Campbell River Staggered protest against BC’s old growth logging practises

There was a staggered protest against BC’s old growth logging practises in front of MLA Michele Babchuk’s office, in Campbell River, yesterday.

Staggered protest in Campbell River

Between fifteen and twenty people, many of them members of Sierra Quadra or the Campbell River Chapter of the Council of Canadians, came out in the wind and rain.

To conform with COVID 19 regulations, the protesters came in shifts of never more than 6 at a time.

One of the organizers, Geraldine Kenny, explained that the protest began at 10 AM and there was supposed to be a shift change every hour.

Fellow Quadra Island resident Rod Burns added, “You showed up when you could and left when you were cold wet and miserable.”

Burns stayed for an hour and a half, then left at 1:30 PM.

Given that there were ’40 knot winds coming down the channel and the rains are coming down horizontal,’ he would not be surprised if people left before the 5 PM finish time.

Asked what the protest accomplished, Burns said, “If one honk is worth a thousand votes, we got a lot of votes today.

In particular, he mentioned a woman who came over to just say, “Thank-you, so very much.”

Click on illustration above to access the report

Fairy Creek

Kenny pointed out that while the provinces Old Growth Strategic Review and Public Enquiry report was published last September, none of the recommendations have been implemented.

She came to British Columbia 35 years ago. Kenny was raised in Europe, where she was acquainted with the cathedral of Notre Dame, the Berlin Opera, and the architecture of Czechoslovakia, Spain and Italy. There are no comparable human remains in our province.

“When I Walking into the ancient forest, that’s when I said ‘This is Canada’s heritage. These are living documents: not of man’s accomplishments, but of nature’s prowess,'” said Kenny.

She believes that close to 35% of the province’s forests were old growth at that time. That number has now shrunk to 3%.

Kenny mentioned the logging blockade at Fairy Creek, near Port Renfrew.

“These trees are the legacy of nature at work. To cut them down is, in my opinion, ecocide. That our government permits – not only permits, but actively promotes – the industrial destruction of our old growth forest, in my mind, is a criminal activity,” she said.

Burns added that dozens, possibly hundreds, of people have been manning the anti-old growth logging blockades for five or six months “in the snow, the wind, the rain, the miserableness.”

Neither of them were aware that the BC Supreme Court has just granted a three week reprieve for their colleagues attempting to stop forestry company Teal Jones from obtaining to injunction to remove the blockades at Fairy Creek, near Port Renfrew.

The defence team are seeking more time to assemble materials.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Jennifer Power said, that as the blockade started last August she did not think the delay would be problematic.

The hearing is now scheduled to begin on March 25, and conclude the following day.

Locked out of her MLA’s office

Kenny said that when she and the protesters assembled outside Babchuk’s office, the door was locked.

After our interview, she emailed, “The ONLY, the ONLY storefront in Campbell River that locked its doors to people was/is my elected representative in the Legislature in Victoria. The MLA is my representative in parliament, I am her constituent and I am banned from visiting her office!”

“I am outraged, memories of the GDR (formerly East Germany) flooded my mind……I am shut out of THIS, HORGAN’S pathetic attempt at democracy. Folks, wake up this is a very dangerous situation, this is our government’s elected official’s abdication of their responsibilities towards the electorate. I am contacting Civil Liberties.”

Other protests

Other protests are being held around the province.

Megan Ardyche participated in the Campbell River event and is one of the organizers for a protest in Comox today (Mar 5).

Kenny mentioned a province wide Ancient forest protest planned for March 19.

Links of interest

This program was funded by a grant from the Community Radio Fund of Canada and the Government of Canada’s Local Journalism Initiative.

Top photo credit: The March 4th staggered protest in Campbell River – courtesy Geraldine Kenny

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