After years of closed discussions, North Cowichan has provided the first public insight into the Quw’utsun Nation’s areas of interest in the 5,000-hectare Municipal Forest Reserve.

A staff report to council today lists the following seven categories:

— Carbon credits: “Staff will work with Quw’utsun Nation and proceed with a request for proposals to hire a qualified contractor to investigate further a forest carbon credit project which could be considered as the forest management plan for the MFR is developed in the future.”

— Co-management: “There is consensus to explore further co-governance models and frameworks that could potentially be implemented to benefit both parties. However, more research and discussion will be required before any conclusions or recommendations are brought to Council for consideration. This work is anticipated to be funded through the $200,000 grant funding received to further the development of a forest management plan.”

— Revenue sharing: “While no specific details have been determined, it is anticipated this will be an ongoing and developing topic of interest that will require further discussion.”

— Procurement: “Over the last few years, North Cowichan has direct awarded small silviculture contracts to Khowutzun Forest Services.” There has been “recent discussion around exploring options to direct award larger (>$100,000) forest related works, such as FireSmart fuel mitigation. Both parties express “general support to explore this further.”

— Biodiversity: “Staff have been engaging with Quw’utsun Nation members as part of a separate engagement process, but if this is a topic of interest, it will be discussed further in future working group meetings.”

— Culturally sensitive areas: “More discussion will be required to develop strategies to identify, map and incorporate culturally sensitive areas into future management planning to ensure appropriate protection measures are implemented and supported.”

— Future trail development: “Concerns surrounding recreational use and trail development within the MFR have been raised, most notably around the increased public use of Mount Tzouhalem and proposed trail development plans for Mount Richards.”

Mayor Rob Douglas said in a written statement that the development is "a significant step towards the shared stewardship of the Municipal Forest Reserve.”

He added: "While the work on establishing a co-management framework and developing a plan is underway, North Cowichan will suspend all new decisions or initiatives related to the Municipal Forest Reserve. Ongoing forest-related work such as FireSmart mitigation, danger tree assessments and removals, storm clean up, silviculture activities, and invasive plant management will continue as required.”