Frequently Asked Questions

Find answers to the most frequently asked questions regarding cut control statements.

What is allowable annual cut (AAC)?

For the purposes of cut control an AAC is the maximum annual amount of timber volume (in cubic metres) that an agreement holder can harvest annually under their agreement.  It is expressed as cubic metres per year.

What is cut control?

Cut control is the collective set of legislative, regulatory and policy requirements used to determine an agreement holder’s harvest performance against their agreement’s AAC.  In other words, it is the process and calculations used by government to measure and ensure that agreement holders harvest levels are consistent with the harvesting rights (i.e. AAC) provided under their agreements. Overharvest can result in penalties and decreased future harvesting rights. Underharvests can result in a loss of short-term timber harvesting rights during the cut control period being considered.

What are cut control statements?

A cut control statement is a written summary of harvest information issued periodically (annually or at the end of a cut control period) by government to all applicable agreement holders. A cut control statement provides a summary of the volume of timber harvested under the agreement and determines if the agreement holder has exceeded (or not) the agreement’s harvest limits (e.g. sum of AACs over a cut control period) as specified in the agreement. 

Annual cut control statements ensures that government and the agreement holder both agree on the agreement holder’s most recent annual harvest levels, and if required allows government to take any proactive action to deal with possible overharvest behaviours. Annual statements are more informational and ensure both parties agree on harvest levels up to that point in time.

Final cut control statements are issued at the end of a cut control period and provide the legally definitive statement used by government to determine an agreement holder’s compliance with the Forest Act cut control provisions.

What is a cut control period?

Is the period (years) over which an agreement holders harvest is calculated to determine compliance with the cut control limits (i.e. sum of AACs) found in their agreement.  In other words, a cut control period is multi-year period over which an agreement holder’s actual harvest levels (i.e. volume of timber harvested) are compared to the harvesting rights granted under their agreement. Cut control periods are usually 5 years in length although there are limited options under the Forest Act that permit early cut control period termination.

Why is legal compliance with cut control requirements determined over a multi-year cut control period and not annually?

Historically, compliance with the Forest Act cut control requirements was determined annually.  However, agreement holders found that annual cut control compliance did not align with sometimes variable and erratic lumber and forest products markets. This forced agreement holders to both harvest timber when markets were low resulted in economic losses and restrict harvest when markets were better and more profitable.

 In 2003, the government amended the Forest Act to allow agreement holders to exceed the AAC (annually) if the sum of the agreement’s AACs over the cut control period was aligned with overall harvest levels. This provided operational and economic flexibility but also ensured that the public timber resource was not overharvested.  

5-year Cut Control Period Example:

• Agreement AAC = 25,000 cubic metres/year
• Cut Control Period = 5 years
• Total AAC available over 5-year cut control period = 125,000 cubic metres

Agreement holder harvested:

Year 1 = 10,000 cubic metres (poor market)

Year 2 = 45,000 cubic metres (very good market)

Year 3 = 30,000 cubic metres (good market)

Year 4 = 5,000 cubic metres (very poor market)

Year 5 = 35,000 cubic metres (good market)

Total Harvest = 125,000 cubic metres. 

In this simple example, the agreement holder was in full compliance with the agreement AACs as measured over the 5-year cut control period. The agreement holder was able to adjust harvesting levels to meet variable market conditions which maximized economic efficiency, but did not result in overharvesting.

What is Volume of Timber Harvested (VTH) for cut control?

VTH is defined under section 75.1 (1) of the Forest Act. VTH is the agreement holder’s final harvest once any cut control relate adjustments are determined. In general terms VTH includes the timber volumes harvested minus any downward cut control adjustments permitted under the Act. In summary, VTH used to calculate an agreement holder’s final harvest and determine compliance against the agreement’s AAC.

What is the Harvest Billing System (HBS) and HBS VTH?

HBS is a Ministry of Forests database that collects and reports the initial VTH for all eligible agreements. Agreement holders are required under section 136 to report this information to government. HBS is the tool used to collect VTH and related information.

Why is the VTH reported in Cut Control Statements different that HBS VTH? 

HBS VTH does not include any of the additional adjustments (i.e. volume attributions between eligible licences, log grade adjustments, etc.) required before a cut control statement can be finalized. Therefore, cut control statement VTH is different and more refined than the HBS VTH.

Why should cut control statements be disclosed to the public?

The management and use of British Columbia’s forests has become increasingly important to the public. The government therefore strives to be as transparent as possible with forest related information including the disclosure of adjusted VTH information in the form of cut control statements.

Are there any risks associated with the disclosure of cut control statement information?

Historically, the Forest Act prevented the public disclosure of most information related to VTH unless the agreement holder provided prior consent. In 2019, the government amended the Forest Act and added section 136.1. This section provides the authority to disclose VTH information.

Is there any information that cannot be disclosed in a cut control statement?

Any information that is of personal nature cannot be disclosed as part of a cut control statement and must be removed. However, cut control statements for companies, etc. do not generally contain any personal information and are acceptable for public disclosure. If an agreement holder is conducting business as an individual, then this information can also be also disclosed as part of a cut control statement.

What ensures that the cut control information being disclosed is legal?

The disclosure of cut control statement information to the public without agreement holder consent requires a Privacy Impact Assessment that is used to establish a “Category of Records” under section 71.1 of the Freedom of Information and Protection of Privacy Act.  In 2021 a Category of Records was established for cut control information. This formally permits the disclosure of cut control statement information. 

Can Ministry staff release individual cut control statements upon request? 

No.  Individual cut control statements should not be generated and cannot be released on an ad hoc basis.  Interested parties must be directed to the Forest Tenures Branch website where they can access the most recently posted cut control information.  The posted information will have been carefully reviewed to ensure all applicable personal or other sensitive information has been redacted and removed.

Who should I contact if I cannot find a statement for a forest tenure?

Forestry licences to cut minor and timber sale licences are not posted. Please contact the Forest Tenures Branch at ForestTenuresBranch@gov.bc.ca for further information.

When can the public expect new information to be posted?

July of each year

Are posted cut control statements final?

No, they are not final and are interim statements. Tenure holders are reviewing statements and requesting for adjustments (e.g. attribution, grade 4 credit, etc.) throughout the year. A final statement will be issued at the end of 5-year cut control period and sent to tenure holders once all adjustments are confirmed and completed.

Where can I find cut control information on Chief Forester Partitions or Minister’s Order Partitions? 

Partition information differs from cut control information and is monitored and tracked by the Office of the Chief Forester.

Who should I contact if the website is not working.

Please contact the Forest Tenures Branch at ForestTenuresBranch@gov.bc.ca

Where can I find more information about timber grades?

Please review the Timber Scaling Manual - Province of British Columbia.