User:LorLeod/Qualicum Beach Heritage Forest

Qualicum Beach Heritage Forest

Qualicum Beach Heritage Forest is 35 acres of old-growth forest located within the boundaries of Qualicum Beach. Originally part of a private estate, this gem has been preserved for posterity through the efforts of local residents and businesses. Use http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Central_Park as a template.

Heritage Forest Today
The Heritage Forest provides significant green space within the residential and golf development surroundings of Qualicum Beach. Much of the Forest was logged years ago (i.e. 1870s) so it is now primarily an older second growth forest. However, there are impressive remnant old growth Douglas fir trees that were left to grow primarily along the Beach Creek ravine. These very large trees are over 400 years old and remind us of what the east coast of Vancouver Island was like prior to development.

B.C. forest ecosystems are described on the basis of distribution, climate and vegetation types. Heritage Forest ecology lies within the moist maritime Coastal Douglas fir biogeoclimatic zone (CDFmm). This ecosystem is found at low elevations along southeast Vancouver Island ranging from sea level to about 150 meters (435 feet). The Heritage Forest lies in the rainshadow of nearby Mount Arrowsmith and experiences warm, dry summers and mild, wet winters and a very long growing season. Prevailing winds come from the southeast to southwest. The Heritage Forest is dominated by Douglas fir, western red cedar, grand fir and hemlock with minor amounts of lodgepole pine, dogwood, sitka spruce, Garry oak and arbutus. The understory vegetation is primarily made up of salal, Oregon grape, sword fern, bracken fern, ocean-spray, vanilla-leaf and three-leafed foamflower. Less prominent species include baldhip rose, snowberry and western trumpet honeysuckle. Moist sites support salmonberry, elderberry, lady fern, skunk cabbage and false-lily-of-the-valley.

The most notable wildlife species include barred owls, pileated woodpeckers, ravens, bald eagles, black-tailed deer, raccoons, squirrels and many species of songbirds. Beach Creek supports salmon and deeply incises the Lands as it meanders its way to the nearby mouth and Pacific Ocean. Overall, the Heritage Forest supports a diverse array of flora, fauna, natural features and ecological processes (known as the Amenities).

History
In 1995 the Brown Family Trust expressed interest in selling the Brown Mansion along with the immediate 5 acres and the surrounding 50 acres of forested lands (the Lands). The Brown Property Preservation Society (BPPS) was formed to raise funds through public donations for the purchase of the Lands with the intent to protect the Lands from development. From 1996 to 2004, hundreds of BPPS volunteers worked on events to raise funds and to stimulate donations for the purchase of the 50 acre forested Lands. With the addition of funds for park reserves from the Town of Qualicum Beach, the Lands were purchased.

Along with the Lands purchase, the ‘Brown Property’ became known as the ’Heritage Forest’ in 2001 and a Forest Commission was formed. Membership consists of 2 Town Council members, 2 members of the Brown Property Preservation Society and 1 public member. The role of the Heritage Forest Commission was initially to formulate a registered conservation covenant to protect and manage the Heritage Forest in perpetuity. The covenant was signed on July 15th, 2008 and formed a legal partnership between the Town of Qualicum Beach, the Brown Property Preservation Society and The Land Conservancy of British Columbia (TLC). The current role of the Commission is management of the Forest.

The overall mandate of the covenant is to protect the Lands from development, and for the Lands to be used as a nature park for the appreciation and enjoyment of nature by the public in perpetuity.