{"id":75961,"date":"2022-01-06T13:27:45","date_gmt":"2022-01-06T18:27:45","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/?p=75961"},"modified":"2022-01-06T13:27:45","modified_gmt":"2022-01-06T18:27:45","slug":"cortes-community-forest-wants-you-to-use-local-wood","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/canada-info.ca\/en\/cortes-community-forest-wants-you-to-use-local-wood\/","title":{"rendered":"Cortes Community Forest wants you to use local wood"},"content":{"rendered":"

A recent cut within the boundaries of the Cortes Community Forest invited on-island builders<\/a> to make local wood a central part of their projects.<\/p>\n

Forest Manager Mark Lombard said the current harvest is about 75 per cent completed and should wrap up in the next few months, with tree planting following in late March. <\/span><\/p>\n

\u201cApproximately 2,500 m3 of merchantable logs went out by barge and to local mills during the first round of hauling in November, and a firewood contractor has started processing the first of the firewood logs for sale. There will be a similar volume of merch and firewood going out in the next phase of hauling, which will be as soon as the logging is completed and weather & road conditions permit,\" he said.<\/span><\/p>\n

\"A<\/a>

The Cortes Island community forest is spread out across the island and encompasses approximately 35 per cent of the land base. Image courtesy of Cortes Community Forest Cooperative.<\/p><\/div>\n

The <\/span>Cortes Community Forest is overseen by the<\/span> Cortes Forestry General Partnership<\/span><\/a> (CFGP,) which is an equal partnership between the Cortes Community Forest Cooperative<\/a> (CCFC) and the Klahoose First Nation. The two partners have been stewarding approximately 3,800<\/span> hectares of Crown land on Cortes Island<\/span><\/a> that was<\/span> designated as a community forest<\/span><\/a> by the BC Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations in August 2013.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Maureen Williams, a director of the <\/span>CCFC, <\/span>and Henry Verschuur, owner of Bluejay Lake Farm<\/a>, which has a sawmill<\/a>, spoke about the many benefits of using local wood, which include:<\/span><\/p>\n