Mountain Pine Beetle Advisory Committee learns from BC experience
Feature Story posted on June 25, 2007
Alberta’s Mountain Pine Beetle Advisory Committee is learning more about how communities can overcome the impacts of forest pest infestations.
In late May 2007, members of the committee visited 100 Mile House, BC, to consult with representatives of the Cariboo-Chilcotin Beetle Action Coalition. The coalition is a community-based group concerned with maintaining the social and economic sustainability of the region during and after the current mountain pine beetle infestation affecting central BC.
100 Mile House Mayor Donna Barnett, chair of the Cariboo-Chilcotin Beetle Action Coalition, welcomed the opportunity to compare notes with the Alberta group, noting that pine beetle is “not just a Cariboo-Chilcotin problem – it’s an Alberta problem, and it’s a national problem.”
Partnerships with other jurisdictions facing the same challenges are crucial to overcoming pine beetle impacts on communities, she noted.
“When the beetle is done, we will still be here,” agreed Keith Dufresne, manager of the coalition action committee, explaining that the region’s goal is to suffer no net loss of social or economic infrastructure when the beetle infestation has run its course.
The Cariboo-Chilcotin region has been under attack by pine beetle since the early 2000s. The annual allowable cut for the region has grown from six million cubic metres to 15 million cubic metres to combat the infestation and is expected to fall to about five million cubic metres when the epidemic is over.
“The mountain pine beetle event is a transition that will take 20 to 30 years to play out,” Dufresne said, noting that actions being taken in the Cariboo-Chilcotin include developing economic strategies for each of 15 local sectors. The strategies are driven by a local board with extensive stakeholder involvement.
Dufresne told the Alberta Mountain Pine Beetle Advisory Committee that it’s never too early to plan for managing the impact of pine beetle on local economies and community sustainability. He was advised that while Alberta is still seeing the early stages of beetle attacks on its pine trees, the advisory committee has already begun investigating community-level challenges and potential solutions to more widespread beetle infestations.
Cliff Henderson, Assistant Deputy Minister for Forests for Alberta Sustainable Resource Development, thanked the Cariboo-Chilcotin group for sharing their experiences and information and said communication between the two groups would help both BC and Alberta to manage the short- and long-term impacts of beetle infestations.
The Mountain Pine Beetle Advisory Committee’s visit to 100 Mile House also included a presentation from B.C.’s Ministry of Energy, Mines and Petroleum Resources about bioenergy opportunities for beetle-killed timber. As well, the BC Ministry of Forests and Range provided information about the current status of beetle infestations in the province.
Alberta representatives toured pine forests near 100 Mile House to see first-hand the impacts of beetle on older and regenerating forests, as well as work underway to clear infested stands for new growth.
