Old growth a hot topic at Cheakamus Community Forest (CCF) open house

The first question posed to Cheakamus Community Forest (CCF) administrators at a recent virtual open house was a good indicator of how the rest of the conversation would go.  “Why are we even talking about cutting any old growth forest areas around here?” a participant asked.  “They are priceless and should not be touched. We can do better.”  It’s not a new debate in Whistler by any stretch, but one that has taken on new life following a provincial review of B.C.’s old growth management completed last year.  As it relates to the CCF, between 30 and 55 per cent of old growth is currently protected, said board chair Jeff Fisher at the March 29 meeting. …“We are on a program to shift out of the old growth, but it’s a question of is it going to take 30 years, 20 years, 10 years or five years, and we are still examining options to change our harvest planning that way.”