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forest fines

MacMillan Bloedel was hit with fines totalling $20,000 last month for road building infractions in the Upper Lillooet drainage, leading into the proposed Randy Stoltmann Wilderness Area.

MacMillan Bloedel was hit with fines totalling $20,000 last month for road building infractions in the Upper Lillooet drainage, leading into the proposed Randy Stoltmann Wilderness Area. The fines, and a number of requirements, were handed down by district manager Paul Kuster Dec. 20. The infractions were the first of their kind in the district since the Forest Practices Code came into effect June 15, 1995. Don Kinnear of the district office said the fines were levied in response to several contraventions of the code. Construction of 150 metres of road without a permit cost the forestry company $10,000. Another section of road, for which a permit was obtained, didn’t meet standards set for road building. A second $10,00 fine was imposed for that infraction. As well as the fines, MacMillan Bloedel was required to submit a plan for remedial work on the road. That plan has been submitted and Mac-Blo began the work before the first snowfalls. The work must be completed by June 15. An application for the unauthorized road construction must also be submitted and the forestry company must immediately implement new administrative procedures for the planning and construction of roads. Mac-Blo will also be required to conduct training sessions relating to road construction under the Forest Practices Code before March 31. Kinnear said the road was built late last summer in the Upper Lillooet drainage area, upstream from Salal Creek. The road is at the bottom of a slope, built on pumice material. Kinnear said MacMillan Bloedel was very co-operative during the investigation.