This page is a subpage of nsforestmatters.ca/Links/NS Gov Info
Drafting… (Initial text from nsforestnotes.ca)
Also view:
– Natural Resources Strategy
The “Report from the Independent Review of Forest Practices in Nova Scotia” was released Aug 21, 2018
Independent Review Press Release
Good overview in Bill Lahey Slide Set from UNB presentation Nov 19, 2018
View L&F: Ecological Forestry Implementation for the related reports and updates.
A promise to “appoint an independent expert to review our forestry practices” was first cited publicly as an item in the Liberal’ Government’s pre-election budget address on April 17, 2017. The Liberals won the election and on Aug 30, 2017 the government announced the review was beginning, that it would be headed up by University of King’s College President William Lahey and that it would take place in three phases with a final report on February 28, 2018.
The Report from the Independent Review of Forest Practices in Nova Scotia, now known more colloquially as the “Lahey Report” was released on Aug 21, 2018 in two volumes:
– An Independent Review of Forest Practices in Nova Scotia: Executive Summary, Conclusions and Recommendations
By William Lahey. 82 pages
– An Independent Review of Forest Practices in Nova Scotia: Addendum
“This addendum to Professor William Lahey’s Independent Review of Forest Practices in Nova Scotia includes background material and supporting documents prepared by the expert advisors who provided assistance to the Review. The writing of each section of this addendum has been led by the named author(s). All sections have been reviewed by other members of the Review team. In addition, this addendum includes an appendix of submissions that were prepared at Prof. Lahey’s request by other individuals and organizations.”
Prof Lahey’s ‘Progress Report’ on L&F/NRR’s implementation of his 2018 recommendations was released Nov 30, 2021: . There are two volumes:
– Independent Evaluation of Implementation of the Forest Practices Report for Nova Scotia
– Attachments to the Independent Evaluation of Implementation of the Forest Practices Report for Nova Scotia
Chapter 1 in the Addendum – Forest Practices Review Process, prepared by David Foster, provides a summary of the Independent Review process.
Comments following the 2018 Report
View Press Release, NSFN Post, and CBC Report.
From the CBC Report:
…And while Lahey predicted less clear cutting would lead to a reduction of Crown land wood supply of 10 to 20 per cent, Rankin disagreed.
“We believe that we can sustainably grow this industry.”
Subsequently, Lands and Forestry provided updates to their response to the Independent Review on the same webpage that had hosted info about the review as it proceeded under the title “Independent Review of Forest Practices in Nova Scotia”, retitling the page at some point as “Ecological Forestry Implementation“.
Posts on nsforestnotes.ca provide some of the history and context leading up to the independent Review – see Independent Review>News Items – and subsequently up to June 21, 2022
The Lahey Report echoed many of the recommendations by Bob Bancroft and Donna Crossland (2010) as part of the Natural Resources Strategy, notably in recognizing excessive clearcutting in NS, and the need to adopt in their words, ”an ecologically based, multi-aged forest management paradigm”. A major difference was that the Lahey Report did not address practices on private lands.
Overall the Lahey Report received strong support from conservation groups and the more ecologically oriented forestry groups (notably NSWOOA), with some reservations, e.g. as expressed here. It wasn’t until much later, and only after the gutting of the Biodiversity Act that Forest NS began to express support.
Implementation by the Houston Government…