Whereas wildfires and interface fires have caused hundreds of millions of dollars of damage to communities in British Columbia, and according to a June 2023 British Columbia Forest Practices Board report, this can be partially attributed to the way forests are managed; And whereas research shows that monoculture coniferous tree farms are more susceptible to disease, drought, and wildfire while biodiverse forests retain moisture and are more resilient to drought, disease, and wildfire, and that many deciduous trees are fire-resistant: Therefore be it resolved that UBCM call upon the Government of British Columbia to amend the Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act, the Forest and Range Practices Act, and the Private Managed Forest Land Act to ensure that forests in a 3-km radius surrounding communities and community infrastructure, including community drinking water reservoirs, are fire-resistant, resilient, biodiverse forests, and to ban the practice of using herbicides to kill deciduous trees and undergrowth within these fire resistant biodiversity zones.
Ministry of Forests Thank you for your resolution requesting the province amend forest legislation to create fire-resistant zones around communities. The Province recognizes the increasing impacts of wildfire on communities across British Columbia and supports the shared objective of improving forest resilience in and around communities. The Ministry of Forests works with local governments, First Nations, and other partners to reduce wildfire risk through a range of legal, policy, and practice initiatives that balance public safety, ecological integrity, and sustainable forest management across Crown lands. British Columbias forest management framework supports wildfire resilience through diverse stand development pathways, including the selection of silvicultural systems, fire management stocking standards, and reforestation practices. Approximately 80 percent of harvested areas are reforested through planting, using more than 20 native tree species, with over 82 percent of areas planted with mixed species. Assessing biodiversity and resilience at both the stand and landscape level is an important principle, as different silvicultural approaches may be appropriate depending on local ecology and management objectives. The Ministry of Forests recognizes the ecological and wildfire resilience values of broadleaf species and encourages their incorporation, particularly within Wildland Urban Interface areas, where appropriate. Decisions regarding species selection and vegetation management are made by forest professionals and consider site-specific conditions, long-term forest health, and multiple resource values. Herbicide use on Crown land is regulated, declining over time, and is generally used only where other treatment options are unlikely to achieve reforestation obligations. In the South Island Forest District, an average of 41ha a year are treated with herbicide. All herbicide use must comply with federal and provincial regulatory frameworks designed to protect human health and the environment. Recent changes to forestry regulations allows more deciduous stocking to be accepted as part of reforestation standards.