BC Forest Safety Council (BCFSC) reps Rachel Derrick and Rick Walters met with Steve Nevidon from Canfor and Bob Geddes representing New Gold at 18.5km on the Kluskus Forest Service Road (junction with the Kenney Dam Rd) on Thursday July 19th to erect a Resource Road User Safety kiosk.
The target audience of this sign and Guide is not typical industrial road users, but instead members of the public – tourists, fishers, backpackers – who might not be familiar with travelling on resource roads. The goal of the Guide is to educate “New Road Users” by explaining what traffic types, road conditions and hazards they should expect to encounter, and by recommending the practical steps they can take to ensure their own safe travels, as well as contribute to safety of other road users. This partnership allows for all of us to share resources when working toward the same result. – Rick Walters
BCFSC has formed a partnership Canadian Forest Products Ltd. (CANFOR) and New Gold Inc. Steve Nevidon, Forestry Supervisor, CANFOR and Kathie LaForge, Community Manager, New Gold Inc. have worked with the Transportation Safety Department at the BCFSC.
New Gold has, as one of its corporate responsibility objectives, to ensure the health and safety of our employees, contractors and visitors to the workplace. We have a Road Management Agreement with Canfor – Plateau related to the use of the Kluskus Forest Road and are constantly looking for ways to increase the safety on the route to our site. We are very happy to be partnering with industry and organizations who are interested in making our forest roads safe for all users. – Kathie LaForge
Canfor is committed to providing a safe and healthful working environment for all employees and all others required to provide services at Canfor work sites. Road safety is high priority at Canfor; I am always looking for new and creative ways to communicate with industrial and public road users. I am pleased to have the opportunity to work with the BCFSC and New Gold Inc. on this endeavor and hope that we continue the partnership on future innovative projects. – Steve Nevidon
The BC Forest Safety Council has commissioned four kiosks to be placed at strategic locations on resource road systems busy with industrial and public traffic. The first four signs are intended as a trial to determine if the information is reaching the public and to gauge how successful the effort can be. If the signs and Guides are effective the Council hopes to build more partnerships with road users in other areas and erect more kiosks; reaching more tourists and public road users. Currently there are two kiosks (one at Kluskus Forest Service Road, one on the Holy Cross Forest Service Road) and 2 more planned for Kamloops and Adams Lake areas.
The Resource Road User Safety Guide is available online at Council’s website, and a growing number of select locations (e.g. tourist information centers, MFLNRO offices, Front Counter BC, Industry Canada in Prince George). Council is seeking partners interested in installing kiosks or distributing brochures in their local area. Please contact the 1-877-324-1212 for more information.
For more information, please contact:
BC Forest Safety Council
Rachel Derrick
Transportation Safety Program Coordinator
250-562-3215 Toll-free 1-877-324-1212
transport@bcforestsafe.org
About Canfor – Plateau
Canadian Forest Products Ltd. (Canfor) operates manufacturing facilities in the Canadian provinces of British Columbia, Alberta, and Quebec, as well as in the Southern US states of North and South Carolina. We aim to be strong members of the communities in which we operate, supporting local initiatives and programs that align with our sponsorship goals and guidelines.
Canfor’s Western Canadian operations source wood fibre primarily through long-term replaceable tenure agreements on publicly-owned land, while our operations in Quebec source wood inputs from a combination of private and public lands. Canfor Southern Pine operations in the southern United States do not manage any forestland directly and instead source fibre from neighbouring private forest landowners. Wherever we operate, we demonstrate our commitment to sustainable forestry.
To learn more, please visit www.canfor.com
About New Gold Inc. – Blackwater Project
New Gold is an intermediate gold mining company. The company has a portfolio of four producing assets and two development projects, including the Blackwater Project in British Columbia.
To learn more, please visit www.newgold.com
About The BC Forest Safety Council
The British Columbia Forest Safety Council (the Council) was created in September 2004 as a not-for-profit society dedicated to promoting forest safety in the sector. The initial focus and tasks of the Council were set out in the report of the Forest Safety Task Force, which created a comprehensive strategy to dramatically improve the safety record of the BC Forest Sector.
The Council includes all of the major forestry organizations and is fully supported by WorkSafeBC and the government of BC.
The values, beliefs and commitments that form the basis of the Council and its work are set out in the Forest Safety Accord.
The Council’s mission
Our mission is to eliminate all fatalities and serious injuries in the forest sector of British Columbia. We will accomplish this by:
- Promoting Cultural Change to ensure that safety is treated as an over-riding priority and a shared responsibility;
- Developing a Competent and Confident Workforce where workers are well trained and will refuse to work unsafely;
- Encouraging Companies to have in place functioning safety programs and policies that meet and exceed all regulatory requirements;
- Promoting a Safety Conscious Legal Regime in which the laws, regulations and compliance programs encourage and support safety.
To learn more, please visit www.bcforestsafe.org.
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