Two rallies to protest old-growth logging in British Columbia took place Friday at the offices of B.C. Premier John Horgan and Attorney General David Eby.
A large crowd gathered outside Horgan’s constituency office to protest old-growth logging practices.
A smaller crowd gathered outside Eby’s constituency in Vancouver’s Kitsilano neighbourhood.
More than 130 people have been arrested so far at blockades aimed at preventing old-growth logging in the Fairy Creek watershed near Port Renfrew.
Activists say very little old-growth forest remains in B.C. and Fairy Creek is the last unprotected intact valley on southern Vancouver Island.
“B.C. is well known for these massive trees and these very vibrant ecosystems and we’re down to less than 400,000 hectares of them throughout the province,” said Kathleen Code of the Rainforest Flying Squad, a group that has been involved with the protests.
“Fairy Creek represents a small portion of that, but I think we’re down to the point where every last hectare counts now.”
Teal-Jones has said it plans to harvest about 20 hectares at the north ridge of the 1,200-hectare watershed out of 200 available for harvest.
— with files from Simon Little, Paul Johnson and The Canadian Press