Core Business Areas

1. Forest Protection

The ministry manages wildfire to protect natural resource inventories and investments in the forest land base. Our forest fire response is primarily focused on protecting lives and government forest assets, particularly timber. Without fire protection, some 500,000 hectares of productive forest could be lost annually costing the province billions of dollars in potential direct revenue.

Forest Protection also includes the detection and management of insect pest outbreaks on areas under the responsibility of the province. Of key significance are bark beetles and gypsy moth infestations. Other defoliators, endemic pests and outbreaks of local significance are also managed.

2. Stewardship of Forest Resources

The functions in this core business area are fundamental to ensuring sound environmental stewardship of forest and range resources to ensure that they are used in a sustainable way. This in turn supports global recognition of environmental stewardship for British Columbia and British Columbia companies by ensuring that an appropriate regulatory framework is in place. This can also provide a foundation for forest certification of company operations.

Stewardship includes the regulation of forest and range practices, timber supply planning and AAC determination, range planning and management, control of invasive alien plant species, recreation management, applied research, and forest gene resource management, as well as tree improvement.

3. Compliance and Enforcement

This core business includes all activities pertaining to upholding BC's laws related to protecting the province's forest and range resources under MOF's jurisdiction. This includes:

• enforcing environmental standards for forest and range management carried out both by the government and by forest and range tenure holders under the Forest Practices Code until December 31, 2005 and under the new Forest and Range Practices Act starting January 2004;
• enforcing regulations to minimize fire, pests, and unauthorized activities that threaten the province's forest and range resources;
• enforcing rules governing the use of Forest Service recreation sites and trails;
• enforcing the revenue policies that govern removal and transportation of timber, marking, scaling, marine log salvage, etc.; and
• combating "forest crimes" (theft, arson, mischief) which are a significant drain on provincial revenue and a significant risk to other environmental, social and economic values.

4. Forest Investment

The Forest Investment sub-vote (FI) funds a forest-sector investment model established to deliver the province's forest investments in an accountable, efficient manner. The sub-vote authorizes the Minister of Forests to provide funding to help government develop a globally recognized, sustainably managed forest sector. Distribution of FI funds is guided by the Forest Investment Council (consisting of Deputy Ministers from MSRM, MWLAP and MOF; three industry representatives; and a technology and science representative).

Administration of FI activities is in most cases provided by private-sector firms rather than by government. These administrators, according to their agreements with the Ministry of Forests, co-ordinate and administer program activities and funding, report on outputs and outcomes, audit deliverables, and provide information to support ministry objectives, strategies and measures. Table 1 lists these programs with their administrators:

FI Programs that support the Ministry's Sustainable Forest Resources goal at the provincial level include the Forest Science and Crown Land Use Planning programs. At a more local level, funding is allocated to tree farm licence holders and certain tenure holders in each timber supply area under the Land Base Investment Program, and to woodlot licence holders and holders of a community forest agreement under the Small Tenures program. Activities under the latter two programs include resource inventories, stand establishment and treatment, and restoration and rehabilitation.

Under the goal of Sustainable Forest Benefits, the FI funds promote investment in product development and international marketing activities. Forestry Innovation Investment Ltd. (FII) administers both of these programs at the provincial level.

The Forest Investment Core Business of the Ministry of Forests addresses overall coordination and administration of the sub-vote and contractual agreements with third party administrators, as part of achieving the goal of being an Effective and Responsive Forest Manager.

5. Pricing and Selling Timber

The Forest Service has a major role in ensuring that the citizens of British Columbia benefit from commercial use of their forests. This relies on a strong forest economy and a competitive forest sector, which in turn depend on a fair pricing system, effective allocation and administration of timber harvesting rights, and a safe and cost effective road infrastructure to access timber.

Core business activities to achieve this goal include timber tenure administration, timber pricing, market access activities, maintaining a forest road infrastructure and First Nations consultation.

6. Executive and Support Services

This core business includes corporate governance process and service delivery activities in support of all ministry functions.

Key clients for the strategic policy and governance aspect are the Executive, Minister and Cabinet. Activities are structured within key frameworks for policy and legislation development, performance management, internal audit and evaluation, and litigation support. Executive, regional and district management, and staff in the Corporate Policy and Governance Division play a key role in delivery of these functions.

Support service activities include finance and administration, human resources, central infrastructure management, Freedom-of-Information, records management, continuous improvement and best practices initiatives, as well as application of information technology. These services are delivered at all levels of the organization — branch, region and district. While focused at supporting internal management and employees, they also serve industry and the general public.

7. BC Timber Sales

The Forest Service has a core responsibility to provide British Columbians with benefits from the commercial use of public forests. The BC Timber Sales organization is managed independently from the Field Services Division.

Business functions include developing Crown timber for auction, creating and maintaining the BC Timber Sales road and bridge infrastructure to provide access to tenure opportunities and meeting all requirements of the Forest Practices Code, including reforestation obligations.