Foster Creek old-growth logging has begun in one of British Columbia’s rarest inland rainforests, raising serious questions about the province’s commitment to protecting ancient forests and endangered mountain caribou habitat.

Conservation organization Wildsight reports that satellite imagery confirms logging activity in forests along the Kinbasket Reservoir, north of Revelstoke, that were previously identified by provincial experts as priorities for protection.

The logging comes as British Columbia prepares for a change in government following the October 24 provincial election, putting the incoming BC Conservatives under pressure to demonstrate what their commitment to protecting the province’s rarest forests actually means.

Ancient rainforest approved for logging

Three cutblocks covering approximately 120 hectares have been approved for harvesting near Foster Creek, between Revelstoke and Valemount.

According to Wildsight, more than 100 hectares overlap areas recommended for immediate logging deferral by the province’s Old Growth Technical Advisory Panel in 2021.

Provincial forest inventory data identifies trees between 350 and 367 years old, including western redcedars measuring up to two metres in diameter.

The forest forms part of a larger six-square-kilometre area of old and ancient rainforest extending into the neighbouring Foster Arm Protected Area.

Wildsight conservation specialist Eddie Petryshen says the logging demonstrates how vulnerable B.C.’s remaining ancient forests remain despite years of government commitments.

“This signals we’re willing to continue logging a lot of our last old and ancient forests,” Petryshen says.

How were old-growth protections removed?

The controversy centres on decisions made by BC Timber Sales (BCTS), the provincial agency responsible for auctioning timber from Crown land.

Wildsight says BCTS confirmed earlier this year that the proposed cutblocks met provincial old-growth deferral criteria.

However, following Wildsight’s own field verification, the organization says those mapped deferrals were removed from the provincial database.

The timber was subsequently auctioned in June, sold in July, and cutting permits were issued shortly afterward.

Wildsight had been urging the former NDP government to intervene since May but says correspondence to senior Ministry of Forests officials went unanswered.

The situation exposes a fundamental weakness in B.C.’s old-growth protection framework.

In 2021, the province identified some of its most ecologically significant remaining forests for temporary logging deferrals while longer-term conservation measures were developed.

However, a recommendation for deferral did not automatically establish legally enforceable protection.

“There’s nothing but goodwill protecting those deferrals,” Petryshen explains.

Endangered mountain caribou habitat at risk

Beyond the loss of centuries-old trees, the Foster Creek logging raises concerns for the Columbia North mountain caribou herd.

The surrounding Howard-Foster to Encampment landscape contains some of the largest remaining intact low-elevation old-growth forests within the herd’s range.

These forests provide important winter habitat and help caribou avoid predators.

Wildsight warns that reopening old logging roads and constructing new access routes could further fragment the landscape and increase pressure on a population already facing serious long-term survival challenges.

The inland temperate rainforest of the Columbia Mountains is an exceptionally rare ecosystem. Its remaining ancient cedar and hemlock forests support biodiversity that cannot be quickly restored after industrial harvesting.

BC Conservatives face their first old-growth test

The newly elected BC Conservatives inherit the consequences of years of unresolved old-growth policy under the NDP government.

Premier-designate Lorne Doerkson is preparing to form his government, with a new provincial cabinet expected to be announced November 20.

During the election campaign, the Conservatives promised to protect original old growth and the province’s rarest and most endangered ecosystems while returning other forest lands to timber production.

The party also committed to increasing sustainable timber availability, accelerating forestry approvals and supporting employment in B.C.’s struggling forest industry.

Those commitments now face an immediate test at Foster Creek.

Wildsight argues that the ancient rainforest is precisely the type of ecosystem the Conservatives pledged to protect.

The organization is calling on the incoming government to halt harvesting in timber sale TA2933, apply deferrals under Part 13 of the Forest Act, and implement the recommendations of the Old Growth Strategic Review.

Will protection promises become permanent?

The Foster Creek controversy highlights a challenge that has persisted across successive provincial governments: how to balance forest industry employment and timber supplies with the permanent conservation of increasingly rare ancient ecosystems.

The former NDP government introduced extensive old-growth deferral programs but did not complete long-term protection decisions for all areas identified as priorities.

Now, the Conservatives must decide which forests deserve permanent protection and which will return to commercial harvesting.

For Foster Creek, the consequences of those decisions are immediate.

The question is no longer simply whether British Columbia recognizes the ecological importance of its remaining ancient forests. It is whether that recognition will translate into protection before they are logged.

Learn more:
Read Wildsight’s original news release, its investigation into the removal of old-growth deferrals, and take action to protect Foster Creek.