The following article appeared in the Creston Valley Advance newspaper in October 1998, and presents our summary views on a provision in the provincial Land Act for community lease control for the protection of Crown (Public) forestlands in drinking water sources.  Tap Water Alliance Coordinator Will Koop was in the towns of Creston and Erickson from September 29 - October 1, 1998 and met with members of the community involved in concerns over the Arrow Creek watershed, and also participated in a tour of the upper Arrow watershed with members of the new community forest licence on October 1.

Creston Valley Advance, Thursday October 15, 1998,
Opinion Line, by Will Koop, B.C. Tap Water Alliance Coordinator.

Accepting community forest licence is to give up best means of protecting the water supply

"In Andy Shadrack's letter Sept. 24 ("In this tale of two Kootenay valleys, Creston stands the best chance of writing a happy ending") regarding his support for the Creston community forest licence, he overlooked a very important option for control of the Arrow Creek watershed for the greater Creston community.

There is, and has been, an important provision under the provincial Land Act for communities to obtain long term leases to control resource activities on Crown Lands.  From 1908-1970, the Land Act provided water supply organizations the right to obtain a 999-year lease of Crown lands for the purposes of water supply protection.  

For example, in 1927, the Greater Vancouver Water District obtained complete control over Crown land within their watersheds through 999-year leases. 

In addition, the Greater Vancouver Watersheds were protected under a special provincial Act in 1930 to prevent mineral exploration, mineral development, and placer mining in the watersheds.

In 1940, the Creston Board of Trade was almost granted the same Land Act provision for Arrow Creek.  In April 1970, the East Creston Irrigation District applied for a long term lease of the Arrow Creek Crown lands, which the government subsequently denied. 

Other Districts, such as the Sunshine Coast Regional District and the City of Kimberley, once in 1974 and again in 1996, have also applied for long-term leases on their watersheds, applications which have also been denied by our provincial government. 
 
For 27 years, through numerous public processes, constituents of the Greater Creston area have kept logging out of the Arrow watershed.  In a slick turn of events, the Ministry of Forests has "awarded" a community forest tenure licence agreement to Creston, thereby precluding the option of protection under the provisions of the Land Act. 

By doing so, greater Creston is now forced to provide logging plans in a contentious and highly sensitive area - its water supply - and will itself now become responsible for all liabilities that may be incurred over the long term as a result of those logging activities.

A long term lease arrangement under the Land Act is the best solution for Improvement Districts and Regional Governments to secure protective tenures over their water supply watersheds. 

That coupled with a "no staking" reserve under the Land Act or separate legislation to prohibit mining. 

When it comes to community water supplies, there should be no compromises on water quality, and greater Creston should be extremely wary of accepting this new forest tenure.

One word of caution.  The Greater Vancouver Water District was tricked into changing its long-term lease agreement in 1967 for a Tree Farm Licence, which in turn resulted in degraded water quality for Greater Vancouver residents. 

That Amending Indenture to the 999-year leases held by the Greater Vancouver Water District became a provincial precedent against long-term protection for community watersheds throughout the province. 

By accepting the community forest tenure currently being offered by the province, Creston residents will be signing away twenty-seven years of effort and their ability to protect Arrow Creek for community water supply."