Wells Gray Community Forest Corporation has a healthy bank balance and is in a position to continue helping worthy causes.
That’s according to documents released during WGCFC’s annual public information forum at the Community Resource Center on April 12.
As of Oct. 31, 2011, the community forest had about $770,000 in the bank and another $10,000 in accounts receivable. This compares with $390,000 in the bank one year earlier.
Projections are the corporation will have about the same amount of cash on hand at the end of this fiscal year, despite an active logging program and disbursing $200,000 to the community.
Harvesting activities will target 25,000 cubic meters of wood, using all local contractors, creating 34 person-months of employment and with a direct economic value of over $1 million.
WGCFC has awarded its 2012 silviculture contract to a local contractor. The spring program will plant 145,000 seedlings. Planning is underway to purchase 209,000 seedlings for the 2013 program.
Other items in the community forest’s annual plan for the year include assembling an updated version of its five-year management plan. The present plan expires this year. A public review period will be completed this spring and then the plan will be submitted to the Ministry.
A group of UBC Forestry students are using the WGCFC landbase as a case study. The students will make recommendations for the five-year management plan and present a number of carbon management and biofuel scenarios.
WGCFC’s forest stewardship plan also expires this year. A local contractor is assembling a replacement.
A follow-up on a hydrological assessment done for Clearwater’s watershed will be completed soon. The report will highlight actions taken by the community forest during the development of pine beetle killed stands.
WGCFC plans to provide support to Wells Gray Outdoor Club in adding a network of mountain bike trails within the existing Candle Creek ski trail network.
The community forest recognizes the ecological importance of non-timber forest products and will include them in its strategic planning.
The Ministry has chosen WGCFC as one of the pilot tenures for a one-cutting permit concept.
A wood expansion committee will document the achievements of the local community forest over the last seven years. It will use that information to support a request that WGCFC’s landbase be enlarged to support a 50,000 cubic meter annual allowable cut (up from the present 20,000 with an uplift of 15,300 for pine salvage).