The extreme regional and global climate impacts we’ve experienced in the last few years highlight that protecting primary, old-growth, and mature forests is one of our best hopes if we want to maintain natural carbon sinks, reduce climate impacts, and protect biodiversity.
The B.C. government’s most recent old growth update does not offer a clear path to protecting these intact ecosystems. Most notably, it does not clarify how it will leverage existing funding for First Nations opting to defer old-growth logging on their territories. It also delays the final Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health (BEH) Framework to 2025, putting badly needed conservation actions on hold for another year.
The draft Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health framework, as well as the tripartite Nature Agreement, contain funding and key elements that could make safeguarding the most at-risk old growth in B.C. a reality"
