By Abigail Popple, Local Journalism Initiative Reporter, RMG
The Nature Trust of B.C., a Vancouver-based nonprofit land conservation organization, recently purchased 76.9 hectares of land in Loos to protect the area’s old-growth forests. The Old Growth Nature Fund – administered by Environment and Climate Change Canada as well as the B.C. Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship – contributed about $370,000 to the purchase, which totalled a little over $840,000, according to a press release from the Province.
The Nature Trust purchases private property, turning it into land available for public access, according to their website. That land is managed by a Trust employee, who undertakes conservation efforts such as removing invasive plants and prescribed burning.
The Trust has been eyeing the Loos property – comprising three parcels of land about halfway between McBride and the Ancient Forest – for years, says Carleton MacNaughton, the Trust’s Interior and Coastal Mainland Conservation Land Manager. The Trust acquires private land throughout the province to conserve at-risk species and ecosystems.
“We try and concentrate on where we can make a big difference for conservation of species at risk, and common species as well, across the landscape,” MacNaughton told The Goat in an interview. “We have to find the best bang for our buck to get that done with limited nonprofit resources.”
While specific plans for the property have yet to be announced, the Trust’s acquisition ensures that the area will be preserved from logging in the future.
The previous owners of the Loos property had supported the Trust for over 20 years before the acquisition, and had expressed a desire to have the land preserved by the Trust, according to MacNaughton. So, when the Province signed the Old Growth Nature Fund agreement with Environment and Climate Change Canada, the Trust jumped at the opportunity to apply.
“We were really excited when the Old Growth Nature Fund was announced. We thought, ‘We’ve got just the property in mind,’ a beautiful piece of land in Crescent Spur with some extremely old-growth cedar trees on it, over a thousand years old,” MacNaughton said. “What a perfect spot to try and merge our mission with that of the federal government and the provincial government.”
He added, “It’s so rare to find (ancient forests) intact, and for the most part unlogged. The fact that they still remain is wonderful, and if we can protect that forever, that’s just fantastic.”
MacNaughton said he was unable to put The Goat in contact with the previous landowners due to privacy reasons, but the purchase has given them peace of mind, according to him.
“It was a real win for the vision of those previous landowners too,” he said. “It’s now secured in perpetuity, they don’t have to worry anymore.”
This acquisition is the latest in a string of the Trust’s conservation efforts near the Fraser River and Robson Valley. In 2022, the Trust acquired the Meteor Lake Wetland, northeast of Prince George, and it recently acquired Cranberry Marsh-West, adjacent to the Cranberry Marsh/Starratt Wildlife Management Area in Valemount.
“I’ve been particularly trying to focus on the Robson Valley over the last few years. It’s such a special spot: the furthest-inland interior temperate rainforest you can get in the world. We’re really excited to get a few acquisitions in the area,” MacNaughton said.
MacNaughton says people who are interested in supporting the Trust can make donations on the organization’s website, naturetrust.bc.ca, and they can contact the Trust to discuss donating land.
MacNaughton hopes to continue his work in the Robson Valley.
“I’m so happy that the Robson Valley and the Omineca region in general is getting the attention that it deserves. It’s such a special place.”
