441-01632 Environment
PETITION TO THE GOVERNMENT OF CANADA
Whereas:
Oldgrowth Specklebelly Lichen (Pseudocyphellaria rainierensis) is a Blue-listed species that can only grow in nutrient-rich high, elevation old growth yellow and red cedar forests;
The Species at Risk Act (SARA) lists Oldgrowth Specklebelly Lichen as a species of "special concern" found only in British Columbia (BC), and the species has been identified as threatened due to the threat of industrial logging;
The goal of SARA is to uphold the protection of species at risk, and under both federal and provincial governments, no action has been taken to protect these fragile and irreplaceable old growth ecosystems;
The BC's Conservation Data Centre, lists only 52 documented extant populations of Oldgrowth Specklebelly in existence in BC, some being extirpated, while the BC Management Plan goal for Oldgrowth Specklebelly is: "to maintain all known extant populations."; and
In 2021, the largest population of Oldgrowth Specklebelly Lichen discovered in BC, consisting of over 600 individuals in the Granite Creek watershed near Port Renfrew (Tree Farm Licence 46 cut block 8022) was clear cut, and in August 2022, a population of five individuals were found within Tree Farm Licence 46 cut block 4733, a section of old growth forest bisected by a new logging road located in the Bugaboo Creek watershed near Port Renfrew, and is slated for logging.
We, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to immediately protect all extant populations of Oldgrowth Specklebelly Lichen (Pseudocyphellaria rainierensis,) and to immediately require British Columbia to uphold and enforce protections for this species across all Crown lands.
Whereas:
Oldgrowth Specklebelly Lichen (Pseudocyphellaria rainierensis) is a Blue-listed species that can only grow in nutrient-rich high, elevation old growth yellow and red cedar forests;
The Species at Risk Act (SARA) lists Oldgrowth Specklebelly Lichen as a species of "special concern" found only in British Columbia (BC), and the species has been identified as threatened due to the threat of industrial logging;
The goal of SARA is to uphold the protection of species at risk, and under both federal and provincial governments, no action has been taken to protect these fragile and irreplaceable old growth ecosystems;
The BC's Conservation Data Centre, lists only 52 documented extant populations of Oldgrowth Specklebelly in existence in BC, some being extirpated, while the BC Management Plan goal for Oldgrowth Specklebelly is: "to maintain all known extant populations."; and
In 2021, the largest population of Oldgrowth Specklebelly Lichen discovered in BC, consisting of over 600 individuals in the Granite Creek watershed near Port Renfrew (Tree Farm Licence 46 cut block 8022) was clear cut, and in August 2022, a population of five individuals were found within Tree Farm Licence 46 cut block 4733, a section of old growth forest bisected by a new logging road located in the Bugaboo Creek watershed near Port Renfrew, and is slated for logging.
We, the undersigned, citizens and residents of Canada, call upon the Government of Canada to immediately protect all extant populations of Oldgrowth Specklebelly Lichen (Pseudocyphellaria rainierensis,) and to immediately require British Columbia to uphold and enforce protections for this species across all Crown lands.