• Community forests expanding in McLeod Lake/Mackenzie, north Island

  Source: British Columbia - Government News
  Date: 2026-09-14 19:00:00.0
  Tags: [British Columbia, Resources, Environment, Indigenous, Industry, Municipal]

  The British Columbia Ministry of Forests, led by Minister Ravi Parmar, announced the expansion of two community forests to enhance local forest management, support wildfire resilience, and secure sustainable fibre supply. The McLeod Lake Mackenzie Community Forest, established in 2009 and partnered with the McLeod Lake Indian Band, is being expanded by nearly 10,400 hectares with an annual wood fibre allocation of 20,000 cubic metres. Meanwhile, the North Island Community Forest LP, established in 2011, is advancing an expansion that includes more than 8,100 cubic metres of wood fibre annually. These area-based forest licenses are managed collaboratively by local governments, community groups, and First Nations to generate regional economic benefits and well-paying jobs.

  Read Original

• Industrial development near Whitehorse's Ice Lake should go ahead, board says

  Source: Territories - Northern Affairs (Yukon, NWT, Nunavut)
  Date: 2026-09-03 23:14:10.0
  Tags: [National, Municipal, Industry, Infrastructure, Environment]

  The Yukon Environmental and Socio-economic Assessment Board (YESAB) has recommended that a contentious industrial development project near Ice Lake in Whitehorse proceed, concluding it will not cause significant adverse environmental or socio-economic effects. Proposed by the territorial government, the project involves building a subdivision of approximately 15 industrial-commercial lots across a 25-hectare forested parcel off the Alaska Highway, which includes the Whitehorse weigh scales and 526 metres of new roadway. While the Yukon Contractors Association strongly supports the development due to an acute shortage of commercial and industrial land in the city, local residents and trail users have raised public backlash over the loss of popular green space used for hiking, biking, and snowmobiling. The YESAB recommendation has now been submitted to the Yukon government for a final decision.

  Read Original