Foes of K-Country logging, timber company face off at open house

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Timber harvester West Fraser said the open house Wednesday that drew a large crowd was to allay fears over its plans to clear-cut in a popular recreational area near Bragg Creek, and to collect input on how it’ll be done.

But for some who came to question company staffers, most clad in green golf shirts and hovering over maps of the targeted areas, the event at the Cochrane RancheHouse left more questions and concerns.

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“There’s an opportunity for the company to get it right but (they) view it as a checkmark they have to do in order to harvest and smooth over those concerns until people realize they were legitimate,” said Shaun Peter with Bragg Creek & Kananaskis Outdoor Recreation.

Minutes earlier, Peter and other logging critics queried West Fraser Alberta chief forester Richard Briand about how the company will go about logging two areas west of Bragg Creek, starting in about 2½ years.

He told Briand the company should follow the lead of other industrial users who have rights in the area but have chosen not to exercise them due to social and environmental pressures.

He suggested West Fraser ask the provincial government to buy out their logging rights to the area to preserve it.

“For you to come with us to the government would be a way for all of us to win,” Peter told Briand, who was noncommittal.

Said Briand: “I appreciate your passion … I’m glad you came.”

Open house part of required public consultation for logging plan

Starting in the fall of 2026, logging company West Fraser plans on clear-cutting in parcels totaling nearly 900 hectares of forest in the West Bragg Creek and Moose Mountain areas that are laced with hiking, biking and skiing trails and considered a short-drive outdoor mecca for Calgarians.

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It’s part of the company’s logging rights contained in a 20-year forestry management agreement that runs along much of the length of Alberta’s Rocky Mountain foothills.

Late last month, Alberta Environment and Protected Areas Minister Rebecca Schulz said logging approved by her government must meet stringent environmental standards and undergo comprehensive public consultation, including Wednesday’s open house.

“We always have to balance economic opportunity with holding up our highest environmental standards, and of course tourism and the mountains are something Albertans and the rest of the world see as one of our most precious resources,” she said.

At Wednesday’s open house, West Fraser Woodlands Manager Tyler Steneker said the company is determined to do just that, adding the public consultation process is far more than window dressing.

“We are truly sincere in saying we want meaningful engagement — we’ve already met with mountain bike groups and we’ve committed to going to the trails and walking it with them,” said Steneker, who considers himself an avid mountain biker.

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“It’s about discussing how much of a buffer there’ll be (between logging blocks and trails) — it’s feeling it, not just staring at maps.”

‘We’re here to have meaningful conversations for obtainable items’: West Fraser

Of more than 300 kilometres of trails in the two areas, logging would overlap no more than seven km according to the current plan, and that those interactions have steadily decreased over two phases of planning.

And of the allowable logging area, typically 30 to 40 per cent is exempted by the company for harvesting due to various reasons, including public input.

“There are zero ribbons (to denote logging) in the field today,” said Steneker, adding there’ll be another open house tomorrow in Blairmore and similar gatherings over the next two years.

“Our actions will show we’re here to have meaningful conversations for obtainable items … we may not all be happy with it but it’s something we can live with.”

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West Fraser officials said it’s too early to determine the volume of timber they’ll harvest from the areas or how much it’ll be worth.

Being in close proximity of clear-cuts affects trails: advocates

Peter questioned whether the challenge of meeting public expectations and avoiding severely damaging a trail network that has seen $6.5 million invested in it will be financially worthwhile for West Fraser.

As it’s currently presented, the logging plan would not only overlap trails, but Peter said it would leave many others in close proximity of clear-cuts.

“A lot of trails would be on the block edge, having a very unsightly landscape right next to you, but they don’t consider that to have affected the trail,” said Peter.

Jeff Woodgate said his Bragg Creek mountain bike coaching, guiding and shuttling company would be just one of the local tourism-oriented businesses negatively affected by the logging.

“My business could muddle through but as a personal user of these trails I’m going to be hugely affected,” he said.

The group GROW Kananaskis is holding a protest hike/bike at the Moose Mountain Road Thursday at 6:30 p.m.

BKaufmann@postmedia.com

X (Twitter): @BillKaufmannjrn

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