COMMUNITY TRUST SUPPORTS SILVICULTURE AND EDUCATION

PRINCE GEORGE – Ten Prince George forest workers will be removing beetle-killed pine and improving silviculture conditions on a licensed woodlot that is part of the Willow River Demonstration Forest, thanks to $155,519 from the Community Development Trust’s Job Opportunities Program, Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell and Prince George MLAs Shirley Bond and John Rustad announced today.

“The Job Opportunities Program is keeping skilled forest workers in Prince George and helping develop a local forestry showpiece, that teaches people about forest health, management and opportunities,” said Bell. “Woodlot licensees’ strong connection to the land often leads them to instinctively work towards improving silviculture practices, and this funding supports those advances.”

“Helping to support forest workers and their families is essential during these challenging times and the Job Opportunities Program is one of the initiatives that combines job creation with necessary projects like removing beetle-killed pine and improving silviculture,” said Bond. “More than 600 workers from across the province have benefitted from the program and that number will continue to grow.”

The workers will hand-harvest pockets of beetle-wood and other dead trees throughout the site, thereby reducing the spread and damage caused by other forest pests such as Western Gall Rust or Atropelis canker, and supporting the forest’s future growth regeneration.

“The Job Opportunities Program is creating forestry incomes for Prince George families and improving the health and future harvest of the woodlot,” said Rustad. “The program provides employment during this period of global economic uncertainty, creates community benefits and ensures Prince George will keep its skilled workforce.”

“The Community Development Trust is assisting forest workers, their families and communities across this province. During a time when every job counts, we are providing stability,” said Community Development Minister Kevin Krueger. “We are pleased to be able to support this project, while at the same time improving forest health.”

The project will also include brushing and maintenance of four kilometres of trails, and may include fire hazard abatement work near the trails and main road.

The Willow River Demonstration Forest Society was awarded a woodlot licence in 1986. Harvesting activities on the woodlot have supported the demonstration forest’s interpretive trail, highlighting different ecosystems and explaining silviculture practices, regeneration, harvesting, and visual quality. The work is being undertaken by the Prince George Woodlot Association.

“The Job Opportunities Program is helping us meet several of our objectives,” said Prince George Woodlot Association president Mark Clark. “We have been able to hire Prince George forest workers and use their knowledge and skills to improve the health of the trees on our woodlot, and preserve the volume and increase the value of our mid-term timber supply.”

The $26.25-million Job Opportunities Program is reducing the impact of current layoffs on workers employed in the forest industry, retaining skilled forest workers for the anticipated future upturn, and preserving the characteristics of the labour force in forest-dependent communities.

A forest-dependent community or organization and forest licensees or forest contractors working in co-operation with a forest-dependent community, are eligible to submit a project proposal to the Job Opportunities Program. To date, the program has approved over $13 million to support 79 projects, which will employ more than 620 forest workers in communities across the province.

The Job Opportunities Program is one component of the Community Development Trust, which was announced last spring. B.C.’s share of the federal trust is $129 million over three years, with funds also directed to a tuition assistance program and the Transition Assistance for Older Workers Program.

For more information about the Community Development Trust and Job Opportunities Program, go to: www.cd.gov.bc.ca/cdt/

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Media contact:	Jennifer McLarty Public Affairs Officer Ministry of Forests and Range 250 387-4592	Leanne Ritchie Public Affairs Officer Ministry of Community Development 250 387-4089
	Mark Clark President Prince George Woodlot Association 250 964-1381
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