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Prince George conservationists to rally for protection of interior old growth

Conservation North is hosting a rally in front of MLA Shirley Bond’s office on Thursday
Hanna Petersen
Hanna Petersen
2) Old growth spruce in Anzac area
Devon Bachman stands on top of old growth spruce in the Anzac area that were aged at over 400 years old when they were cut. There was no evidence of spruce beetle in these cut trees. (via Conservation North)

A group of conservationists will be holding a rally to call for old growth protection in B.C.’s interior.

In a news release, Conservation North says hunters, fallers, biologists, business owners, and other members of the community will come together to hold a rally in support of old growth forest protection in front of Prince George-Valemount MLA Shirley Bond’s riding office this week.

“We’re concerned about the lack of protection for our globally unique interior old growth forests,” stated Jenn Matthews, Outreach Coordinator for Conservation North in the release.

4) Logged old growth Dome Creek areaLogged inland rainforest only a few kilometres past Chun T’oh Whudujut/Ancient Forest Park on Highway 16. (via Conservation North)
The group has been documenting, through photography and video, the industrial harvesting of old growth spruce and cedar-hemlock forests for two years.

Usually, they define old growth as at least 250 years old that have developed large, older trees, dead standing and fallen trees, and canopy layering.  

As these structures take centuries to acquire, and so these forests are referred to as “old growth forests” or “primary forests.”

The Prince George-based organization has been pushing for legal protection of endangered old growth forests in the interior since 2017 and has encouraged community members to send over 1,000 emails to local MLAs and relevant Ministers via its Take Action campaign.

“We need a transition away from primary forest logging while we still have some of it left,” stated Conservation North Director Michelle Connolly in the release. “Pretty much everyone is acknowledging that we’re running out of wood. Why not keep the old forests we have left as a kind of ecological insurance for the future?”

The group says what remains B.C.’s primary forests are being industrially logged at an alarming rate, and it takes the position that the province’s Old Growth Management Areas (OGMAs) is not a robust protection or management tool for old growth forests.

Conservation North says Thursday’s (June 6) lunch-hour event promises to be colourful, lively, and positive.

It will take place in front of 1350 5th Ave. at 12 p.m.