As a Registered professional…

As a Registered professional Forester, conservationist, and outdoor enthusiast; I strongly support a long-term solution for the forest sector which recognizes the Crown Forest Sustainability Act (CFSA) as an equivalent process to the Endangered Species Act (ESA). The CFSA offers balanced legislation that allows multiple forest values, including endangered species, to be considered when developing and implementing forest management plans that results in a greater good for the bulk of species, while also allowing coarse and fine scale protections of endangered species. The CFSA provides a much better framework to optimize all objectives in forest management planning than the ESA.

I support and recommend the following in terms of forest management plan preparation and implementation:

Include removing the opportunity for individual environmental assessments (“bump-up” requests)
Annual Notification of Scheduled Operations and Individual Project Plan Approvals, removing the need for approvals.
Enable more flexibility with Bridging Operations
Extending Time frame for Forestry Aggregate Pits – removing the 10-year limit for forestry aggregate pits.
Enable forest industry to plan for wood holding yards through the forest management planning process rather than obtaining separate permits through the Public Lands Act
Increase the provincial roads funding to $75 Million.