The PFLA represents managed forest owners across the province of BC, from the coast to the interior, the large to the small, the veteran forester to the novice tree farmer.
The PFLA participates in the public policy process to ensure government policy is fair, environmentally sound, fiscally responsible and respectful of private property rights.
The PFLA offers workshops and events to foster responsible forest management that supports the protection of key public environmental values.
PFLA members are leaders in private forest research and innovation, pioneering many of today’s most innovative harvesting and silviculture practices.
Although private forest land accounts for a small percentage of the province’s land base (2%), it plays a significant role in the lives of British Columbians.
Of the 2% of land in British Columbia that is private forest land, 51% is managed forest land, 22% is forested farmland and 27% is forested residential.
Section 31 (3) of the Private Managed Forest Land Council Regulation requires owners to reforest harvested areas within five years, but a recent audit report found planting is generally completed within one or two years.
The focus of private forest landowners in the Managed Forest Program is protecting key public environmental values—fish habitat, water quality, soil productivity, critical wildlife habitat and the growing of trees.
Social values, such as visual quality and biodiversity are protected on the public lands that make up over 95% of British Columbia. That said, PFLA members and other private landowners often go out of their way to manage their lands with consideration for these social values.
In total, Private Managed Forest Lands are bound by over 35 different legislative regulations, including:
* Federal Fisheries Act
* Forest Management Regulation
* Water Sustainability Act
* Drinking Water Protection Act
* Private Managed Forest Land Regulation
* Wildlife Act
* Species at Risk Act
* Soil Conservation Act
* Professional Governance Act (formerly Foresters Act)
Each year, the Private Forest Landowners Association hosts a field tour showcasing regional examples of exemplary private forest land management. The tours offer networking and information sharing opportunities for attendees.
Members of the public are invited to an open house to learn about the development of a Xwulqw’selu (Koksilah) Watershed and Water Sustainability Plan, and provide input to help guide long-term approaches to water supply and ecosystem health in the area.
The Canadian Forest Sector Transformation Task Force has been established to identify priority pathways for industry and federal, provincial and territorial governments to restructure, retool and transform Canada’s forest sector for long-term competitiveness and sustainability.
