» TFL changes threaten environment
» Times Colonist - Saturday, June 14, 2008
» CRD wants tree-farm hearing Regional government is latest to call for airing of subdivision concerns
» Judith Lavoie, Times Colonist - Monday, June 09, 2008
The Capital Regional District has joined the chorus of demands for the provincial approving officer to hold public hearings into Western Forest Products' application for 319 subdivisions on former tree-farm-licence land around Jordan River, Otter Point and Shirley.
» Public hearings on WFP lands vital for future
» Times Colonist - Sunday, June 08, 2008
Congratulations to the Times Colonist for supporting the call for a public hearing on the rezoning of the Western Forest Products lands. (June 6). The social and environmental impacts of subdivisions around Jordan River would be huge.
» Petition calls for forest minister to resign
» Gordon Hamilton, Vancouver Sun - Thursday, May 29, 2008
An environmental group has called for Forests Minister Rich Coleman to resign for permitting Western Forest Products to remove its private forest lands from a government-regulated tree farm licence. The Victoria-based Dogwood Initiative claims Coleman's decision was a betrayal of public trust
» Hearings a must on land rezoning
» Times Colonist - Wednesday, June 04, 2008
The provincial government has already betrayed the public interest and undermined basic principles of sound land-use planning for vast tracts of land between Sooke and Port Renfrew. It should avoid compounding the damage and order public hearings
» OPSRRA meets with WFP
» Sooke News Mirror - May 14, 2008
WFP intends to construct 24-kms of roads and 10 kms of driveways in order to complete the proposed subdivisions.
» One official to decide fate of Jordan River - Highways Ministry officer mulling merits of controversial proposal
» Judith Lavoie, Times Colonist: Friday, April 25, 2008
The next major decision on the shape of development around Jordan River, Shirley and Otter Point rests with one person. Bob Wylie, Highways Ministry provincial approving officer, has sole responsibility for deciding whether an application by Western Forest Products for 319 subdivisions will get the go-ahead.
» CRD approves bylaws blocking subdivision of forest land
» Judith Lavoie, Times Colonist - Wednesday, April 23, 2008
The Capital Regional District stuck to its guns and enacted six controversial bylaws Wednesday afternoon, dramatically increasing lot sizes on the southwest corner of Vancouver Island.
» subdivision application plans filed by WFP
» on April 8th 2007 in regard to a portion of WFP’s private lands on Southern Vancouver Island.
» Developer unveils controversial Jordan River expansion plans
» By Judith Lavoie - Times Colonist - April 19, 2008
10,000 residents envisioned in 20 years for popular surfing spot on south coast
» Forest Minister's Brother High in Firm Granted Tree Farm Deal
» By Andrew MacLeod January 14, 2008 - TheTyee.ca
WFP's Stan Coleman: 'no involvement' with brother Rich's move to help his company.
» Developer unveils vision for Jordan River area
» C-FAX 1070 - Apr 18, 2008
» Land-use decisions assault democracy, says UVic law clinic
» By Judith Lavoie - Times Colonist - Wednesday, April 16, 2008
Provincial decisions are undermining democracy and land use decisions on southern Vancouver Island
» Contentious bylaw passes
» By Pirjo Raits - Sooke News Mirror - February 20, 2008
» Landowners plan legal actionProposed Bylaw No. 3474 sparks notice of challenge to three CRD directors
» By Pirjo Raits - Sooke News Mirror - February 13, 2008
» Land-use rivals ready for showdown - Monday, January 28, 2008 - Judith Lavoie, Times Colonist
» Environmental groups expected to pack hall as proposal to rezone vast tracts of Juan de Fuca land goes to public hearing
» Rich Coleman Minister of Forests and Range has outraged Brittish
Colunbians with decision to delete 28000ha of land from Tree Farm Licenses
and allowed these lands to be sold to developers. These lands include the
area around Sooke Potholes and large portions of the wild coast from Sooke
to Port Renfrew. He chose to do so without public consultation or
compensation.
It is time to ask for Coleman’s resignation. The first step is signing the petition at BC4sale.org
Recent News: CRD Hearing
The CRD has stepped up to protect the public interest where the province
has failed. If you can make it, your voice and attendance will make a
difference in stalling sprawl on our beloved Wild West coast.
CRD Public Hearings, on Bylaw #'s: 3495 and 3500 regarding the down-zoning of the conditionally sold former tree farm license lands. Please arrive a half hour early to ensure the hall is full of supporters.
Monday January 28th @ 7:00pm.
Otter Point Fire hall 3727 Otter Point Rd.
If you cannot attend the meeting: think about sending an e-mail or mail submission
(message) to Marianne Brown at mbrown@crd.bc.ca OR P.O. Box 283, Sooke BC,
V9Z 0S9. Remember to have your submissions into Marianne before 4:30 on
Monday the 28th in order for them to be considered.
Caroline Dawid.
Volunteer at The Dogwood Initiative
dogwoodinitiative.org
» CBC British Columbia - On The Island - Latest Interviews - cbc.ca/ontheisland/
» Hey, That's My Wave Dude!
We talk to one veteran surfer about how the growing popularity of the sport on Vancouver Island is creating conflicts amongst riders.
Listen to the interview (runs 8:18)
» WFP Speaks
The Campbell government and a variety of critics have been lobbing mud and insults at each other over the Liberal's decision to let Western Forest Products remove land from Tree Farm Licenses. WFP has been doing it's best to duck the dirt. But the company says it's done nothing wrong.
Listen to the interview (runs 11:20)
» West Coast Surf Vandal
A surf school instructor had his truck vandalised near Jordan River. We hear his story.
Listen to the interview (runs 4:46)
» West Coast Land Sale Meeting
Many people showed up at a meeting in Victoria, about the proposed sale of Western Forest Products land near Jordan River and Shirley. Our legislative reporter Jeff Davies was there.
Listen to the interview (runs 7:28)
» Developing the West Coast
We hear from Ender Ilkay, the developer who's buying the lands around Jordan River, about his plans for the land.
Listen to the interview (runs 11:38)
» West Coast Land For Sale
Should the public purse be paid back for the release of private land from the working forest? We find out why the auditor general is being asked to review a controversial West Coast land deal.
Listen to the interview (runs 6:17)
» 
Status of Rural and Forest lands within the CRD
» Surfers versus Suburb - As Coleman's land deal is probed, a wave of anger builds. - By Grant Shilling - thetyee.ca - November 27, 2007
"The logging companies and the government came and said you don't need all this land," Queesto (Chief of Chiefs) of the Paachedaht told an interviewer in 1972. "So they took it."
The Paachedaht (meaning Children of the Sea Foam) claim traditional territory from Jordan River to Port Renfrew, about a 50 kilometer stretch, and have been pushed back into a reserve beside the San Juan river. They are fraught with poverty, unemployment, suicides.
» B.C. A-G to probe forest land sale - Mark Hume and Wendy Stueck - globeandmail.com - Nov 20, 2007
VANCOUVER - John Doyle, the Auditor-General of British Columbia, is going to examine a controversial decision by the provincial government that allowed a forestry company to sell timber lands on Vancouver Island for real-estate development.
Mr. Doyle announced yesterday that "in the public interest" his office will review the decision to delete from three Tree Farm Licences about 28,000 hectares of private land held by Duncan-based Western Forest Products.
»
Land sale prompts changeLand-use committee votes on amendment in Juan de Fuca Electoral Area - By Pirjo Raits - Sooke News Mirror - November 21, 2007
The wind was taken out of the sails of a few people who came forward at the Capital Regional District board meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 14. The board room was packed with delegations, media and the public.
Close to a dozen people had made a request to address the board in regard to the sale of forestry lands in the Juan de Fuca Electoral Area, but they were preempted by an announcement by the CRD board to proceed with proposed amendments to the official community plans and land use regulations dealing with the zoning of rural, resource and forestry land within the Juan de Fuca Electoral Area.
» Auditor general to probe tree farm licence deal - Lindsay Kines and Jeff Rud, Times Colonist - Nov 19, 2007
The provincial auditor general will investigate the B.C. government's decision to allow Western Forest Products to remove land from three tree farm licences on Vancouver Island.
John Doyle said yesterday that his office can conduct a review when it is in the public interest to do so. He noted that his office had received a number of requests in recent weeks to examine the controversial decision.
» Editorial: Forest-land fiasco betrays taxpayers - Oct 19, 2007 Victoria Times-Colonist
It's up to regional government to try to undo the damage caused by the Liberals' giveaway - dogwoodinitiative.org
» CRD Halts development of JORDAN RIVER forest land - cfax1070.com
C.R.D. is moving ahead to public hearing on a proposed zoning change to restrict development of those forested lands - allowing just one home for every 120 hectares.
» Forest land deal allowed logging threats, says lawyer - Judith Lavoie, Times Colonist, Nov 16, 2007
A lawyer who has asked the auditor general to probe a controversial decision involving forest land is blaming the province for threats of intensive logging or no park or ocean access in scenic areas on the Island's southwestern coast.
The threats underline the tragedy of a provincial decision to allow Western Forest Products to pull 28,283 hectares of private land from three tree-farm licences on Vancouver Island without asking for park dedication or environmental protection, says Calvin Sandborn of the University of Victoria's Environmental Law Clinic.
» Editorial: CRD right to freeze development - Times Colonist, Nov 16, 2007
The Capital Regional District deserves praise for acting so quickly to freeze most development along the Island's southwest coast. Though the action won't mitigate all the effects of the province's inexplicable decision to allow Western Forest Products to remove 28,283 hectares of private land from tree farm licences, it is at least a start
» NDP Petition - Stop the Campbell Government's Giveaway of Lands at Jordan River -
» Mainland developer snaps up prime Jordan River waterfront - VictoriaTimesColonist
A West Vancouver developer has bought the controversial 1,800 hectares of land around Shirley and Jordan River put up for sale by Western Forest Products.
Ender Ilkay, president of Ilkay Development Corp., which already has a subdivision project underway in Sheringham Point, near Shirley, and other projects in Chemainus, Saltair and Mill Bay, has bought the parcels
A carpool is planned from in front of Port Alberni CanadianTire at 7:30 AM
Save Our Valley Alliance urges the Auditor General to extend his review of the removal of Western Forest Products lands from their TFLs to include the private land deletions from TFL 44.
We invite you to join us in Victoria to send this message to the Auditor General and the Provincial Government.
This event is on the last day that the legislature will be in session in 2007.
Island Timberlands was created as a result of our provincial government's dalliance with Weyerhaeuser and Brookfield Asset Management (Brascan). They are now proceeding to rob the province of 6000 person years of sawmill employment over the next ten years. They plan to export 1.3 million cubic meters per year from their lands and pocket the profits derived from operating outside the restraint of public interest oversight.
Quoting from the Dominion Bond Rating Service , August 2005 ,where the company makes it case for a $400 million bond issue:
"A surplus of mature second growth and primary growth timber provides an opportunity for a step up in primary growth harvesting of 6,000,000 m3 which is planned to be harvested over the next ten years. This increase resulted from the recent removal of about 215,000 acres from under the more onerous regulatory regime associated with TFLs and the inability to export while under such regime, which discouraged the harvest until now."
This 6 million cubic meters of old growth timber is the lifeline which provides winter range for our remaining wild ungulates.
The export of the majority of this timber is a great loss for the land and for our communities.
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