Western Forest Products Halts Watershed Logging

Western Forest Products has voluntarily halted its logging operation in the Chapman Creek Watershed. Sunshine Coast Regional District Chairman Ed Steeves made the announcement at 5:00 pm this afternoon to demonstrators waiting outside the Board's meeting room. The SCRD called an emergency meeting at 10:00 this morning to discuss in camera the public's increasing vocal demand that the Board of Health issue an immediate stop work order to WFP. Demonstrators believe the motion passed by Gibsons Town Council earlier in the morning imploring the SCRD Board to immediately iissue a stop work order had an impact. According to demonstrators, the SCRD alternated its role as regional government and as a Health Board throughout the 7 hour meeting.

Western Forest Products will now halt all logging operations in the watershed until August 11th when the SCRD Board of Health will meet to make a final ruling as to whether logging in the watershed is a threat to public health. It is felt by many that the young people who have gone up into the logging operation on a daily basis regardless of the injunction has influenced WFP's decision.

This first major victory will be celebrated at tomorrow's demonstration at the Chapman Creek Bridge. That demonstration gets underway at 11:00 am. Everyone is encouraged to attend.