Across British Columbia and, in particular, the Sunshine Coast Timber Supply Area, Douglas-fir are on the verge of liquidation. Finally, in 2011, we made small progress when the Provincial Government recognized the dire situation of the Douglas-fir ecosystem: it is under-represented in the park system and other protected management zones. The lower slopes of Mt. Elphinstone are prized for their fast-growing Douglas-fir forests. The unbridled commercial appetite for Douglas-fir will turn the vast majority of the lower slopes into industrial tree farms – a situation not conducive to a healthy environment.
The current Mt. Elphinstone Provincial Park is very small, divided into three separate ‘island’ parcels that protect only 139 hectares of lands across the lower mountain slopes, above xwesam (Roberts Creek), west of Gibsons. It and the surrounding Crown lands offer high-value recreation and ongoing environmental services in an inter-urban zone. BC Parks states that the Park is “vulnerable to adjacent logging.” In other words, the existing small park needs expansion to provide viable protection of this vulnerable ecosystem.
“In the 1990s, local residents worked hard for a 1,500-hectare park, but only 139 hectares were granted,” says Ross Muirhead of ELF. “The intact areas outside of the Park are being converted over time into tree farms, resulting in severe loss of recreational and biodiversity opportunities. The time to act is now, while there is still significant natural forest habitat left. ELF will distribute a mail-in card directed to the Premier, requesting that the park expansion be a top priority for the government.”
ELF spokesperson Hans Penner says, “The 1,500-2,000 hectare park addition is included in the current Roberts Creek Official Community Plan. A growing number of residents, myself included, call on the government to support the Mount Elphinstone Park expansion to protect this under-represented ecosystem and support a growing tourism industry on the Sunshine Coast that appreciates the natural beauty of these forests.”
The vital need to expand the Park should be a top priority over all other development. A moratorium on all cutblocks in the new park boundaries should be implemented immediately to protect the land while park expansion is considered.
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