Module 4: Opportunities, Barriers & Case Studies

Overview

The Cheakamus Community Forest lies on the overlapping unceded territories of the Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) and the Lil̓wat7úl (Líl̓wat Nation), surrounding the Resort Municipality of Whistler B.C. The Cheakamus Community Forest was created following an announcement from the Ministry of Forests that the timber harvest volume around Whistler would be available for a new tenure through the new Community Forest Program [2]. The Resort Municipality of Whistler, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw and Lil̓wat7úl negotiated a partnership based on the common belief that the people of the region, should manage the forest harvesting according to their values.

The group, supported by Brinkman Climate and Ecotrust Canada, proposed to jointly manage 33,000 ha of forest under the auspices of Cheakamus Community Forest Society, an independent non-profit. The agreement became official in 2009 with the signing of a 25-year tenure with the provincial Ministry of Forests and Range. 

Through updated analysis of the land base based on community values, the Cheakamus Community Forest (CCF) and its partners have successfully negotiated with the Ministry of Forests to reduce the amount of timber harvested from 40,000m³ to 21,000m³ through implementing Improved Forest Management (IFM) actions that align with community management values.

Of the more than 33,000 hectares allocated for the CCF, approximately 15,000 hectares are protected through a variety of legal and voluntary mechanisms from being commercially harvested. This means that animals and plants can flourish and recreational opportunities expand, while new forestry practices can be explored and refined [3]. 

The CCF is the first carbon project to be established in a BC forest tenure, and also the first project in any community forest tenure in Canada. The carbon credits generated by the CCF project are quantified using the B.C. Forest Carbon Offset Protocol, and verified to the B.C. Emissions Offset Regulation. 

These actions are guided by the community forest’s ecosystem-based management plan, and delivered on the land through reduced harvest volumes, extended harvest rotations, expanded reserves, and protection of old-growth forests and other important wildlife habitats. 

Through the implementation of these management actions, the CCF carbon project reduces greenhouse gas emissions by approximately 10,000 tonnes of carbon dioxide per year. During the first verification period from 2009 to 2013, the project generated 65,546 carbon credits [4]. The project has sold approximately 150,000 credits to various buyers, including the provincial government, VanCity, Ecotrust Canada, Brinkman Climate, and the Resort Municipality of Whistler, whose purchasing of offsets contributes to their own climate goal of going carbon neutral [5].  

In 2021, the provincial government purchased over 7,000 carbon credits at a rate of $14.00/tonne from the CCF project [6]. In addition, the project had approximately 12,500 carbon credits available for purchase through Brinkman Climate at $25 tonne until May 31, 2015. 

While the revenue from offset sales does not currently cover the entirety of operational costs, the federal compliance market price of carbon emissions is set to continually increase from $65 per tonne of CO2e in 2023 to $170 by 2030, which will hopefully support higher price negotiation with the provincial government and bring enhanced economic security for projects like the CCF.

Community Forest Agreements and Indigenous-led carbon projects can bring exclusive use- rights and can be a productive tool in redistributing decision-making power away from state and private corporations and into the hands of local communities. Kerry Mehaffey, chief administrative officer for the Líl̓wat Nation, says that these forestry tenures have become an opportunity to take their land back [7]. Historically, Líl̓wat Nation did not see any of the benefits from harvesting that occurred in their own territory, and even took direct action to prevent big forestry companies from access, they now hold the majority of tenure to their lands, with annual harvesting projects divided equally between Lil’wat Forestry Ventures LP and Squamish Forestry LP.

The CCF has given the First Nations and the local community economic control and the right to manage the forest for the first time in centuries [8]. The redistribution of decision-making power has enabled the protection of primary forests that contain culturally significant flora and fauna that are integral to Indigenous knowledge systems and community health [9].

This project provides an excellent case study of what decision-making based on community values looks like in action. 

On June 10th, 2021, the Squamish Nation formally gave notice to the provincial government to defer old-growth logging across the entirety of their traditional territory for two years [10]. On the same day, the CCF Board of Directors passed the motion to defer commercial old growth logging for the remainder of 2021 while working towards finding consensus on old growth management in the CCF.

Since the announcement, the CCF has extended the moratorium on old growth through 2022 and is currently in the process of transitioning to harvesting only mature and second-growth stands [11]. In order to achieve these community objectives, the CCF has proposed to reduce the forests’ Annual Allowable Harvest, set by the provincial government, from 21,000 m³ to 13,000m³.