Delay in logging old-growth area helps endangered spotted owls in southern B.C. for now

An agreement to delay logging of an old-growth stand of British Columbia forest has given a one-year reprieve to one of Canada's most endangered species.

But governments now have to come up with a permanent way to protect the vanishing spotted owl and other endangered species in the province, said Kegan Pepper-Smith of Ecojustice, which has been pushing the federal government on the issue.

"We need to reimagine an approach that protects [species]and their habitat with legally enforceable measures.''

Just a tiny handful of spotted owls remain in the Canadian wild. Some estimates place the remaining population in the forests around Spuzzum in south-central B.C. as low as three.

On Thursday, B.C., the federal government and the Spuzzum First Nation announced a deal to hold off logging that watershed for a year while the governments continue working on a recovery plan for the owls.

'Steep decline in biodiversity'

"One thing that I think Canadians don't fully appreciate is how steep the decline in biodiversity has been in this country, and around the world," saidfederal Minister of Environment and Climate ChangeJonathan Wilkinson.

"There are many species that used to be abundant that are on the verge of extinction today. Certainly the spotted owl is a great example in that regard," he said.

The logging deferral is part of a larger deal the two governments are developing to help the province preserve biodiversity.

"These first pilot projects will strengthen habitat protection for the threatened species which depend on it, such as the spotted owl, and help build a systemic approach to protection of biodiversity,"B.C. Environment Minister George Heyman said in a release.

B.C. has a captive breeding program that now has 28 spotted owls whose offspring will be released into protected habitats.

Pepper-Smith called the deal encouraging, but said both Ottawa and the province have a long way to go before the medium-sized, dark brown owl is fully protected.