Association of Professional Biologists of British Columbia

Bulletins – Things You Need to Know

This page lists information members may use in their work. The page is brocken into the following sections.

General Information

A new publication titled "The Expectations That Affect the Management of Public Forest and Range Lands in British Columbia: Looking Outside the Legislation" may be of interest to members, especially those working in the FRPA environment. To view this document go to here

Federal Government Releases

The Species at Risk Act (SARA) was proclaimed in June 2003, and is one part of a three part Government of Canada strategy for the protection of wildlife species at risk.

The Act recognises that the protection of wildlife species is a joint responsibility and that all Canadians have a role to play in the protection of wildlife. It applies to all federal lands in Canada; all wildlife species listed as being at risk; and their critical habitat.

The Public Registry is your gateway to information and documents relating to the Species at Risk Act (SARA). Please view the following for more information and to access documents included in the Registry.

· Status Reports

· Species Assessments

· Response Statements

Provincial Government Releases

Recent Changes in Legislation - April, 2009

Forest and Range Practices Act (FRPA)

In order to assist members with the certification option under FRPA, the College has worked with the ABCFP, the APEGBC, and the BCIA to develop a certificate that members can use when fulfilling obligations under this section of the Act. The certificate can be found at FRPA Certificate.

To view information and the legislation on FRPA go to this link

To view FRPA Bulletins pertinent to College members

Species at Risk

On May 3, 2004 the Minister of Water Land and Air Protection established a "category of species at risk" by order made under the authority of section 11(1) of the Government Actions Regulation (BC Reg. 17/04) of the Forest and Range Practices Act. This category of species at risk represents those species that may be affected by forest or range management on Crown land and are listed by the Committee on the Status of Endangered Wildlife in Canada (COSEWIC). Notification of this order was published in the May 6, 2004 edition of the BC Gazette.

Environment Minister Barry Penner announced measures to protect more endangered species on July 5th, 2006 while attending the opening ceremonies of the Canadian Geographic 2006 Canadian Environment Awards.

Forty-five new species were added to the category of species at risk under the Forest and Range Practices Act. The Ministry of Environment has authority to designate species to be protected under this act. These are provincially red- and blue-listed (endangered and threatened) species identified as being impacted by forest and range activities, and requiring specific habitat protection.

For more information go to http://www2.news.gov.bc.ca/news_releases_2005-2009/2006ENV0047-000745.htm

Riparian Areas Regulation

The Riparian Areas Regulation, enacted under Section 12 of the Fish Protection Act in July 2004, calls on local governments by March 31, 2005 to protect Riparian Areas during residential, commercial, and industrial development by ensuring that proposed activities are subject to a science based assessment conducted by a Qualified Environmental Professional. Information about the Riparian Areas Regulation can be found here.

Other Areas of Interest

1. Fish-Forestry Interaction Programs in British Columbia

Issues arising from the interaction between fish and forest resource values have been a major concern to managers and scientists for over 35 years in British Columbia (B.C.). This web site is intended to provide an overview of the Fish-Forestry Interaction Programs (FFIPs) conducted since 1968. The individual projects are summarized and links to more detailed descriptions are provided at http://www.for.gov.bc.ca/hre/ffip/

2. Contaminated Sites

3. CDC

BC Conservation Data Centre News Update

The latest and greatest version of BC Species and Ecosystems Explorer is now available!

http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/atrisk/toolintro.html

Improvements include:

1. A simplified search page with an “accordion format”.

2. The ability to search for:

- species by RISC codes and synonyms,
- marine fish and tiger beetles,
- more than one Forest District at a time,
- MoE Regions and Regional Districts for red, blue and legally designated species, and all ecological communities.

- Ecosystems Groups for ecological communities.

3. Direct links to Google Maps to view mapped known locations of species/ecosystems at risk.

4. Bibliographic links to:

- new documents including status reports, recovery plans, and best management practices,
- range/distribution maps for bats.
- the new Cross-Linked Information Repositories (CLIR),
- Habitat Wizard for fish.

5. New and revised help pages, FAQs, Glossary, and Advanced Search Tips.

6. COSEWIC assessment ranks updated to March 2008.

THANK YOU !! to everyone who submitted ideas, suggestions, and links.

NOTE: Our new lists of species by MoE region and by Regional District are based on the best information we had available. However, they should not be considered definitive. If you notice errors or omissions, please let us know at cdcdata@gov.bc.ca

4. Professional Reliance Task Force

The final report from the Professional Reliance Task Force is now available to members. To view this document please go to PRTF Final Report.

5. Other Information to Note

http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/frpa/iwms/index.html.

The Ungulate Winter Range website has been updated to include links to approved ungulate winter ranges and their associated boundaries and objectives http://www.env.gov.bc.ca/wld/frpa/uwr/index.html.