Re: Lantzville group submits revised proposal to help preserve forest, April 18.
I continue to be astounded by the opposition to Woodlot No. 1475 in Lantzville. Woodlot No. 1475 is a local forestry dream come true.
Last year, when I was building Nelson Ridge Estates, 18 townhomes in north Nanaimo, I needed Douglas fir for the exterior finishes. I drove two kilometres from my home in Lantzville to hand pick the logs I wanted from Woodlot No. 1475. The logs were scaled by a local scaler and then milled by a local portable sawmill. We used the wood to build exterior staircases and post wraps as well as the bollards in the parking area. The entire process from managing the woodlot, logging the trees, manufacturing the wood and building the final product took place within a 15km radius of my home.
Woodlot No. 1475 is sustainable forestry at its finest.The woodlot is 244 hectares and the annual harvest is 2.5 hectares a year. A full quarter of the woodlot is reserved from harvest as part of the forest management plan for wildlife habitat, biodiversity, stream and riparian area management, recreation and visual quality. When trees are logged, seedlings are planted and cared for.
Woodlot No. 1475 is a well-shared working forest. Generally, the woodlot is logged twice every five years. When there is no active logging going on – and that’s most of the time – people are in that forest constantly. They walk their dogs; they hike and bike. And that’s as it should be. It is public land and the woodlot owners are happy for the public to use it. They have a good relationship with the recreational users and work with local groups to maintain trails affected by logging.
Forestry is an important economic driver within the Nanaimo regional district and Woodlot No. 1475 is an impressive example of sustainable forestry that supports Nanaimo’s economy while also providing space for outdoor recreation and natural habitat for wildlife.
Dave McNaught, Lantzville