Western Silvicultural Contractors’ Association
Rumour Mill RoundUpDate
April 17, 2015
Vol. 15, Issue 8
Warning: Some facts contained in this issue may be true. Some facts may be based on assumptions. Some facts may be more true than others. Some facts may be used to support assumptions, which may form other facts. Please sort all facts accordingly.
Government 2015 Planting Reduced by 1.9 Million Seedlings: Industry Losses Unknown
Government has announced it will reduce its total 2015 provincial 50-million tree reforestation program, including BCTS, District and Forests For Tomorrow, by four percent this spring due to nursery losses from last fall’s weather. It will make up for the shortfall in 2017/18. The losses include spring projects in both the south Interior and the north. Industry losses are not known. Assuming their exposure to be more or less equal to the government’s, then this year’s total losses could approach 10 million seedlings provincially out of an estimated 264 million.
Tests are continuing to estimate the extent of potential damage to seedlings and their fitness for planting. Affected seedlings, if not killed outright, will attempt when planted to recover by repairing tissue damaged last fall rather than establish normal seasonal spring root growth. Energy and time diverted to this task, will leave them vulnerable to summer stress. Whatever growth momentum the seedlings may muster to survive will be a function of the initial damage done along with summer weather and conditions on the sites they are planted. These are some of the biological variables foresters are weighing. The business variables for nurseries, licensees and contractors may be more complex.
Silviculture Crew Boss Commended for Competency in Emergency
A silviculture worker has been commended for his skill and dispatch in delivering first aid and coordinating a 911 call involving a badly injured recreational UTV operator earlier this month near a planting project in the Fraser Valley. Billy Spensley, a level III first aid and Zanzibar Holdings crew leader played a critical role in saving the life of a woman after she lost control of her vehicle and was found barely conscious, suffering head injuries, lying in her own blood on the roadside. Spensley conducted a controlled roll onto a spine board, cleared her airways and administered oxygen. At the same time, he dispatched dirt bikers to drive out to cell range to call 911 after his satellite phone failed to reach help. “You should be as proud of yourself as all of us at the Mission Fire Rescue Service are of you for you truly helped save a life that day,” said Assistant Fire Chief Mark Goddard in his letter of commendation.
Is Amazon Plotting to Use Drones for Reforestation?
Drones have been in the news lately in connection with stories about secret remote drone test sites in British Columbia to test package deliveries and the possibility of drones being used to plant trees by broadcasting seeds from the air. Only our finely tuned sense of journalistic integrity prevents us giving gratuitous encouragement to any unfounded rumours by publishing wildly improbable and sensational stories about Amazon taking over tree planting in the province.
Did the Young Brits Survive Tree Planting?
No need to spoil things about how well the young British planting rookies did last year in B.C. as part of the BBC reality show Hardest Jobs in the World. So we won’t. You can find out at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zjdFYPrfhFs
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