Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region (MABR) is a

UNESCO Biosphere Reserve Man and the Biosphere Programme (MAB) is an intergovernmental scientific program, launched in 1971 by UNESCO, that aims to establish a scientific basis for the improvement of relationships between people and their environments. MAB's work enga ...

located on the east coast of

Vancouver Island Vancouver Island is an island in the northeastern Pacific Ocean and part of the Canadian province of British Columbia. The island is in length, in width at its widest point, and in total area, while are of land. The island is the largest by ...

British Columbia British Columbia (commonly abbreviated as BC) is the westernmost Provinces and territories of Canada, province of Canada, situated between the Pacific Ocean and the Rocky Mountains. It has a diverse geography, with rugged landscapes that include ...

Canada Canada is a country in North America. Its ten provinces and three territories extend from the Atlantic Ocean to the Pacific Ocean and northward into the Arctic Ocean, covering over , making it the world's second-largest country by tota ...

. It was designated in 2000 by

UNESCO The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations (UN) aimed at promoting world peace and security through international cooperation in education, arts, sciences and culture. I ...

to protect a large second-growth coast Douglas fir ecosystem in the watersheds of the Little Qualicum and Englishman Rivers from being developed.

History

Early history

The watersheds of the Little Qualicum and Englishman Rivers on the northeastern slope of Mount Arrowsmith were once home to a large

old-growth forest An old-growth forestalso termed primary forest, virgin forest, late seral forest, primeval forest, or first-growth forestis a forest that has attained great age without significant disturbance, and thereby exhibits unique ecological featur ...

dominated by coast Douglas fir. The forest was

clearcut Clearcutting, clearfelling or clearcut logging is a forestry/logging practice in which most or all trees in an area are uniformly cut down. Along with shelterwood and seed tree harvests, it is used by foresters to create certain types of fores ...

in the early 1900s but eventually rebounded as the trees matured. In the mid-1990s, local logging industries pressured the provincial government to permit

clearcutting Clearcutting, clearfelling or clearcut logging is a forestry/ logging practice in which most or all trees in an area are uniformly cut down. Along with shelterwood and seed tree harvests, it is used by foresters to create certain types of fore ...

in the area as the trees neared their harvestable size. Local conservation groups protested additional logging of the recovering forest.

Establishment

In 2000,

, in cooperation with local conservation groups and the provincial government, designated the land in these watersheds a

, protecting the forest from being clearcut. In November 2008, the governing body of

Alberni-Clayoquot Regional District The Alberni–Clayoquot Regional District of British Columbia is located on west central Vancouver Island. Adjacent regional districts it shares borders with are the Strathcona and Comox Valley Regional Districts to the north, and the Nanaimo ...

in cooperation with local conservation groups established

Mount Arrowsmith Massif Regional Park Mount is often used as part of the name of specific mountains, e.g. Mount Everest. Mount or Mounts may also refer to: Places * Mount, Cornwall, a village in Warleggan parish, England * Mount, Perranzabuloe, a hamlet in Perranzabuloe parish, Co ...

within the biosphere reserve to further protecting the forest from being clearcut.

Restructuring

In 2013, members of the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Foundation voted to dissolve the society and transfer management of the biosphere reserve to Vancouver Island University (VIU) and the City of Parksville. In 2014, VIU established the Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere Region Research Institute, which is governed by representatives from the Qualicum First Nation, Snaw-naw-as First Nation, City of Parksville, Town of Qualicum Beach,

Regional District of Nanaimo The Regional District of Nanaimo is a regional district located on the eastern coast of Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. It is bordered to the south by the Cowichan Valley Regional District, to the west by the Alberni-Clayoquot Regio ...

, BC Ministry of Environment and Climate Change Strategy, Vancouver Island Conservation Land Management Program, Island Timberlands, TimberWest, and VIU.

Protected areas

Protected areas located within the biosphere reserve include: *

Arbutus Grove Provincial Park Arbutus Grove Provincial Park is a 22 hectare provincial park located on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. It was established on 21 July 1966 to protect a representative strand of Arbutus tree. The park is located within the larger ...

Englishman River Regional Park The English people are an ethnic group and nation native to England, who speak the English language in England, English language, a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language, and share a common history and culture. The English identi ...

* Englishman River Falls Provincial Park * Little Qualicum Falls Provincial Park * MacMillan Provincial Park *

Qualicum National Wildlife Area Qualicum National Wildlife Area is a National Wildlife Area located on Vancouver Island in British Columbia, Canada. The national wildlife area was established in 1977 by the Canadian Wildlife Service to protect critical habitat for migratory bi ...

Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park Rathtrevor Beach Provincial Park is a provincial park in Parksville, British Columbia, Canada. Located at the east end of the town, the 347-hectare park features a two-kilometre long stretch of sandy beach, a stand of old-growth Douglas fir trees ...

* Spider Lake Provincial Park

References

External links

*{{url, http://www.unesco.org/new/en/natural-sciences/environment/ecological-sciences/biosphere-reserves/europe-north-america/canada/mount-arrowsmith/, UNESCO Mount Arrowsmith Biosphere reserves of Canada Protected areas of British Columbia