Increase in fire hazard following logging

Only a fraction of the biomass killed by clearcut logging has commercial economic value. As a result, between 40 and 60 percent is left in a clearcut to decompose or burn. That wasted wood—coupled with the high flammability of plantation regrowth—increases forest fire hazard for up to 30 years. Clearcuts also cause adjacent forested areas to be hotter and drier during summer months, making those areas more flammable. With larger and larger areas subject to increased fire hazard, emissions from forest fires in BC have been doubling every nine years since 2000. So clearcut logging is accelerating climate change.

The map below shows historical forest fire perimeters on the Discovery Islands. Click within a perimeter for details on the fire.