Update - company cleared to log in community’s watershed: Ministry of Forests
By Timothy Schafer Local Journalism Initiative Reporter
A plan to log part of a Slocan Valley community’s watershed checks all of the boxes and an approved cutting permit has been issued, according to the Ministry of Forests.
A ministry spokesperson admitted that a portion of the tenure boundaries associated with the Slocan Integral Forestry Cooperative (SIFCO) community forest — the 598-hectare Winlaw Woodlot 1832 — was within the Dumont Creek watershed.
However, despite the Dumont Creek Water User Group’s public protest recently — and a petition of 35 names — the woodlot licence in question is a Crown tenure administered by the ministry and is not owned by SIFCO. Therefore, the spokesperson said any forestry activities undertaken in the area must comply with the Forest and Range Practices Act and be within the parameters of the approved Woodlot Licence Plan.
“SIFCO currently has an approved cutting permit within their community forest that partially overlaps the Dumont Creek watershed,” the spokesperson said. “Concerned water users in the area were notified on the permit issuance and provided the reasons behind the decision.”
He added that operating a woodlot does not require one to be a Registered Professional Forester, as tenure holders often hire professionals to conduct certain forestry activities. The water user group contended that a consultant — employed by SIFCO — was not a Registered Professional Forester but was conducting himself as if he were.
Only a Registered Professional Forester can make important prescriptions, conduct forest policy and logging activities, but the consultant has been supplying cutting and road building proposals to the Ministry of Forests for many years now, said Dumont Creek spokesperson John Wittmayer.
“(A)s our creeks continue to dry up, we cannot condone someone who does not have the professional credentials to work and advise in the capacity he has,” he said.
Wittmayer said 300 of the hectares within the licence plan are where the headwaters of the Dumont Creek Watershed are located, almost half of the 678 ha. of the watershed.
“Our watershed is not a robust one, with high volume, fast flowing creeks that go kilometres into the mountains with high elevation snowpacks. It is, in fact, a shallow, low elevation watershed, with minimal snowpack. The feeder creeks that drain this watershed dry up most years now, and climate change stressors indicates that this trend will continue into the future,” he said.
“Currently, these creeks are completely dry or close to it. There is very little snowpack or none to sustain and recharge this watershed.”
Professional forestry is defined and governed by the Professional Governance Act and the Forest Professionals of B.C., noted the ministry spokesperson. Elements of woodlot licence planning can be prepared by a non-professional with the oversight and final approval of a professional forester.
“Any proposal would be governed by legislative requirements, government action regulation orders and forest stewardship plan results, strategies and objectives,” he said. “These considerations are analyzed thoroughly by the statutory decision maker authorized to make the decision prior to approval of cutting permits.”
Although the Woodlot Licence Plan has been vetted and approved and cutting in the watershed could begin, forestry activities are restricted when fire danger ratings increase, currently the state in the Slocan Valley. Area restrictions and evacuation orders are adhered to in the vicinity of wildfires, including by individuals and companies.
“Public safety remains paramount in our management of B.C.’s forests,” the spokesperson said. “Our approach to forestry and landscape management is to achieve a balance of all values, including the protection of watersheds, wildlife habitat, sustainable economy and areas of cultural significance.”
Two years ago Living Lake Canada began monitoring the stream flow on Dumont Creek as part of the Columbia Basin Water Monitoring Framework program.
“Over the last two summers, we have measured remarkably low flows on this creek,” noted the program’s manager, Paige Thurston, in a November, 2023 letter to the Selkirk Natural Resource District. “These low flows are particularly concerning given the volume of water allocated for users downstream of our gauge station is nearly equal to the total discharge of the creek at certain times.
“Given the significant demand on this creek relative to the measured flow, any disturbances or impacts to the watershed may result in adverse effects for community drinking water supply and the environment.”
Thurston supported a moderated dialogue between Selkirk Natural Resource District, SIFCO and Dumont Creek Water User Group to identify a mutually agreeable course of action. No action has been taken in this regard.
However, the user group is still consulting with a hydrologist and hope to work with him to stop SIFCO from logging in the watershed.
