ADAM OLSEN -- The government's message box is an attempt to have it both ways, maintain the status quo and change
Ever heard the saying "can't see the forest for the trees?"
It's when you are standing too close to something and lack the broader
perspective and are not able to see the big picture. Or, if you are looking at
things one at a time, you might not see their connection with all the others.
You can use this saying as an analogy for literally any situation, so
it's deeply ironic that it arises in the recent announcement by the BC NDP provincial government
that they are going to protect 54 individual old-growth trees plus the hectare
immediately in their vicinity, or their "friends."
I won't complain about the 54 trees they are protecting. It's a big
victory that the province is not allowing the entire forest to be logged right
up to the ancient creature's stem, like we see with "Big Lonely
Doug." However, it's disturbing that there is so little willingness to
step up and do what actually needs to be done.
Chiefly, we need to protect the integrity and function of ecosystems,
not trees.
As we heard consistently throughout the Spring legislative session, the
Minister of Forests, and his government, see only the value of the fibre. The
value of a standing old-growth forest seems to be only in its economic
potential for it to become a clear-cut.
That's it ....
The government's message box is an attempt to have it both ways,
maintain the status quo and change. The direct quote from Minister
Doug Donaldson from Question Period is:
"We're committed to protecting old-growth forests as well as
continuing with a vibrant forestry sector — the 24,000 jobs that rely on
old-growth forests in this province. And we're undertaking an old-growth
management plan, and we'll be conducting public engagement soon on that plan."
Saving a tree is not protecting forests
It appears this is the first step in the development of the management
plan. The public consultation is coming soon.
Unfortunately, forestry "management plans" are actually a
euphemism for tree cutting plans.
It's simply not good enough to protect individual trees. What we need is
watershed management plans or ecosystem management plans. As our world changes
around the last remaining old-growth forests, they are quickly becoming far
more valuable than just the amount we can make by turning them into two by
fours.
It's the oxygen we breathe and the water supply of our communities.
One ministry logs, and another has to swoop in and fix the mess with a
$150 million engineered solution; there is seemingly no connection between the
two — except, for the future of your community and your tax dollars.
What hasn't changed is the government's message box. Even with a change
in Minister and a change in government, the message box does not change.
Perhaps it's time to step back and take a look at the forest for the
trees.
Adam Olsen ... is a Green
Party Member of the Legislative Assembly of British Columbia for Saanich North
and the Islands.
Born in Victoria, BC in 1976, Adam has lived,
worked and played his entire life on the Saanich Peninsula. He is a member of
Tsartlip First Nation (W̱JOȽEȽP), where he
and his wife, Emily, are raising their two children, Silas and Ella.
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