More than 100 actions have been completed or are underway in response to the March 2009 Working Roundtable on Forestry, Forests, Mines and Lands Minister Pat Bell announced last week with the release of a status update on key actions since 2009.
“As the forest sector has begun to recover over the last few months, one of the keys to success has been the ability for the entire sector to work together,” Bell said. “While our overseas markets continue to grow, we’ve also made remarkable progress in the other priority areas identified by the roundtable.”
Examples of progress in response to roundtable recommendations include:
• 27 local governments have adopted Wood First resolutions, bylaws or policies requiring wood be considered as the primary building material in municipally funded buildings since the Wood First Act came into effect.
• 68 midrise, wood-frame buildings planned around B.C. because of changes to the B.C. Building Code that increased the limit on wood-frame construction from four storeys to six.
• The release of a draft forest carbon offset protocol to leverage the large area and diversity of B.C.’s forests in carbon credits.
Forestry activities in the draft protocol include planting trees, restoring forests, harvesting and managing forests in new ways, and protecting sensitive areas from development.