We all know about or have personally felt the effects of the forestry industry’s downturn over the last few years.

We all know about or have personally felt the effects of the forestry industry’s downturn over the last few years.

The B.C. government is investing $4.5 million to help rural businesses and communities recover from the economic impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Forest Enhancement Society of BC (FESBC) has allocated $3 million in new grants throughout the province to support jobs in the forestry sector and increase the use of wood fibre that otherwise would be burned as slash.

The B.C. government is investing another $12 million to assist with the detection and removal of invasive species, as part of its economic recovery plan to support jobs and help communities cope with the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

The B.C. government is investing $10 million in a new FireSmart Economic Recovery Fund, as part of its economic recovery plan to create jobs and help communities cope with the ongoing impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic.

To prevent gypsy moth populations from becoming established and to minimize the risk they pose to forests, farms, orchards and trees, the B.C. government plans to conduct aerial-spray treatments in the Courtenay area in spring 2021. 

Comments are being accepted until March 18, 2021, on a discussion paper released as part of a comprehensive timber supply review for the Okanagan Timber Supply Area.

Thousands more people in rural and Indigenous communities are benefiting from improved high-speed internet thanks to provincial investments in connectivity infrastructure projects.

Up to 60 piles of woody debris will be burned within the Antlers Saddle Conservation Land area of Garnet Valley over the next few months to help reduce wildfire risk in the area.