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Popular Campbell River mountain biking area to see logging, road building

Much of the work being done to manage root disease
8184883_web1_Snowden-Demonstration-Forest-Trail-Map-copy
Snowden Demonstration Forest trail map.

Recreation trails in the Snowden Forest north of Campbell River’s John Hart Lake will be affected by logging and road building next spring.

BC Timber Sales (BCTS) announced today that it is planning to construct roads in the Snowden Forest to provide access for log transportation. A lot of the harvesting will be done to manage root disease conditions in the area and will remove live infected and dead trees in various locations in the forest. The area is part of a working demonstration forest which is heavily used for recreational use, particularly mountain biking.

In the interest of safety, public access to some trails will be prohibited during road construction and harvesting activities.

BCTS says the planning of this project complies with the Forest and Range Practices Act, the Sayward Landscape Unit Plan, the John Hart Lake Community Watershed, and the Identified Recreation Resource Features of the Campbell River Forest District.

BCTS is the operational division of the Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations with the mandate to develop and competitively auction approximately 20 per cent of the annual timber harvest in B.C. BCTS and its predecessor, the Small Business Forest Enterprise Program, have been operating in the Snowden Forest for over 20 years.

The Snowden Forest is a 2,500 hectature subunit of the Sayward Provincial Forest that has been used by the Ministry of Forests since the 1980s to promote public awareness of integrated resource management. It is an area with high timber and recreational values, featuring an extensive network of legally-established trails and non-established routes enjoyed by a variety of user groups, according to a document entitled BCTS Strait of Georgia Guiding Principles for Forest Operations in the Snowden Forest.

“The recreation resource values in this forest are a predominant planning and operational consideration given the density of trails and routes,” a B.C. Timber Sales notice says. “BCTS strives to balance harvesting operations and recreation user setting and experience through conscientious planning and implementation of forest practices.”

A single crossing of an established trail is planned in conjunction with six crossings of non‐established routes. Five areas of planned harvesting have been selected in the Snowden Forest.

They have been indentified in association with the trail or route affected:

A – Jabberwocky:

New road construction will directly impact a short section of the Jabberwocky route. In this location the route is located on a topographic bench and due to bedrock bluffs below, no other practicable road location option exists. BCTS will mitigate the impact by relocating a section of the route to an alternative location.

The purpose of the planned harvesting is to manage root disease conditions in the area. The opening may create mountain views from the rock outcrop sections of the route looking southwest across John Hart Lake.

B – Riley Lake Connector:

Potentially dangerous live infected and dead trees are present in this location. The purpose of this planned harvesting is to improve public safety and manage root disease conditions directly adjacent to the trail on both sides. Clearing downed trees has been an ongoing trail safety and maintenance issue.

The planned opening will straddle the trail and will be no larger than required to address root disease conditions. It is anticipated to be approximately three hectares in size. To minimize disturbance to the trail running surface, practices such as falling away from the trail and lifting the logs over / across will be prescribed. Machinery will only be allowed to cross the trail at designated locations, and where it occurs, padding will be put in place so that minimal contact of machine tracks will occur. In the event harvest disturbance occurs, the running surface will be rehabilitated.

C – Oggies:

Harvesting alteration is not anticipated to be visible from the Riley Lake Connector trail, but will be from the Oggies route. Recreational user exposure to viewing harvesting alteration will be only on the west side and will be very short term in duration. A single road crossing is planned.

D – Riley Lake Connector / Lost Lake / The Three Pigs:

It is not anticipated that harvesting alteration will be visible from the Lost Lake Trail or The Three Pigs route. It is anticipated that a minor amount of harvest alteration will be partially visible through a planned approximately 40 meter wide timbered leave screen adjacent to the Riley Lake Connector trail.

E – Taz:

Anticipated opening size is approximately eight hectares, and includes harvest of the north side of the route as indicated to create a windfirm edge in the lee of prevailing winter storm winds. The opening will be completely visible on one side from the Taz route. Falling away will be prescribed and no disturbance to the running surface of the route is anticipated. In the event branches are deposited or harvest disturbance occurs, the running surface will be rehabilitated. This will be the only harvest entry in this area for some time.

Notifications of affected areas will be provided well before operations begin, BCTS says.

For more information and to view the operating plan, visit: https://www.for.gov.bc.ca/bcts/areas/tsg.htm

Public input into the planning process for the spring 2018 Snowden Forest operational phase is welcome, BCTS says. All feedback will be considered within the context of existing geographical constraints, operational constraints and requirements to maintain and manage forest health. Comments should be received by the Strait of Georgia Business Area by Oct. 2, 2017, at:

Mailing address:

BC Timber Sales, Strait of Georgia

370 South Dogwood St.

Campbell River

V9W 6Y7

Phone: 250 286-9300

Email: forests.straitofgeorgiatimbersalesoffice@gov.bc.ca

To discuss in person, request an appointment, and a BCTS representative will be made available.

Public comment on all BCTS forestry operations is welcome at any time by contacting the local timber sales business area office.

8184883_web1_Snowden-Forest-harvest-unit-map
A BCTS map shows the areas in pink that will be affected by harvesting and road building in the Snowden Forest next spring.