This week’s sale of the Sea to Sky corridor’s largest timber forest licence to a company held in trust by the Squamish Nation is good news for those who want to see more of the landscape protected, a Whistler lawmaker said this week.

Eckhard Zeidler, a former board member with the Association of Whistler Area Residents for the Environment (AWARE) and participant at the Land Resource Management Planning (LRMP) table, on Monday said International Forest Products (Interfor) sale of Timber Forest Licence 38 (TFL 38) will likely result in a higher level of conservation — particularly in areas such as the Upper Elaho Valley and Sims Creek.

Both of those areas are designated as “Candidate Wild Spirit Places” in the Squamish Nation’s own land-use plan.

Interfor on Monday announced the sale of TFL 38 — which includes an annual allowable cut of 109,453 cubic metres of timber per year — to Northwest Squamish Forestry Limited Partnership, a firm held in trust by the Squamish Nation.

The transaction, which will see Interfor receive $6.5 million including cash and transfer of liabilities, has received formal approval from the B.C. Ministry of Forests.

Zeidler said the deal didn’t come as a complete surprise to those who sat at the LRMP table for more than a year in 2003 and 2004, but is “huge” in terms of its potential to promote peaceful coexistence of First Nations, loggers and
conservationists in the corridor.

“I think the days of war in the Elaho are over,” Zeidler said, referring to past struggles involving loggers and conservationists in that area.

In addition to cash and other considerations, Interfor and Northwest Squamish Forestry have reached a log-supply agreement.

“This transaction makes good sense for both parties as it gives the Squamish Nation a consolidated base to manage resource values in the area, and provides Interfor with an ongoing supply of timber to support its manufacturing operations,” John Horning, Interfor’s senior vice president and chief financial officer, said in a statement.

The B.C. government’s Forest Revitalization Policy, introduced in 2003, helped clear the way for this week’s agreement, Horning said.

Zeidler said he’s confident that the Squamish Nation will manage the resource prudently in accordance with the nation’s land-use plan.

“The Upper Elaho and Sims Creek are both in TFL 38 and they have long been identified, not only by the Squamish Nation but by environmental groups, as being valuable primarily for their wilderness values,” Zeidler said.

“I would hope that this is only the beginning of some new developments in terms of the provincial government having a good look at the Squamish Nation land-use plan and some of its provisions laid out in that plan, such as Wild Spirit Places.”