2014 MKRF Annual Report - Malcolm Knapp Research Forest

Research
Forest
News
2014 Annual Report
THE UNIVERSITY OF BRITISH COLUMBIA
MALCOLM KNAPP RESEARCH FOREST
A highlight of 2014 was the startup of construction for the new
Loon Lake Dining Hall—The Bentley Family Hall. The new structure is being built on the site of the original staff house, and will
double the capacity of the old dining hall to 150 seats. The 6400
square foot building is predominantly a timber frame structure,
built from timbers harvested, milled and planed at the Gallant
Mill. The project was approved by the UBC Board of Governors
in April, and project design and permitting was in place by July.
Project Architect is Wayne Bissky Architects of Maple Ridge.
Project Developer is UBC Properties Trust, and construction is
being managed by
Tekton Project
Management of
Maple Ridge. The
building is scheduled for completion in June 2015,
after which the
existing dining hall
will be repurposed
as accommodation
and meeting space.
This project is the
final phase of the
redevelopment of
Loon Lake that
began in 2003.
2014 harvesting at MKRF and Woodlot 37 is summarized below:
Silviculture system
Area
(ha)
Volume
harvested (m3)
Clearcut
Clearcut with reserves
Patch cut
Salvage
Commercial thinning
Roads/utilities
BC Hydro RW salvage
17.6
21.8
0.4
1.7
3.2
-
9,699
12,884
345
Total
44.7
27,149
199
2,522
1,500
Forest product market conditions continued to improve over
2012 levels. Average sales value in 2014 was a 20 year high.
Total volume harvested was reduced by 9% from 2013. Cedar
poles, hemlock piling, and fir peelers were major target products, as well as sawlogs for the MKRF sawmill. Markets for all
products were active throughout the year.
Harvest methods employed utilized both ground based and
cable. Sawmill production totaled over 612,000 board feet in
2014, up 9% from 2013. New road construction in 2013 totaled
1,223 meters of new road and 873 meters of road upgrades. A
new bridge was constructed over Blaney Creek on the main
road to Loon Lake in August.
Loon Lake Dining Hall construction (clockwise from left);
demolition of the old staff house, timber framing the Bentley
Family Hall, Architect’s rendering of the finished building
For more information, please contact Jeremy Watkins
2014 Annual Report
Page 2
Our 2014 silviculture program focussed on stand establishment, including deer protection and brushing. Douglas-fir, western redcedar, yellow cypress, amabilis fir and white pine were planted. A summary of
silviculture achievements is as follows:
Silviculture activity
Planting
Brushing
Deer protection
Juvenile spacing
Surveys
Total
Hectares
Trees
55.0
25.0
4.5
-206.3
290.8
77,440
Seventeen research projects were initiated in 2014 bringing the total
number of active projects to 80. In total, 944 projects have been initiated
since the forest was dedicated in 1949. Highlights of the program were:
- Forestry education and demonstration areas at MKRF
- Development of a Web-Based Tool for Humus Form Description and
Classification
- Swiss Needle Cast Monitoring
- Effects of riparian harvesting on stream macro-invertebrate richness
and composition along an altitudinal gradient
77,440
We continued to maintain and improve access and signage for several
major projects on the Forest, as well as ensured updating, security and
accessibility of research projects data through the Research Projects
Database (www.rpd.forestry.ubc.ca)
For more information, please contact Cheryl Power
For more information, please contact Ionut Aron
2014 was another busy year for
education on the Forest. Fifty –
three UBC students attended the
annual Spring Field School at Loon
Lake in April. Conservation Field
School was also held at the forest in
October and was attended by 48
students. 19 students of the Master
of Sustainable Resource Management program attended that program at Loon Lake in October.
Paul Lawson, RPF, Director
(paul.lawson@ubc.ca)
Cheryl Power, RPF, Resident Forester
(cheryl.power@ubc.ca)
Ionut Aron, MF, Research
Coordinator
(ionut.aron@ubc.ca)
School programs and recruitment
activities continued in 2014. In
In June, Research Forest Staff hosted a tour and retreat for the Forest
total, over 4,800 K-12 students
Practices Board of BC and their staff. Board members from left to right;
stayed at Loon Lake or participatAndrea Lyall, Norma Wilson, Dave Patterson, Bill Dumont, Board Chair
ed in forestry and conservation
Tim Ryan, Mike Nash, Ralph Archibald, Bill McGill
curriculum and recruitment activities at MKRF during the year. MKRF hosted professional training events for the Indian Forest Service,
as well as classes from UBC, SFU, Trinity Western University and University of Washington. The Maple
Ridge Environmental School also held classes at MKRF in both the spring and fall terms of 2014 for the
third straight year.
Jeremy Watkins, BSc, Assistant
Operations Manager
(jeremy.watkins@ubc.ca)
Sarah Panagiotou, Manager of
Administration
(sarah.panagiotou@ubc.ca)
web: www.mkrf.forestry.ubc.ca
Karim Farahbakhchian,
Manager, Loon Lake Research &
Loon Lake hosted its tenth Camp Goodtimes in conjunction with the Canadian Cancer Society and rec- Education Centre
orded over 14,879 visitor-days in 2014 – a decrease of 15% over 2013. The public school teacher’s job (loon.lake@ubc.ca)
action had a dramatic effect on our business this year.
web:www.loonlake.forestry.ubc.ca
Guests at Loon Lake this year included Worksafe BC, The Forest Practices Board of BC, BC Timber Sales Doug Woods, Sawmill Manager ,
and Fraser Health Authority, as well as many other educational and corporate groups.
Gallant Enterprises Ltd.
Planning began this year for the DEMO International 2016 Conference to be held September 22-24,
2016 at the Malcolm Knapp Forest. This is the biggest live demonstration of forestry equipment and
technology held in Canada every four years. Over 10,000 guests are expected attend this event.
(gallant.mill@ubc.ca)
web: www.gallant.forestry.ubc.ca
For more information, please contact Paul Lawson
UBC Malcolm Knapp Research Forest
14500 Silver Valley Road, PO Box 21120,
Maple Ridge, BC, Canada V2X 1P7