INVERNESS, NS – In November 2015, the auditor general reported that the Department of Natural Resources needs to better monitor forestry activity across Nova Scotia.
“People are very concerned about how our forests are managed,” says MacMaster. “If government is not documenting and reporting what is going on, we really have no way to measure what is happening to this resource.”
The auditor general asked the McNeil government to look at harvesting and licensing operations because few records exist to make sure the amount of trees cut matches what was agreed to be cut.
The Department of Natural Resources plans to have this fixed by the end of July. A proposed Crown Lands Production and Sales Report will provide improved tracking of forest products from Crown lands. It will include three levels of standardized monitoring practices for harvesting, silviculture, trucking, road and bridge construction and operational planning.
“This could help shed light on what is really happening in our forests,” says MacMaster. “We want to make sure our forests are being managed in a sustainable way that includes respect for wildlife.”