eeping forests on private land

Harold Reedy has his work cut out for him. As a
partner in a newly awarded: woodlot, the local
forestry consultant has to outline all his intentions on
paper before a license will be issued. And the paper-
work is formidable.

"We must do both a Management Pian and a Forest
Development Plan before we receive the license,"
Reedy says.

Add to thal the fact that wocdlot licensees must ad-
here to all the same Forest Practices Code standards
as large companies, and the task gets even tougher.

- But for many applicants, the woodlot offers a
chance to manage a small piece of forest "their way."

"It’s a bit of a lifestyle thing," says Woodlot Forest-
er Ron Donnelly, who manages the program for the

’ Bulkley Forest District.

"There-is some satisfaction in managing your own
piece of land.” oo

Reedy agrees, saying a woodlot can be looked at as
a long-term investment "where a person can work in
their own garden and reap the benefits if they manage
it well and the markets are good."

Woodlots also have an "evergreen. clause" that
means they can be continually replaced as long as all
the requirements of the license are being met. And
while they can’t be sold or transferred; they can be
inherited.

Until recently the Bulkley Forest District hasn't
been a big player in terms of woodlot licenses. For
the past 10 years there have been only five held in the
valley. Buta government initiative to double the
number of woodlots in the province by next year has
led to a sudden local boom. ,

"Tn fact we're looking at tripling the number here,"
says Donnelly.

A number of factors go into the awarding of a
woodlot license. The amount of private land an ap-
plicant is willing to contribute carries the most
weight, The average private land contribution in this
area has been about 100 hectares.

Applications are also rated on the forestry training
and experience of the prospective licensees, as well
as on the proximity of the private land to the woodlot.

That is why woodjot licensees in the past have often
been loggers, farmers or ranchers.

"One of the goals of the program was to get private
land into forest production,” Donnelly says, adding
that there is a lot of marginal agricultural land that
will .be turned into a productive forest through this
program.

A beneficial by-product will also be the wildlife en-
hancement and recreational trail development some
woodlot licensees are planning.

Those initiatives are welcomed by forest officers.

"Most of our woodlots are in the valley, where there
are a lot of conflicting issues," Donnelly says.

Reedy agrees that woodlots can minimize the con-
flicts. Because the forestry activities on a woodlot
take place on a very small scale, there is less lik-
lihood of complaints about such things as clearcut
size.

Once a woodlot license is issued, the private land
portion becames subject to the same Forest Practices
Code provisions as the Crown land portion.

"The problem with a lot of the planning is the over-
head," says forestry consultant Rob Roulston.

Roulston’s company, Silvicon Services, has pro-
vided management services for some local woodlots.

Photo contributed

AS A PARTNER IN A RECENTLY awarded woodlot, Harold Reedy may be spending as much time on —

paperwork as he does in the woods.

He points out that the relative costs for managing a
woodlot end up being higher than for a major forest

license "because it takes almost the same amount of

time to do the paperwork for 5,000 cubic metres as
for 300,000."

Woodlot licensees are also responsible for silvicul-

ture costs until the stand is free growing, Roulston
says.

Keeping forests on private land....1
FRBC - taking care of business....2
Aclean site is good business.......4
Finnish saw makes a fine cut....... 6
Big money benefits local forest... 11
Lumber goes around the globe...15

Sup;iement to The Interior News, Terrace Standard,
Houston Today, Lakes District News, Kitimat Northern Sentinal
Wednesday, OCTOBER 2, 1996

That is why it makes sense for an applicant to be a
logger or a forester -- to save costs at some stage of
the process. . _

So contrary to what some people might think, a
woodlat is no way to get rich quick. But for a careful
manager it will provide a supplementary income and
a chance for long term hands-on forestry from’ see-:
dling to stump.

Christmas trees farmS...........-- wel
FRBC goes fishing......- basareneere eee
Demonstration forest...........60626
Francois Lake Woodworking......28
Treehuggers and clearcutters.....29
Range facts... sce BT

pecadeen