The mountain pine beetle outbreak continues to spread throughout B.C.’s Interior. Normally a naturally occurring component of healthy forests, the current mountain pine beetle outbreak has reached its current size partly because past winters have not been cold enough to curtail the beetle’s spread.

Learn more about the ecology of the mountain pine beetle

The B.C. government has responded by dramatically increasing logging levels in the areas of the B.C. Interior affected. This logging is meant to both slow the beetle’s spread by removing recently infested trees and recover value from trees already killed. This approach has serious consequences for the environment and for communities.

To handle increased harvest allowances, the Interior forest industry has increased its capacity to process the wood. When the timber runs out, the economies of communities reliant on unsustainable harvest levels will be left in question.
 
Learn more about sustainability and B.C.’s forest communities.

Sierra Club of Canada, BC Chapter is recommending an approach to managing the mountain pine beetle that protects the forest ecosystem while at the same time helping communities sustain themselves over the long term.