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Indicator 6.4.2 - Rate of compliance with sustainable forest management laws and regulations core indicator 
The intent of SFM laws and regulations is to maintain or enhance the character and resilience of forest ecosystems, to ensure the optimum use of forest resources, and to support social and cultural interests and needs. All jurisdictions have laws and regulations for SFM. Forest Management Planning Guidelines are published by government departments to set standards that reflect their particular needs and circumstances. These guidelines are subject to review and revision and, generally, are increasingly incorporating a more comprehensive and sophisticated array of objectives, strategies, and standards to better reflect the social, economic, and environmental elements of SFM. This indicator is presented for the first time in this report and measures the rate of compliance to SFM laws and regulations across Canada. The information reported provides insight into one of the most fundamental prerequisites to achieve SFM. Information was available from only 6 of the 10 provinces (Table 6.4e). The Yukon and Northwest Territories also submitted information. However, compliance standards were not yet in place in the Northwest Territories for the harvest period of 2003-2004, and there has been almost no forest harvesting and no compliance inspections in the Yukon since 2000. The information provided demonstrates high rates of compliance from 86% to 99.5% and a high intensity of monitoring. Table 6.4e Rates of compliance for various jurisdictions.
b na: Not available. c There is no direct correlation between the number of enforcement actions and the number of inspections that occur during a particular reporting period because some enforcement actions and investigations into incidents occur over a period of more than one year. An important aspect of compliance to SFM laws and regulations is that noncompliance is not considered an acceptable option. Jurisdictions reported that where inspections found noncompliant outcomes, operators were obliged to correct the results of their actions and change their practices to comply or face closure. The following examples illustrate some of the various approaches to measuring compliance across Canada, providing a valuable context for the indicator. Ontario In Ontario, the compliance monitoring system is designed to ensure that the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources (OMNR) and the forest industry conduct forest operations in compliance with legislation and according to approved plans (e.g., forest management, fire, and compliance plans) and operational standards. Compliance inspection reports are prepared for harvesting, access, renewal, maintenance, and protection operations. Sustainable forest license (SFL) holders in Ontario are responsible for conducting compliance inspections as a condition of their license. The inspection program includes planning, monitoring, inspections, reporting, training, and education components. As part of industry self-monitoring and reporting, the forest industry is required to report all incidents of noncompliance on their SFL area to the OMNR. This includes license infractions incurred by the SFL holders, overlapping licensees, shareholders, or private individuals. The OMNR's regulatory role, with respect to compliance, includes the verification of all instances of noncompliance as reported by companies. Therefore, for each report of noncompliance, there will also be at least one OMNR inspection report confirming the industry report. For incidents assessed as moderate or significant, the OMNR will actively monitor the noncompliance until it is resolved. This action may result in additional reports of noncompliance by the OMNR for the same occurrence. Moreover, the OMNR undertakes random and planned spot checks and audits of forest operations. This may result in additional reports of noncompliance that may not have been signaled by a company. The result of all this activity is that OMNR will generally issue more noncompliance reports than industry. British Columbia In British Columbia, staff of the Ministry of Forests and Range conduct inspections and investigations to assess the compliance of forestry activities and practices. Inspections are planned on the basis of an evaluation of risk of the forest activity or practice in the context of social, environmental, and economic values, and on the availability of ministry resources. The inspections will cover roads (construction, maintenance, deactivation, and use), protection (fire and forest health), harvesting, silvicultural treatments, recreational use, revenue, and riparian and wildlife habitat. Inspections have been directed increasingly toward high-risk areas, such as tenures held by licensees with a poor record of compliance and sites where there is a higher risk of environmental impact. Consequently, although the number of inspections has declined, a greater proportion of high-risk and medium-risk sites are being inspected, which increases the likelihood of uncovering noncompliance. In addition, British Columbia has an independent Forest Practices Board that conducts independent audits of government and forest company compliance with forestry legislation and the appropriateness of government's enforcement role. Quebec In Quebec, a sample equivalent to a minimum of 10% of the annual area of harvest is carried out. Evaluators are trained each year to ensure that standards are current and, every three years, the evaluation process is audited. |