As part of Council’s responsibility for monitoring and enforcing forest practices standards, an annual inspection program is carried out to assess owner performance in relation to compliance requirements, focusing on: harvest activities; road construction, maintenance & deactivation; and reforestation.
Council has COVID-19 safety procedures in place for the 2020 Inspection Program and will be initiating the inspections shortly. Owners whose managed forests have been scheduled for inspection have been notified and have been advised of the safety procedures. See safety procedures here
The Managed Forest Council (Council) is the independent provincial agency responsible for administering the forest practices component of the Managed Forest Program, which includes the protection of key public environmental values, including soil conservation, water quality, fish habitat, and reforestation.
The Private Managed Forest Land Council Regulation (Council Regulation) provides clear requirements for owners, contractors, employees and agents with respect to the key values. The legislation is a results-based regulatory model that allows forest owners to develop and use management strategies most appropriate to the scale and location of their operations. Council monitors and enforces those requirements.
One of the mechanisms used to measure performance in relation to the compliance requirements is Council’s annual inspection program. Council has a policy to inspect all managed forests at least once every five years, as well as to inspect new managed forests within three years of entrance to the program. Managed forests may be inspected on a more frequent basis where potential environmental risk has been identified, such as higher levels of operations in proximity to water intakes or fish habitat.
The 2020 inspection program includes 63 managed forests located throughout BC. A team of seven forest professionals will be engaged in carrying out the inspections and completing associated inspection reports. A summary inspection report, including inspection findings, will be available on the Field Practices Assessments web page later this year.
RESOURCES
- Field Practices Assessments web page
- Private Managed Forest Land legislation, including the Private Managed Forest Land Act and Council Regulation
- Field Practices Guide