after harvesting will be, a contiguous clearcut not exceeding 15 hectares.
(2) Despite section 7 (5) of this regulation, sections 38, 41 and 46 of the Timber Harvesting and Silviculture Practices Regulation apply to an affected opening as if it were one area from the time the district manager
(a) receives a notice in writing from an exempted person that the area is an affected opening, or
(b) places a notice in writing on the file that the area is an affected opening.
- 8 A person who contravenes section 7 (2) commits an offence and, on conviction, is liable to a fine not exceeding $100 000, or to imprisonment for not more than one year, or to both.
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