In the coastal region of British Columbia, any trees older than 250 years old are defined as “old-growth” trees. This makes them desirable by two notable factions: conservationists who want to preserve Canada’s natural history, and those who value the trees for the quality lumber they produce.
This is the heart of an ongoing conflict that goes back to August 2020. That’s when protesters began blockading logging roads near the Fairy Creek watershed located on western Vancouver Island. The blockades have since spread out to other sites within the Tree Farm Licence 46 area.
Meanwhile, counter-protests have been held by forestry workers and their families, who depend on logging work for their income.
Tree Farm Licence 46 is a 59,000-hectare (just under 146,000 acres) harvesting tenure that’s owned by Teal Jones, a private logging company. The area is on the southwestern side of Vancouver Island. According to Teal Jones, the Fairy Creek watershed itself is roughly 1,200 hectares and only about 200 hectares of that is harvestable.
The Fairy Creek watershed is the last intact watershed on southern Vancouver Island that isn’t part of a park or otherwise protected. The area is home to yellow cedars that have been around for a literal millennium.
There are 13 million hectares of old-growth forest left in British Columbia. Most of that forest is made up of high-alpine trees that aren’t suitable for logging. It’s the valley-bottom trees that are the center of the conflict.
Old-growth trees are sought after by logging companies because of the wood they produce, which is high quality and without knots. According to those within the industry, pursuing only second-growth trees wouldn’t be economically sustainable.
Vancouver Island’s Old-growth Protectors
The activists behind the blockades, the Rainforest Flying Squad, have seen immense support on social media, which has led to hundreds of new protesters joining their efforts. However, in April, the British Columbia Supreme Court granted Teal Jones an injunction. In May, police moved in, arresting protesters and breaking up their camps.
On June 4, the Rainforest Flying Squad released a statement stating that the Waterfall Camp at Fairy Creek had been breached and the trees were at immediate risk. They stressed the need for additional support, saying, “the time is now!”
Tzeporah Berman, the Stand.Earth International Program Director who was arrested May 22, also contributed a statement:
“My heart is breaking right now. If they breach the ridge, the chainsaws are heading toward the largest ancient yellow cedars, trees up to 2,000 years old. Premier Horgan needs to act now to put in place a stop-work order so that these issues can be resolved before these giants are gone forever.”
As of June 20, there have been 254 arrests made, the latest of which took place on June 19, when police arrested eight more people, including one person who allegedly assaulted an officer. Two of those arrested were under 18. According to protesters, the two minors were released uncharged. Of those 254 arrests, 206 were for breaching the injunction, while the rest were for obstruction and mischief charges.
A Promising Step For Fairy Creek’s Old-Growth Trees
Most recently, the provincial government has granted a request from the Ditidaht, Huu-ay-aht, and Pacheedaht First Nations to postpone old-growth logging on more than 2,000 hectares of land in and around Fairy Creek. The nations are currently at work developing long-term resource stewardship plans.
Despite the postponement granted by the provincial government, the blockades and protests in the region continue, with the goal being an end to all old-growth forest logging on southern Vancouver Island.
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