Tag Archives: Films

Highly generative community forest meeting launches next phase of opportunity roadmap

On Sat. Jan. 28, Cortes Community Forest Cooperative (CCFC) public meeting succeeded in providing a “local knowledge download” for the external consulting team, who are now working on a plan for CCFC to keep more of its cut wood on island, simultaneously creating jobs through tapping the value-added wood products sector.

The meeting was held at the Klahoose First Nation’s Multi-Purpose Building. The Nation is a strategic partner with the non-indigenous side of the island in holding and guiding development on approximately 3,869 hectares of Crown land that makes up the Forest’s tenure.

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Cortes value-added wood products: A workshop for Champions

Narrator: “Mills have closed across rural British Columbia, devastating the economies of many small forestry dependent communities. Tiny Harrop-Proctor Community Forest has bucked this trend. The Harrop-Proctor experience shows that even a small, locally controlled mill can make a significant difference in creating local jobs while adding value to forestry operations generally.”

“ About a quarter of the wood from the community forest  is staying in the community. Comes four kilometres down the hill, ends up here, gets bucked up,  runs through the mill, and local builders are coming to buy stuff.  There’s a huge benefit there because those jobs weren’t here before,” explained Rami Rothkop speaking in a film about Harrop-Procter Forest Products (close to Nelson, in the Kootenays). 

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Environmental concerns about the Gorge Harbour log dump

When a large volume of logs were dumped in Gorge Harbour, during the 1970s and 80s, they caused extensive damage to the underwater environment.

One of the questions raised at Mosaic’s Cortes Island ZOOM meeting, last January, revolved around the possibility that reactivating the log dump could also have negative impacts. Mike Moore dove beneath the log dump about fifteen years ago. At that time, he observed a thick layer of wood debris and sediments, covered by ‘bacterial mats.’ Moore was concerned about the possibility a new disturbance of the sediments could pollute nearby shellfish operations. 

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Ocean rescue ‘heroes’ the subject of new television series

By Crystal St.Pierre, Windspeaker, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

Four communities along the western shores of British Columbia that are members of the Coastal Nations Coast Guard Auxiliary will be showcased in an upcoming television series called Ocean Warriors – Mission Ready.

“We are going to watch those guys transition into a full-fledged volunteer Indigenous coast guard,” said Steve Sxwithul’txw, creator, producer and director of the upcoming series.

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The need to protect Black Bear dens on Vancouver Island

Unlike their Mainland cousins, Vancouver Island’s Black Bears make their dens almost exclusively in large-diameter old trees, stumps, logs, or root wads. Dens are normally left dormant for a while after use, due to parasite infestation and the need to escape predators. However a study in the Nimpkish Valley, south of Port McNeill, found that 72% of the dens were reused over a 15 year period. In one case, the den was occupied during four winters. 

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