Editor’s note: On January 27, 2022, Mosaic unveiled its three year plan to log Cortes Island. Community opinion quickly turned against them after it became apparent that the forestry giant intended to harvest the forest at a rate six times greater than that of the Cortes Forestry General Partnership. Many Cortesians want to see the forest restored to what it was before the advent of industrial scale logging. In the face of a potential large scale community resistance, Mosiac has not commenced logging.

In 2010, the Forest Trust for the Children of Cortes Island was formed to purchase 600 acres of Mosaic’s land in the James Creek Watershed. Negotiations have been ongoing, and there is hope that the deal will soon be finalized.

Canada’s National Observer, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter

A Quadra Island community is increasingly frustrated by its inability to protect vital watersheds from being clear-cut despite the increasing risks of climate change. 

Many residents in the Copper Bluffs community and elsewhere on the island have been urging Mosaic Forest Management to reconsider logging remnants of mature forests, particularly in stream sheds and wetlands. 

Despite long-standing opposition from residents, Mosaic has harvested six parcels totalling five hectares from tree farm licence 47 (TFL 47), which spans most of the island north of Gowlland Harbour and Hyacinthe Bay.