Over the years, I have heard from many people concerned about preserving the natural heritage in our region and those voices are getting louder and more numerous. Many of us recognize that places like Cable Bay, Harewood Plains, Mt. Benson and the Nanaimo River are more than just beautiful landscapes – they are rich ecosystems, and home to species and habitats at risk.
Protecting the biodiversity of local environmentally sensitive areas, ensuring our water supply is properly protected and that we continue to have recreational access is critical to maintaining our quality of life in this region.
However, acquiring and maintaining these lands as protected areas is beyond the financial capabilities of the City and Regional District of Nanaimo. That’s why federal and provincial involvement and the good-will and generosity of major landowners is essential.
Both the federal and provincial governments have committed to protecting 30 per cent of B.C.’s biodiversity by 2030, but the Nanaimo region’s protected areas currently fall well short of that – less than two per cent of the RDN’s land base is designated as parkland or conservation area. For example the Nanaimo River watershed is 750 square kilometres but less than two square kilometres is parkland and less than 11 square kilometres is protected area. To protect the natural treasures around us, to protect our community drinking water systems, to protect the quality of life for residents, senior governments need to step in with funding and policy support and major landowners need to demonstrate goodwill and commitment to community well-being.
Some of the greatest challenges to conservation in our region stem from the E&N land grant of 1887. More than 130 years ago 8,000 square kilometres of Vancouver Island – 20 per cent of the land mass – were transferred to private ownership as part of the deal to build the Esquimalt and Nanaimo railway which was a condition for British Columbia to join the Canadian confederation.
The E&N land grant has had enduring consequences. Today, the lack of Crown land makes it challenging for local governments to secure protected areas for conservation or to ensure that community drinking watersheds are adequately protected. For First Nations, it has impacted existing treaties, modern treaty negotiations and access to traditional lands. For residents, it limits recreational access to natural spaces and places unique ecosystems under threat from development pressures. At current assessed land and timber values these critical lands are worth hundreds of millions of dollars.
Forest companies have been the biggest beneficiaries of the land grant and have realized massive land value increases in the last decade. Mosaic Forest Management manages the planning, operations and product sales for TimberWest and Island Timberlands, the two largest land-owning companies on Vancouver Island. All three of these companies are owned by Canadian public sector pension funds.
Because these lands are private, they fall under the private managed forest land regulations which are less stringent than the B.C. Forest Act which covers crown land. These forest lands are replanted as monoculture tree farms and lack natural biodiversity which means they are more susceptible to disease and wildfire and lack natural habitat for wildlife.
These companies need to be part of the solution and assist with protecting biodiversity and creating parks and protected areas on Vancouver Island. The city and the RDN have funded previous land acquisitions. The federal government has tax incentives for land-owners to set aside land to protect biodiversity. There are also carbon offset programs that the companies can access. What we need are permanent protections.
The city and the RDN have both passed motions, written to and met with senior levels of government requesting assistance with land acquisition for biodiversity protection. The members of our community who want to see biodiversity protection need to make their voices heard in Victoria and Ottawa.
Paul Manly is a Nanaimo city councillor and former member of Parliament. The views expressed are his own.
