The magnitude of the forest fires of the past few weeks demonstrates the urgency of mobilizing and collaborating for the future of Quebec’s forests. This type of disaster adds to the many forest management challenges experienced daily by forest sector stakeholders, such as caribou protection, protected areas, maple syrup production, wood supply, road management, cohabitation with the First Nations, recreational tourism and so on. It is essential to be able to reconcile these challenges while having the capacity to react in the event of a natural disaster. What if the problem was rather a lack of common vision based on a strong political will to align everyone’s objectives?
Such a unifying vision necessarily requires collaborative management. For us, forest engineers, the forest is an environment rich in biodiversity, a provider of environmental services and renewable goods; an environment that contributes to the fight against climate change and to the well-being of the communities and people who compose them. In short, an environment that promotes our overall health.
For several years, the Order of Forest Engineers of Quebec (OIFQ) has been proposing the concept of designated forest manager. It is a forest environment management body rooted in the territory and bringing together local decision-makers from all over. This body would be supported by a team of professionals acting in complementarity to allow a synergy of the expertise of each.
Although accountable to the government based on general objectives and orientations, the designated planner should be able to establish his own local objectives and the means of achieving them. Its proximity to the territory would promote responsiveness and agility in the event of natural events, or to adapt quickly to changing environmental, social and economic contexts. It would also have the duty to be financially self-sufficient, and even to ensure the sharing of tangible and intangible benefits between the stakeholders.
This OIFQ proposal is not a completely new approach, since similar models have been implemented elsewhere in the world, notably in Scandinavia, New Zealand and, closer to home, in Ontario. We should also remember that a similar formula had been proposed in the green paper of the late Minister Claude Béchard.
It’s time to try a different approach than those that have been implemented so far. Maintaining the current approach or going back would condemn us to the same unsatisfactory results. With the acceleration of changes due to climatic, economic, geopolitical and social contexts, the problems will be ever more numerous and the visions ever more divisive. Locking ourselves into the current model will waste a lot of time, energy and value.
It is time to create places where stakeholders can discuss and find solutions for which they will take responsibility for implementation and set themselves on the path to success. A flame has also been lit since some deputies are calling for a parliamentary commission to review forest management. An initiative welcomed by the Order. By moving forward with a parliamentary commission, an ideal forum to examine this topical issue, the government will demonstrate that it is on the offensive. If necessary, the Order will certainly be a stakeholder.
In the meantime, the Order intends to assume its leadership by meeting with several players in the community to discuss the visions and objectives of each. It is important for us to take advantage of the spur of the moment that sets in, not letting the thick smoke of the fires obstruct our vision.