KDCFS has developed several blocks on the Nashton Face behind the Kaslo dump and in Keen Creek to harvest timber damaged from the Briggs Creek wildfire. The block locations can be seen on the overview map. The Briggs Creek fire burnt area as well as our fuel mitigation projects can be seen on the Briggs – Fuel Mitigation Projects map. The Nashton Face block will be visible from the Kaslo airstrip and dump, and also from a few spots on Hwy 31. The Visual Impact Assessment shows how the proposed block will look from each viewpoint, with View Point 3 being from the road beside the airstrip and the other two viewpoints from Hwy 31. The block is 30ha in size and is cable ground, with a mix of hemlock, fir, cedar, larch and spruce. The pictures below show this block, which is typical for the whole area of the Briggs Creek Fire, with the ground scorched down to mineral soil. In some areas the trees are dead already with the remaining trees expected to die over the next summer or two.
The fire has devastated the Keen and Nashton Face area and we will do our best to salvage the dead and dying timber before it deteriorates, with an estimated 60,000m3 being harvested over the next two years. Prior to developing the blocks, overview planning identified stands and patches of live trees, a mosaic of intact unburnt and burnt patches, and landscape level connectivity of residual trees to be retained for habitat, hydrologic function and other values. The blocks developed target stands of timber that are 100% affected by fire but are operable and salvageable.
Harvesting these areas will minimize impacts to timber supply by shifting logging from un-damaged stands to damaged stands to recover as much value as possible before the wood quality deteriorates. It will also help restore the ecosystem through planting, speeding up the natural recovery process at the stand and landscape levels. In an effort to balance the need for ecological conservation, unburnt areas, snags, coarse woody debris, as well as individual and patches of live trees will be retained on site to provide structural characteristics and biodiversity.
Road building and harvesting of the Nashton block is expected to commence in June and will be completed by Sunshine Logging. Timber Ridge Contracting will commence harvesting in Keen Creek in June. Comments and questions can be directed to manager@kaslocommunityforest.org
Update on 2023 AGM – Thurs April 20th