Printer FriendlyBC Forest Service Timeline
This timeline of forestry-related milestones & events was produced by John Parminter. If you have things to add or corrections to it, please contact us. You can sort this information by clicking on "Date", "Item" or "Source".
| Date | Item | Source |
| 1778 | First recorded use of BC timber by European man - Captain James Cook cut ships spars at Nootka Sound. | Reid, J.A.K. 1985. Significant events and developments in the evolution of timberland and forestry legislation in British Columbia. 22 p. |
| 1788 | First recorded export of timber. Captain Meares takes spars to China. | Reid |
| 1848 | First mechanized sawmill in BC established near Victoria. | Reid and Project 87 Working Paper No. 1, Events - Legislation, MoF 1982 |
| 1849 | First recorded export of Vancouver Island lumber, to San Francisco. | Project 87 |
| 1851 | Vancouver Island Steam Sawmill Co. Ltd. builds mill at Cordova Bay, Victoria. Moved to Albert Head in 1853, destroyed by fire in 1859. | Project 87 |
| 1854 | Sawmill built at Nanaimo to supply local market. | Project 87 |
| 1855 | John Muir and sons build steam sawmill at Sooke, operated until 1892. | Project 87 |
| 1858 | Earliest disposal of Crown lands, including trees and timber unless otherwise specifically reserved. | Reid |
| 1859 | Land Proclamation stated that trees are included in the conveyance of land. | Project 87 |
| 1861 | First sawmill for lumber export, Port Alberni. | Reid |
| 1861 | Pemberton - Sheppard agreement for timber lease at Shawnigan Lake, first made by Government of Vancouver Island. | Parminter, on file |
| 1863 | Moodyville sawmill established. | Reid |
| 1865 | Hastings sawmill established. | Reid |
| 1865 | Land Ordinance made leases of unoccupied Crown land for the purpose of cutting timber subject to rent and terms considered expedient by the Governor. | Reid and Ross, Monique M. 1997. A history of forest legislation in Canada 1867- 1996. Occasional Paper No. 2, Canadian Institute of Resources Law, Faculty of Law, University of Calgary, Calgary, Alberta |
| 1865 | First recorded Timber Lease issued by the Government of BC to the British Columbia and Vancouver Island Spar and Sawmill, Ltd. | Project 87 |
| 1867 | British North America Act gives provinces the right to dispose of lands and timber. | Taylor, S.W. 1999. 100 years of federal forestry in British Columbia. British Columbia Forest History Newsletter No. 57. December 1999. pp.1-7 |
| 1870 | Land Ordinance of 1865 replaced with new version which allowed leases for timber harvest. | Reid, Project 87 |
| 1871 | Confederation of B.C. with the Dominion of Canada; province retains ownership of Crown lands but provision made for granting the Railway Belt lands to the Dominion to aid railway construction. | Reid |
| 1874 | Bush Fire Act. | Parminter, John. 1978. An historical review of forest fire management in British Columbia. iv + 111 p. |
| 1875 | Land Act replaced the Land Ordinance. | Ross |
| 1875 | Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway Act authorized a grant of public land to the Dominion of Canada to aid in that railway's construction. | Reid |
| 1880 | Timber, Mines and Grazing Branch formed in the Department of Interior. | Taylor |
| 1883 | Pursuant to an Act of 1880, agreement made to grant 14 MM acres of the Railway Belt, including 3.4 MM acres in the Peace River Block substituted for certain poor lands in the Railway Belt, 1883-1884. | Reid |
| 1884 | Railway Belt transferred to the Dominion of Canada. | Taylor |
| 1884 | Timber Act required licences to harvest timber and imposed a fee based on volume cut. | Ross |
| 1886 | First Crown Timber Agent appointed at New Westminster, T.S. Higginson. | Taylor and Project 87 |
| 1886 | First timber reserves (forest parks) established along the CPR right-of-way. | Taylor |
| 1887 | Land Act amended such that public lands chiefly valuable for timber are not to be disposed of by public or private sale, declaration required that the land is not chiefly valuable for its timber. Timber cutting rights (except for domestic purposes and improvements) prohibited on future Crown grants unless a licence is first obtained requiring payments of 25 cents per M board feet. Lands containing the timber reservation were later referred to as patented lands. | Reid and Ross |
| 1888 | First provincial Timber Inspector appointed, May 25, R.J. Skinner. | Parminter and Project 87 |
| 1888 | Special Timber Licences up to 1000 acres and one year, not transferable. $50 per licence. | Reid |
| 1888 | Land Act consolidated with the Timber Act and provided for 30-year licences based on a commitment to build a mill. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1996-1997 |
| 1890 | Donkey engines in general use. | Orchard, C.D. UBC Special Collections Division papers, folder 2-18 |
| 1890 | Timber Mark Act provided for registered ownership marks to be applied to logs floated or rafted. | Reid |
| 1890 | Matthew L. Foley begins development of BC Log Scale. | Project 87 |
| 1891 | Legislative amendment introduced cash bonus bidding for Timber Leases. | Project 87 |
| 1891 | Hemlock Bark Leases authorized for tanning, first issued 1905-1906. Rental of 2 cents per acre for the first 5 years and 5 cents per acre thereafter. Conditional upon operation of a tannery. | Reid |
| 1892 | Foley's Log Scale forwarded to Chief Commissioner of Lands and Works, industry objects to kerf measurement. | Project 87 |
| 1892 | Term of Timber Leases reduced to 21 years and they must first have been offered for public competition. Required a mill appurtenant to the lease cutting at least 1000 board feet per day for each 400 acres under lease. If it was not already in existence then a deposit of 10 cents per acre was required to guarantee construction. | Reid and Ross |
| 1894 | Official Scalers Act for measurement of timber. | Reid |
| 1894 | A. Haslam and R.H. Alexander appointed as commissioners to investigate scaling problem and make recommendations. | Project 87 |
| 1895 | Annual rent increased to 15 cents per acre for subsequent Timber Leases. | Reid |
| 1895 | Foley's scale officially adopted as the BC Log Scale. | Project 87 |
| 1897 | J.R. Martin appointed Assistant Timber Inspector at Nelson. | Project 87 |
| 1897 | Inquiry into Crown timber disposition. | Taylor |
| 1899 | Dominion Forestry Branch formed in the Department of Interior. | Taylor |
| 1899 | Land Act amendment established condition of building a sawmill attached to each Timber Lease (contradiction of 1892 note?). | Project 87 |
| 1899 | Sale of timber lands (8 Mfbm/acre Coast, 5 Mfbm Interior) prohibited. | Reid |
| 1900 | Canadian Forestry Association formed. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1996-1997 |
| 1901 | Crown timber office opened in Kamloops. | Taylor |
| 1901 | First federal fire rangers appointed. | Taylor |
| 1901 | Land Act amendments dictated that all timber cut under lease or licence was to be manufactured in the province (how does this relate to Timber Manufacture Act of 1906?), leases made renewable for consecutive and successive periods of 21 years. | Project 87 |
| 1901 | Pulp leases of up to 21 years at 2 cents per acre rent and 25 cents per M board feet royalty and other provisions, on condition that a pulp or paper mill be erected capable of producing one ton of pulp or 1/2 a ton of paper for each square mile of the lease. Mill to operate at least 6 months per year unless relieved. | Reid and Ross |
| 1901 | Timber Leases made renewable for 21 years. | Reid |
| 1902 | Long Lake Forest Reserve (B.C.'s first forest reserve) created. | Taylor |
| 1902 | Timber Measurement Act required the use of the British Columbia Log Scale and replaced the Official Scalers Act of 1894. | Reid |
| 1905 | First Fire Wardens appointed. | Parminter, 1978 |
| 1905 | Special Timber Licences made transferable and renewable. | Reid and Ross |
| 1906 | Canadian Forestry Convention held in Ottawa, January 10 – 12. | |
| 1906 | Dominion Forest Reserves Act adds six forest reserves in the Railway Belt. | Taylor |
| 1906 | Office of B.C. Inspector of Timber Reserves opened in Kamloops. | Taylor |
| 1906 | Timber Manufacture Act required that all timber cut from leases and licences and from lands granted after March 12, 1906 be manufactured in the province. Did not apply east of the Cascade Range. | Reid and Ross |
| 1906 | Timber Measurement Act replaced. | Reid |
| 1906 | Use of steam power prohibited on hand loggers licence. | Reid |
| 1906 | A. Haslam appointed Supervisor of Scalers in Vancouver . | Project 87 |
| 1907 | Peace River Block transferred to the Dominion of Canada in lieu of alienated and marginal lands | Taylor |
| 1907 | Order in Council of December 17 withdrew all unalienated timber lands from all forms of alienation to address speculation and concentration of interests. | Reid and Ross |
| 1907 | W.C. Gladwin appointed Chief Provincial Fire Warden. | Project 87 |
| 1908 | Department of Lands and Works created. | Project 87 |
| 1908 | Canadian Society of Forest Engineers formed (now the Canadian Institute of Forestry). | |
| 1909 | Canadian Commission of Conservation, Committee on Forests established. | Taylor |
| 1909 | Fulton Royal Commission appointed, July 9. | |
| 1910 | Fulton Royal Commission report submitted, November 15. | Final Report of the Royal Commission of Inquiry on Timber and Forestry |
| 1910 | T.A. Mount appointed Assistant Supervisor of Scalers at Nelson. | Project 87 |
| 1910 | Special Timber Licences made transferable and renewable so long as sufficient merchantable timber exists to make it commercially valuable. | Reid |
| 1911 | Canadian Forestry Convention held in Quebec City, January 18 – 21. | |
| 1911 | Canadian Western Lumber Company purchases overhead cable skidders, ushering in the high-lead era. | First cable-way skidder in B.C. Western Lumberman 8(3):28. March 1911 |
| 1911 | Forest Reserves and Parks Act. | Taylor |
| 1911 | Timber Leases restricted to 640 acres or less. | Reid |
| 1912 | BC Forest Branch created, Chief Forester hired, February. | Project 87 |
| 1912 | Forest Act. | Reid |
| 1912 | Timber Sale Licence introduced. | Project 87 |
| 1913 | Five additional forest reserves created in the Railway Belt. | Taylor |
| 1913 | Provided two years for the conversion of 16- and 21-year Special Timber Licences into perpetually renewable and transferable licences by a surrender and replacement process. | Reid |
| 1914 | Elk River Valley Provincial Forest created, December 31 (first one). | Project 87 |
| 1914 | The term "stumpage" was adopted and defined as the amount payable for Crown timber in addition to rents, royalties and taxes. | Reid |
| 1914 | Timber Royalty Act fixed royalties for the next 50 years. | Reid |
| 1914 | Six month period to obtain 30-year renewals of existing Pulp Leases at the same terms and a royalty of 25 cents per cord; licence required for cutting timber on the lease for other than pulp manufacture. | Reid |
| 1915 | HR MacMillan appointed Special Trade Commissioner. | Project 87 |
| 1915 | Forest Act Relief Act allowed renewals of Special Timber Licences that had expired for non-payment of fees upon payment of additional levies based on the length of delay (up to one year). | Reid |
| 1916 | Free Use Permits for settlers. | Reid |
| 1917 | Pulp Licences made appurtenant to pulp mills and holdings not to exceed a 30-year supply for the mill. | Reid |
| 1917 | Aeroplane spruce program with the Imperial Munitions Board. | Project 87 |
| 1918 | Vancouver Forest Products Lab established. | Taylor |
| 1918 | ”Forests of British Columbia” by H.N. Whitford and R.D. Craig published by the Commission of Conservation. | Taylor |
| 1918 | BC Forest Branch's leased air patrol flying boat crashes in Vancouver, September 4. | Parminter, John. 1986. Guardians of the Sky. Whistle Punk 1(4):3-10. |
| 1918 | Aeroplane Spruce-cutting Act enabled special permits for the cutting of spruce from public or private lands by persons authorized by the Minister, subject to compensation at $6 per Mfbm for No. 1 logs and $2.50 per Mfbm for No. 2 logs. | Reid |
| 1919 | Dominion Air Board established. | Project 87 |
| 1919 | Competitive exams for Ranger selection. | Project 87 |
| 1919 | Dominion Forest (Insect) Lab opens in Vernon. | Taylor |
| 1919 | Slash disposal provisions enacted. | Reid |
| 1919 | First discovery of a forest fire from the air in B.C., by Harry Brown in a Curtiss JN-4. | Parminter, 1986 |
| 1919 | Grazing administration by BC Forest Branch. | Parminter, Project 87 |
| 1919 | Provision to substitute a Pulp Licence for a Special Timber Licence. | Reid |
| 1920 | Scaling Fund established. | Reid |
| 1920 | Royalty payments for merchantable timber left uncut in logging operations. | Reid |
| 1921 | Federal seed extractory constructed at New Westminster. | Taylor |
| 1921 | Pulp District may be created by the Lieutenant Governor in Council to secure the establishment or continuance of a pulp mill. Pulp wood defined and exempted from the Timber Royalty Act. | Reid |
| 1922 | Fire-fighting costs could be reimbursed 100%, under specified circumstances, instead of the former 50% rate. Provisions for closure of a district due to danger of forest fires and taking emergency actions in the closed area. | Reid |
| 1923 | Research began in BC Forest Branch. | Schmidt, Ralph L. and John Parminter. 2006. An early history of the Research Branch, British Columbia Ministry of Forests and Range. viii + 91 p. |
| 1924 | Aleza Lake Experiment Station established. | Project 87 |
| 1924 | Timber Royalty Act repealed and replaced by Royalty Act. | Reid and Project 87 |
| 1925 | Use of aerial photographs in forest inventory. | Project 87 |
| 1925 | Forest Reserve Account created based on 3% of gross royalty or tax and stumpage receipts to meet the cost of development and protection of forest reserves, the planting of denuded areas and maintenance of timber crops in forest reserves. | Reid and Project 87 |
| 1927 | Forest Surveys established in BCFS. | Parminter |
| 1927 | Experimental forest nursery started on Shelbourne Street, Victoria. | Project 87 |
| 1927 | Permits required for campfires during the fire season. | Reid |
| 1927 | Authorized the surrender of Pulp Leases and replacement by Special Timber Licences on payment of any difference between rentals paid and those that would have been paid under a licence. | Reid |
| 1928 | Provision for cutting and disposal of sawlogs from Pulp Leases other than for pulp manufacture on payment of the appropriate difference in rentals and royalties in comparison with a Timber Licence. | Reid |
| 1929 | Green Timbers property set aside. | Project 87 |
| 1929 | Cowichan Lake Experiment Station established. | Project 87 |
| 1929 | Further provisions for replacement of old Timber Licences by renewable and transferable Special Timber Licences. | Reid |
| 1930 | Railway Belt Retransfer Agreement Act validated the federal - provincial agreement reconveying the unsold Railway Belt lands to the province; province to honour terms of federal Timber Berth agreements made during the time they managed the lands. | Reid |
| 1930 | Transfer of Resources Act - unalienated lands in the Railway Belt and Peace River Block transferred to the province of B.C. and few remaining staff transferred to Vancouver. | Taylor |
| 1930 | Green Timbers Nursery established in Surrey. | Project 87 |
| 1930 | Green Timbers plantation established in Surrey, March 15. | |
| 1930 | Repeal of timber tax provisions for timber not subject to royalty. Tax had been rebateable if the timber was manufactured in the province. | Reid |
| 1935 | Young Men's Forestry Training Plan financed by Department of Labour, administered by the Forest Branch. | Project 87 |
| 1935 | Forest Insect Survey created. | Taylor |
| 1936 | Federal Department of Mines and Resources. | Taylor |
| 1936 | Aerial surveys in Forest Surveys Division, BC Forest Branch, photos taken by RCAF. | Project 87 |
| 1937 | Mulholland Report on forest inventory. | Burch, Gerry and John Parminter. 2008. Frederick Davison Mulholland, P. Eng., B.C.R.F. – the father of sustained yield forestry in British Columbia. 134 p. |
| 1937 | Office of B.C. Inspector of Timber Reserves closed. | Taylor |
| 1937 | Slash disposal provisions revised to include snag disposal and payment of assessments in lieu of slash and snag disposal. | Reid |
| 1939 | Provincial parks legislation added to the Forest Act, former Provincial Parks Act repealed, BC Forest Branch assumed responsibility for parks. | Reid and Project 87 |
| 1939 | Royalty rates specified for minor forest products. | Reid |
| 1940 | Forest Disease Lab opened in Victoria. | Taylor |
| 1940 | H.R. MacMillan appointed Timber Controller for the Dominion of Canada. | Project 87 |
| 1941 | E.C. Manning killed in air crash near Armstrong, Ontario on February 6. | Project 87 |
| 1943 | Sloan Royal Commission appointed, December 31. | Reid |
| 1945 | Deputy Minister of Forests appointed, making Forests a department under the Minister of Lands and Forests, BC Forest Branch became BC Forest Service. | Reid and Project 87 |
| 1945 | Sloan Royal Commission report submitted, December. | Reid |
| 1946 | Forest Service Training School established. | Project 87 |
| 1946 | Koksilah Nursery established at Duncan. | Project 87 |
| 1946 | Silvicultural Fund established, comprised of not more than 50% of stumpage for timber in the Interior, to be used for hazard abatement and silvicultural treatment incidental to removing the existing stand. | Reid |
| 1947 | Forest land defined in the Forest Act as land which will find its best economic use under a forest crop. Sale of forest land as well as timber land prohibited under the Land Act. | Reid and Project 87 |
| 1947 | Stumpage payments required under Timber Sale Licences to be inclusive of royalty. | Reid |
| 1947 | Forest Management Licences authorized by the Forest Act. | Reid and Project 87 |
| 1947 | Provision for a 10,000 acre university forest for demonstration and teaching. | Reid |
| 1947 | An Act Respecting the Practice of Forestry, April. Created the Association of British Columbia Foresters, now the Association of British Columbia Forest Professionals. | Burch and Parminter |
| 1948 | Forest Development Fund of $2.5MM established for the building and financing of forest roads, to be replenished at a rate based on the amount of timber transported over the road. | Reid |
| 1948 | Parks and Recreation Division created in BC Forest Service from Parks Section of Economics Division. | Project 87 |
| 1948 | First forest fire hazard forecast. | Herfst, Fred. 1982. Canadian fire weather forecasting services. In: 1982 annual meeting proceedings, Northwest Forest Fire Council. Victoria, B.C. pp.40-44. |
| 1948 | Farm Woodlot Licence authorized by the Forest Act. | Reid |
| 1949 | Canada Forestry Act authorizes expansion of economic development agreements with the provinces. | Taylor |
| 1949 | Forest protection defined for purposes of the Forest Protection Fund to include fire, insects and disease. | Reid |
| 1949 | Forest Insect Survey group established at Victoria. | Canadian Forestry Service. 1986. Green alert – Forest Insect and Disease Survey. |
| 1949 | Log Salvage Districts authorized with licensing of log-receiving stations and permitted log salvors. | Reid |
| 1950 | Federal Department of Resources and Development. | Taylor |
| 1950 | Chief Forester authorized to make agreements with private land occupiers for reforestation of those lands and to provide seedlings free or at less than cost for that purpose. | Reid |
| 1950 | Esquimalt and Nanaimo Railway Belt Land Tax Act imposed a provincial tax of 25% of the actual assessed value of the land and timber at the date of alienation in respect of any lands alienated after February 20, 1946. | Reid |
| 1950 | Forest Act amended to require forest licencees to employ a B.C. registered forester. | Burch and Parminter |
| 1951 | Forest Surveys and Inventory Division created in BC Forest Service from Forest Economics Division. | Project 87 |
| 1951 | Federal meteorologist seconded to BC Forest Service. | Herfst 1982 |
| 1952 | Forest Insect Survey expands to include forest diseases. | Taylor |
| 1952 | The Minister directed that all subsequent Timber Sale Licences and Forest Management Licence Cutting Permits will require timber to be scaled in cubic feet. | Reid |
| 1953 | Federal Northern Affairs and Natural Resources. | Taylor |
| 1953 | Provisions whereby the Forest Service may examine alienated land and the Minister may direct the owner of unsatisfactorily stocked forest land to reforest the land at the expense of the owner (in 1955 this was restricted to the Coast). | Reid |
| 1953 | Logging Tax Act imposed a provincial tax of 10% on the income derived from logging operations in excess of $25M. | Reid |
| 1954 | Regulations to enable registration of mills and logging camps. | Reid |
| 1954 | Salvage Sale areas may be established by Order in Council to prevent timber from being lost or destroyed and the Minister may sell the timber as he deems advisable. | Reid |
| 1954 | Broadcasts of forest fire hazard on radio stations. | Herfst 1982 |
| 1955 | Use of helicopters for forest inventory and mapping | Project 87 |
| 1955 | Forest Protection Fund abolished and consolidated with other Crown revenues and appropriations of funds. | Reid |
| 1955 | Second Sloan Royal Commission appointed, January 7. | Project 87 |
| 1956 | Silviculture Fund abolished and consolidated with other Crown revenues and appropriations of funds. | Reid |
| 1957 | Provincial parks provisions removed from the Forest Act and parks administration transferred to the Department of Recreation and Conservation. | Reid |
| 1957 | Second Sloan Royal Commission report submitted to the Lieutenant-Governor in Council, July. | Sloan, G. McG. 1957. The forest resources of British Columbia. Queen’s Printer, Victoria, B.C. |
| 1957 | Tree Farm Licences provided with a term of 21 years, renewable subject to negotiation (contradicts 1958 entry of Reid). | Project 87 |
| 1958 | Provisions to prevent collusion and unfair bidding practices in the disposal of Crown timber. | Reid |
| 1958 | Stronger provisions made for requiring licensees and land owners to take measures to control insect infestations. | Reid |
| 1958 | Provisions to close Log Salvage Districts to enable a log owner to recover a log spill. | Reid |
| 1958 | Forest Management Licences changed to Tree Farm Licences, term restricted to 21 years but renewable with terms, stumpage method election eliminated and all stumpage rates to be based on appraisal with allowance for forestry costs. | Reid |
| 1958 | Four Boeing Stearman aircraft were converted for use as air tankers in the Vancouver region, capacity of 150 Imperial gallons. Grumman Avenger aircraft were converted at about the same time, to drop 500 Imperial gallons. | Marsden, K.B. 1982. Advantages/disadvantages of interagency use of fixed and rotary wing aircraft in wildfire suppression. In: 1982 annual meeting proceedings, Northwest Forest Fire Council. Victoria, B.C. pp.58-64. |
| 1959 | B.C. Forest Products Ltd., MacMillan Bloedel Ltd., Pacific Logging Ltd., Tahsis Company Ltd. and Western Forest Industries Ltd., formed Forest Industries Flying Tankers (FIFT) to convert the Martin Mars flying boats to waterbombers. | Septer, D. 2002. Martin Mars, “God of Rain.” B.C. Forest History Newsletter No. 66:5-8. |
| 1960 | Department of Forestry Act united the Forestry Branch of the Department of Northern Affairs and National Resources and the Forest Biology Division of the Department of Agriculture - July 11. | Place, I.C.M. 2002. 1918 to 1993: 75 years of research in the woods: a history of Petawawa Forest Experiment Station and Petawawa National Forestry Institute. p. 89 |
| 1961 | Provision to make agreements with other governments or corporations to provide forest protection and fire suppression services on their lands. | Reid |
| 1961 | Pulpwood Harvesting Areas may be designated by the Minister comprising of one or more sustained yield units in which pulpwood is available. | Reid |
| 1962 | Water Resources added to Lands and Forests. | Parminter and Project 87 |
| 1963 | Private Roads Act amended the Forest Act, Industrial Transportation Act and Motor Vehicle Act to encourage owners to allow public use of private roads. | Reid |
| 1964 | Reverted forest roads may be declared by the Minister to be Forest Service Roads. | Reid |
| 1964 | Timber Sale Licence may require the licensee to carry out silvicultural work and may provide for compensation for the work as an offset against stumpage or by appropriated funds. | Reid |
| 1964 | Bidding fee required of persons other than the applicant for sales in a fully committed Public Sustained Yield Unit or an emergency area. | Reid |
| 1964 | Tree Farm Licence defined to include all such licences granted prior to 1958. | Reid |
| 1965 | Pacific Forest Research Centre opens. | Taylor |
| 1965 | Timber Sale Licence may require the licensee to construct a primary access road or carry out a silvicultural treatment as an offset against stumpage. | Reid |
| 1965 | Minister authorized to require holders of Special Timber Licences, Pulp Licences, Timber and Pulp Leases to supply timber cruise information and may eliminate areas which do not contain merchantable timber. | Reid |
| 1966 | Federal Forestry Branch of the Department of Forestry and Rural Development. | Taylor |
| 1966 | Close Utilization Policy, January 1. | Project 87 |
| 1966 | Provision for controlling the distribution of plant nursery stock to prevent the spread of insects or disease, or for destruction of such stock with compensation. | Reid |
| 1966 | Royalty may be calculated on a pro rata basis where more than one rate applies (Close Utilization component or possibly for weight or sample scaling). | Reid |
| 1967 | Slash disposal provisions of the Forest Act extended to the entire province. | Project 87 |
| 1967 | Forest fire drought index chart used. | Herfst 1982 |
| 1967 | Timber Sale Harvesting Licence (contradicts Project 87 entry). | Parminter |
| 1968 | Timber Sale Harvesting Licence (contradicts Parminter entry). | Project 87 |
| 1969 | Federal Forestry Branch of the Department of Fisheries and Forestry. | Taylor |
| 1969 | Production of forest fire danger indices by computer. | Herfst 1982 |
| 1970 | Vernon Forest Insect Lab closed. | Taylor |
| 1970 | Land Act amended to prohibit the disposal of Crown land by Crown grant suitable for timber or pulpwood production except where required for agricultural development or other higher economic use. | Reid |
| 1970 | Provision for election of either board foot or cubic scale eliminated and made at the discretion of the Ministry. | Reid |
| 1970 | Douglas A26 Invader air tanker employed. | Morrison, I.A. 1982. Air tankers in British Columbia. In: 1982 annual meeting proceedings, Northwest Forest Fire Council. Victoria, B.C. pp.65-70. |
| 1971 | Federal Department of Environment. | Taylor |
| 1971 | Environment and Land Use Act enabled. | Reid |
| 1971 | Ecological Reserve Act. | |
| 1972 | Federal Canadian Forestry Service formed. | Taylor |
| 1972 | Requirement to obtain permits for campfires eliminated and industrial burning permit provisions strengthened. | Reid |
| 1972 | Scaling provisions re-enacted to entrench the BC Cubic Scale. | Reid |
| 1972 | New provision requiring lessee or licensee of Crown timber to reforest areas logged under the lease or licence. | Reid |
| 1972 | Portions of Old Temporary Tenures (licences and leases) within a Tree Farm Licence to revert to Crown land status when harvested and become part of the TFL if held by the same licensee but if held by another licensee then an Order in Council is required to include the land in the TFL. | Reid |
| 1973 | Douglas DC6-B air tanker employed. | Morrison |
| 1974 | Timber Products Stabilization Act enacted to authorize regulation of prices paid for wood chips produced in the province for manufacture in the province. | Reid |
| 1974 | Task Force on Crown Timber Disposal appointed January 12. | Reid |
| 1974 | Improvements on Tree Farm Licences no longer exempted from taxation under the Taxation Act. | Reid |
| 1975 | Royal Commission on forestry chaired by Dr. Peter Pearse appointed, June 12. | Reid |
| 1975 | Dr. Vladimir J. Krajina’s biogeoclimatic ecosystem classification system adopted by the BC Forest Service. | |
| 1975 | Grumman Avenger air tankers were phased out in favour of the Douglas A26 Invader and Douglas DC-6B, which holds 2500 Imperial gallons. | Marsden |
| 1976 | Department of Forests established, separated from the Department of Lands. | Reid and Project 87 |
| 1976 | Forest Act became the Department of Forests Act, subsequently renamed the Ministry of Forests Act and validated by the Ministerial Titles Amendment Act in 1977. | Reid |
| 1976 | Forest Policy Advisory Committee appointed in December to deal with implementation of the Royal Commission report. | Reid |
| 1976 | Pearse Royal Commission report submitted in September. | Reid |
| 1977 | BCFS Range Branch took over responsibility for all Grazing Leases in the province and the sole agency responsible for the forage resource. | Project 87 |
| 1977 | BCFS helicopter rappel crews used for fire suppression in Lower Post Ranger District. | Alexander, Bruce. Operational advance in initial attack. In: Northwest Forest Fire Council, annual meeting 1984. Beaverton, Oregon. pp.55-58. |
| 1978 | Timber Supply Areas replace Public Sustained Yield Units. | Project 87 |
| 1978 | Federal Department of Fisheries and Environment. | Taylor |
| 1978 | Forest products labs privatized, Forintek Canada takes over the Western Forest Products Lab. | Taylor |
| 1978 | Ministry of Forests Act, Forest Act, and Range Act (proclaimed January 1, 1979). | Reid, Parminter |
| 1979 | Small Business Forest Enterprise Program. | Grist |
| 1980 | Forest Service reorganized from Forest Districts and Ranger Districts to Forest Regions and Forest Districts. | Reid |
| 1980 | Federal Department of Environment. | Taylor |
| 1980 | Section 84 amended to require timber appraisals and stumpage rates to be determined in accordance with the policies and procedures approved by the Minister and varied according to the licence agreement. | Reid |
| 1980 | Credit to stumpage broadened to include nurseries and seed orchards. | Reid |
| 1980 | Authorized consolidation and subdivision of Tree Farm Licences held by the same person. | Reid |
| 1984 | Canadian Forestry Service moved from Environment to Agriculture Canada under the Minister of State for Forestry. | Canadian Forestry Service. 1986. Green alert – Forest Insect and Disease Survey. |
| 1986 | Conair introduced the first turbine-powered air tanker, the Fokker F-27. | In: 1986 annual meeting proceedings, Northwest Forest Fire Council. Olympia, Washington. |
| 1987 | Forest Amendment Act allowed the Forest Service to designate wilderness areas. | |
| 1987 | Section 88 of the Forest Act (credits to stumpage) no longer applies for basic silviculture, roads, and bridges, September 15. Industry now responsible for basic silviculture, including reforestation. Amount of wood sold in competetive sales doubled, cut control rules changed to resell or return undercut volumes. | Ministry of Forests and Lands News Release, September 15, 1987 |
| 1987 | Comparative Value System replaced Rothery System for pricing timber, October 1. | Ministry of Forests and Lands News Release, September 15, 1987 |
| 1986 | Federal Agriculture (Minister of State for Forestry and Mines). | Taylor |
| 1988 | Federal Forestry (pending Royal Assent). | Taylor |
| 1988 | Prince George District Office of Canadian Forestry Service opened. | Taylor |
| 1989 | Federal Canada Forestry Act passed, creating the Department of Forestry. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1996-1997 |
| 1990 | Canadian Forestry Service becomes Forestry Canada. | Taylor |
| 1991 | Federal Green Plan enables formation of Model Forests. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1991 |
| 1991 | FRDA II agreement signed with federal government. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1991 |
| 1992 | An Old Growth Strategy for British Columbia released, May. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1992 |
| 1992 | Protected Areas Strategy implemented, May. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1994 |
| 1992 | Commissioner on Resources and Environment Act, June. | |
| 1992 | Commission on Resources and Environment created. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1994 |
| 1992 | Timber Supply Review begun. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1992 |
| 1993 | Department of Forestry becomes federal Department of Natural Resources. | Taylor |
| 1993 | 87 600 ha protected in Clayoquot Sound, April. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1993 |
| 1993 | Discussion paper on forest practices code. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1993 |
| 1994 | Forest Practices Code of BC Act, July 7. | |
| 1994 | Forest Land Reserve Act, July. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1994 |
| 1994 | BC Forest Renewal Act, May. | |
| 1994 | Forest Renewal BC created under the Forest Renewal Plan. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1994 |
| 1994 | West Fraser Timber voluntarily relinquished its cutting rights in the Kitlope Valley, which later became a protected area, and then the Kitlope Heritage Conservancy. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2001-2002 |
| 1994 | Long Beach Model Forest created, September. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1994 |
| 1995 | Large areas of Crown land reserved under the Forest Land Reserve Act. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1995-1996 |
| 1995 | Scientific panel recommendations for ecosystem-based management in Clayoquot Sound accepted, July. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1995-1996 |
| 1995 | Class A provincial park created in Stein Valley (107 000 ha), November. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1995-1996 |
| 1995 | Prince George District Office of Forestry Canada closed. | Taylor |
| 1995 | Forest Insect and Disease Survey discontinued. | Taylor |
| 1997 | MacMillan Bloedel and five Nuu-Chah-Nulth bands form a joint venture in Clayoquot Sound area, April. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1996-1997 |
| 1997 | Jobs and Timber Accord, June. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1996-1997 |
| 1997 | Muskwa – Kechika protected area created, October. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1997-1998 |
| 1998 | MacMillan Bloedel announced it will phase out clearcutting over 5 years, June. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1998-1999 |
| 1999 | Identified Wildlife Management Strategy implemented, February. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1998-1999 |
| 1999 | TimberWest Forest Corp. announced it will phase out clearcutting over 4 years, May. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1998-1999 |
| 1999 | Centennial of the Canadian Forest Service. | Taylor |
| 2000 | BC announced it will reduce the proportion of clearcut harvesting in the Vancouver Forest Region from 70 to 40% over 5 years through the Small Business Forest Enterprise Program licensees. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 1999-2000 |
| 2001 | BC became the first Canadian jurisdiction to put more than 12% of its landbase in parks, protected areas, recreation areas and ecological reserves. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2000-2001 |
| 2001 | BC designated the Great Bear Rainforest in the central coast, protecting 96 458 hectares. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2000-2001 |
| 2002 | Discussion paper proposing a results-based Forest Practices Code released for comment, May 1. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2001-2002 |
| 2002 | Forest Renewal BC terminated on June 14 and replaced with the Forest Investment Account to focus on land-based improvements and studies, forestry research, product development, and international marketing. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2001-2002 |
| 2002 | The federal government announced a $246-million softwood lumber aid package that included a five-year, $40-million investment to assist BC with the mountain pine beetle epidemic, October. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2002-2003 |
| 2003 | The Forestry Revitalization Plan was introduced to address the competitiveness of the industry while maintaining environmental standards. Eliminated were policies such as minimum cut, requirements to process timber within the same company or at specified mills, mill closure penalties, and restrictions on the transfer and subdivision of tenures, March. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2002-2003 |
| 2003 | Forestry Innovation Investment Ltd. (FII) was incorporated a provincial Crown corporation with a goal to develop and diversify markets for B.C. wood products around the world, March 31. | |
| 2003 | The McLure fire burned 26 420 hectares, forcing the evacuation of 3800 residents and destroying 81 buildings, July through September. | |
| 2003 | The Okanagan Mountain Park fire burned 25 000 hectares south and east of Kelowna, forcing the evacuation of more than 27 000 people and destroying 239 homes, August and September. | |
| 2003 | The mountain pine beetle epidemic increased to cover 4.2 million hectares, double the area in 2002. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2003-2004 |
| 2003 | The Wildfire Act was introduced to replace or streamline provisions in the Forest Practices Code of B.C. Act and safeguard communities, November. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2003-2004 |
| 2004 | Forest and Range Practices Act January 31, beginning the transition to a results-based forest practices code. | |
| 2004 | The Firestorm 2003 Provincial Review report was submitted to the provincial cabinet, February. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2003-2004 |
| 2004 | A market-based timber pricing system to set stumpage prices for coastal operations was implemented, February 29. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2003-2004 |
| 2004 | Mountain pine beetle action plan updated and a two-year Bark Beetle Task Force created to oversee its implementation, April. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2004-2005 |
| 2005 | Standards for Seed Use introduced to protect tree gene resources. Apply to anyone planting trees in order to establish a free-growing stand under the Forest and Range Practices Act, April 1. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2004-2005 |
| 2005 | The mountain pine beetle infestation grew to 8.7 million hectares. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2005-2006 |
| 2005 | Land use decisions announced for 6.4 million hectares of the Central Coast and North Coast Land and Resource Management Plan areas. Including 1.8 million hectares of protected areas, adoption of ecosystem-based management (EBM) and a new level of government-to-government cooperation between the province and First Nations. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2005-2006 |
| 2005 | Mountain Pine Beetle Emergency Response – Canada-B.C. Implementation Strategy released, September. | The State of Canada’s Forests, 2005-2006 |
| Feb. 27, 2012 | 100th Anniversary of the Forest Service |
