Landscape Level Reforestation for Areas of Catastrophic Disturbance

Amendments to the Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA) and Forest Planning and Practices Regulation (FPPR), and Woodlot Planning and Practices Regulation (WLPPR) have modernized administration of FRPA s.108 and the provision of Relief or Funding for licensees that have had legal obligations burnt by wildfire.

The Minister may by Order declare an Area of Catastrophic Damage (ACD) and then create a landscape level reforestation plan to facilitate regeneration of the specified area.  This amendment to FPPR restricts funding to wildfire, landslide and flood events and also introduces a time clause requiring licensee to apply for relief or funding within 2 years from the end of the year that the fire initiated.

On this page

• Purpose of these amendments
• The minister may designate an Area of Catastrophic Damage
• Plans for Areas of Catastrophic Damage
• Conditions related to funding
• FPPR enabling Regulations
• Amended sections of the Forest and Range Practices Act and Forest Planning and Practices Regulations

Purpose of these amendments

The purpose of these amendments is to:

• Allow for larger fires to be managed through a landscape approach while still providing for smaller fires (or natural disturbance events) to be managed under the existing legislation on a block by block basis
• Enable the development of a landscape level plan that can direct investment in reforestation to the high priority sites
• Enable government to collect unused silviculture appraisal allowance from areas where the licensee has been provided relief of silviculture obligation
• Enable the minister to impose conditions on the funding provided to bring stands back to the condition they were in before the natural disturbance event

The minister may designate an Area of Catastrophic Damage

In order to develop a more efficient and effective landscape approach to reforestation across the whole fire, the minister may now, by Order, designate one or several fires as an Area of Catastrophic Damage (ACD). This may only be done for an area impacted by wildfire or a prescribed natural event which the Regulation now defines as a landslide or flood. As part of this order the minister may now grant relief from an obligation to licensees and may impose conditions in relation to that relief and they may exercise this discretion differently for different persons or locations. This new ability to provide relief up front can be used to simplify the development of a landscape level plan for reforestation.

Plans for Areas of Catastrophic Damage (ACD)

The purpose of creating an ACD is to enable a landscape approach to reforestation in specified areas and to enable the creation of a “reforestation plan”. The Plan will enable identification of priority areas and allow either a) relief of a silviculture obligation or b) the relocation of an obligation to a different site. The landscape level reforestation plan enables funding to be directed to the sites most in need of reforestation in collaboration with all licensees and the government funded programs.

Conditions related to funding

In delivering the Section 108 funding under the original site level option or the new landscape approach, the minister may impose a number of conditions.  These conditions will ensure a clear link to the planning of activities, improved agreement holder accountability and an increased level of focus on directing funds to the highest priority locations. The ability for the minister to reclaim funding for conditions not met is also a significant component of the new legislation.

FPPR enabling Regulations

The only repeal of note in the amendment has been the removal of Dothistroma needle blight from the “event causing damage” list and thus effectively restricting S.108 claims to wildfire, landslides or floods. The regulation then updates the criteria required to make an application for relief or funding with both the existing S.108 process and within the new area of catastrophic damage.

Amended sections of the Forest and Range Practices Act, Forest Planning and Practices Regulations and Woodlot Planning and Practices Regulation