October 2005 Logging Update

Plans for logging in the Nature Park have changed somewhat over the last month. The major change has been that the Nordic Trail logging has been deferred till next summer as there is not time to complete it before ski season. As a result, the wood from the Nordic Trails will not be coming down through the Park and out to Matthew Creek. The Nature Park logging is still expected to happen this winter, starting in January. Tembec is talking to the Provincial Government about getting financial support for cleanup and other costs and there is a chance that if they don't get that assistance they may wait another year. The road permit to upgrade access from Matthew Creek and along the Army Road was delayed and construction has not yet started. It will, however, be starting soon and we will keep you posted. The plan is also being modified to include input from Bob Gray, the City of Kimberley's fire ecologist. One of the changes to the plan is to remove the lodgepole pine from the riparian buffers around Duck Pond and Third Eimer's. Treed buffers will be maintained but it is felt that the pine will soon be lost to the beetle epidemic and it is better to remove it now. Another significant change to the plan results from a failure to find provincial funding for hand treatment in the area around Eimer's Lake. The plan now proposes that machine logging will occur on the hillsides above Eimer's and the south side of Second Eimer's. A new version of the logging map is below and a link to download a larger version that you can zoom in on is here.