Hello everyone,
Yesterday, the government of British Columbia announced a series of decisions relating to the future of the forested central coast region of British Columbia. Of foremost importance in the overall scheme of things is the protection of areas of the ancient “Great Bear Rainforest” which are critical habitat for the “Spirit Bear” and other wildlife. This is fantastic news, and signals an end to the “war in the woods” that has been waged over the issue. But for us, sitting on the edge of our seat on the periphery of the action, it was a tiny detail of the map that put a huge smile into our day… one of the new “protection” areas looked like Hanson Island! We hardly dared believe it to be true yesterday, so waited for verification from government officials. That came this morning, and YES, it’s true… Hanson Island is to be protected!! The exact manner of the protection has yet to be determined, but one thing is clear… the island’s forest is now safe from the threat of logging!!!
It’s difficult to explain the sense of relief we feel after two decades of tension and struggle… profound, to say the least. We also owe a profound debt of gratitude towards all those who’ve stood with us and helped, in innumerable ways, to achieve this outcome. To the Namgis First Nation, David Garrick, our persistent allies at the CCLRMP “table”, campaigners protesters & story tellers, our supporters from around the world, and in the end the government of B.C. itself, we express our heartfelt gratitude. Because of you, Hanson Island and its green forested beauty will remain the jewel it is today.
THANK YOU ALL!!!!!
Paul, Helena & Anna
Links:
ENS news story on Hanson Island: http://ens.lycos.com/ens/apr2001/2001L-04-12-10.html
Greenpeace Canada: http://www.greenpeace.ca
Government of British Columbia: http://www.gov.bc.ca
