$523,000 TO IMPROVE FRASER VALLEY EAST FOREST ROADS

VICTORIA – Residents from Chilliwack to Boston Bar will benefit from $523,000 to improve travel and safety conditions on the Nahatlatch, Jones Lake and Harrison East Forest Service roads, Forests and Range Minister Pat Bell, Community Development Minister Kevin Krueger and Chilliwack-Kent MLA Barry Penner announced.

“Whether it is to provide access to recreations sites, homes, or work sites, we’re investing $20 million to improve travel on Forest Service roads, which will help keep our rural communities connected and local economies moving,” said Bell.

“As an outdoor enthusiast, I’ve travelled these roads to access many trails and recreation sites,” said Penner. “The Fraser Valley offers spectacular outdoor recreation and I’m pleased that we’re making it easier and safer for people to enjoy the great outdoors.”

The Nahatlatch Forest Service road is a major access corridor northwest of Boston Bar. The Nahatlatch road provides access to five recreation sites and ends at Mehatl Creek Provincial Park. It also provides access to the Reo Rafting and Wilderness Resort and approximately 20 private properties at Nahatlatch, Hannah and Frances lakes.

The Nahatlatch road will also be used to access the $150 million Kwoiek Creek Hydroelectric Project as well as mining, forestry, and fisheries sites. Road improvements include ditching, culvert maintenance, road surface repairs, placement of bridge delineators and approach guides, a superstructure retrofit, guardrails, and safety signage on the 71-metre bridge over the Nahatlach River.

“Improvements to these Forest Service roads will give residents better access to health care services, strengthen connections between communities and allow for a wider range of economic opportunities,” said Krueger. “In addition, they will allow more visitors seeking adventure in the Fraser Valley to experience the beauty of this region.”

The Jones Lake Forest Service road, east of Hope, provides access for approximately 20 rural and seasonal residences and more than 40,000 visitors per year to the Jones Lake recreation sites. The road work includes ditching, culvert maintenance, road surface repairs, placement of bridge delineators and approach guides, and safety signage.

The Harrison East Forest Service road starts six kilometres north of Harrison Hot Springs and provides access to popular lakefront and creek side recreation sites, natural hot springs, private cabins and a scenic back-road route to Boston Bar. Road works include blasting corners to improve sight lines and replace safety signage along 64 kilometres of road.

British Columbia’s 55,000-kilometre network of Forest Service roads is bigger than the provincial highway system. As first announced by Premier Gordon Campbell at the 2008 Union of B.C. Municipalities convention, the Ministry of Forests and Range is providing $20 million to improve travel conditions on Forest Service roads that serve as crucial transportation links to rural communities and recreation sites. The Province of B.C. and the Government of Canada committed on April 7, 2009, to a further $20 million in shared funding for additional Forest Service road upgrades that will be announced in the coming months.

New road maintenance funding is the latest in a series of initiatives to improve safety on Forest Service roads, which include the establishment of radio protocols, speed enforcement through expanded use of radar guns, and the expansion of the Vehicle Identification Plates Program.

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Media contact:	Jennifer McLarty Public Affairs Officer Ministry of Forests and Range 250 387-4592

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