2025 R01 – Addressing Local Community Concerns with Private Managed Forest Lands
- Year: 2025
- AVICC Number: R01
- Cowichan Valley RD
Whereas population growth within the Cowichan Valley Regional District, like much of Vancouver Island, is concentrated in the fertile lower portions of our watersheds and is reliant upon surface and groundwater originating in the undeveloped upper watersheds;
And whereas while the entire Cowichan Valley Regional District lies on unceded First Nations territory, the majority of the land in the upper watersheds on eastern Vancouver Island is privately managed forest lands over which local governments have little or no authority regarding forest management activities which impact the hydrologic cycles and the availability of water to meet community and ecological needs:
Therefore be it resolved that AVICC request that the Province of BC and the Ministry of Forests complete the currently stalled Private Managed Forest Land Program Review and reform the Private Managed Forest Lands Act to ensure that forest management on private lands prioritizes the protection of ecological values while providing economic benefits to communities and allowing for local government input to resource harvesting activities within the watersheds that support their communities.
- Year: 2025
- AVICC Number: R01
- Sponsor: Cowichan Valley RD
- Resolution Type: Regional
- Category: Land Use
- AVICC Decision: Endorsed
- AVICC Action: Communication with Sponsor, Conveyed to Province, Education Session, Facilitated Minister Meeting at UBCM, Media Release, Member Working Group
- AVICC Response link
- UBCM Decision: Not considered - Regional
- Provincial Response:Ministry of Forests: As you know, registrants in the PMFL Program voluntarily commit to following the standards and requirements under the Private Managed Forest Land Act and are subject to the compliance and enforcement provisions of the Act and its regulations. Additionally, PMFL registrants, and all landowners, are subject to approximately 35 Acts and regulations, which provide additional protections including, but not limited to: Heritage Conservation Act Drinking Water Protection Act Environmental Management Act Integrated Pest Management Act Land Act Water Sustainability Act Wildfire Act Following from the priorities set out in the Premier’s mandate letter for the Ministry of Forests provided to Minister Parmar after the 2024 provincial election, the minister indicated that the PMFL Program Review, as initiated in 2019, is considered concluded. Presently, the ministry does not intend to make legislative changes to the PMFL Act as a result of the review. However, the ministry recognizes that there is still work to be done to address the concerns that were brought forward through the 2019 PMFL Program Review, and that both provincial and local governments have a role to play in addressing public values that may be impacted by activities on private lands. Although the PMFL Program Review is considered concluded, it is important to recognize that the provincial government and the ministry have advanced several initiatives to improve forest stewardship and address these issues where private and public forests interface. Many of the concerns raised during the review are being addressed through government actions that are not specific to amending the PMFL Act, including: continued work with communities to sustain and protect drinking water sources under the Water Sustainability Act and the Drinking Water Protection Act; the release of a provincial biodiversity framework for discussion; the Modernizing Forest Policy Initiative; and the Old Growth Strategic Review. Staff with the Forest Tenures Branch continue to work closely with the Managed Forest Council and the Private Forest Landowners Association to support the delivery of the PMFL Program. The ministry also continues to liaise with the Ministry of Housing and Municipal Affairs to understand the role of local governments in the stewardship of private lands within their jurisdiction. I also encourage you to continue your work with the Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship regarding safe drinking water and watershed security.
- UBCM Response link
The AVICC acknowledges that we are grateful to live, work, and play on the traditional territories of theCoast Salish, Nuu-Chah-Nulth and Kwak-Waka’wakw Peoples