SASKATCHEWAN HOSTS MOUNTAIN PINE BEETLE SYMPOSIUM

Western Canada's foremost experts on mountain pine beetle gathered in Prince Albert today, to share their knowledge at a symposium hosted by Saskatchewan Environment.

More than 100 representatives of the forest industry, First Nations, government, environmental organizations and academia attended the symposium, hosted by Saskatchewan Environment. In his opening remarks, Saskatchewan Environment Minister John Nilson said that Saskatchewan is taking the mountain pine beetle threat very seriously.

"I have seen, first-hand, the magnitude of the destruction in British Columbia and the speed at which the infestation has grown in Alberta," Nilson said. "We know that the threat to Saskatchewan's pine forests is real and we have been working hard to prepare ourselves for it."

Saskatchewan Environment has been closely monitoring the mountain pine beetle situation since the epidemic emerged in British Columbia six years ago. A preventative strategy has been developed and implemented, including ongoing collaboration with other jurisdictions, surveys and research. Key efforts include:

• a moratorium restricting the importation into Saskatchewan of pine forest materials with bark attached, implemented in 2002;
• aerial and ground surveillance in northwest Saskatchewan and the Cypress Hills;
• development of maps showing the distribution and extent of pine stands at risk;
• ongoing research into the suitability of jack pine as a host, and of the Saskatchewan climate;
• working with the forest industry to develop harvesting plans that help reduce susceptible pine in high-risk areas' and
• ongoing public and stakeholder awareness activities.

"We are fortunate, in that the mountain pine beetle has not yet arrived in our province's northern forest," Nilson said. "We have the opportunity to continue to implement our emergency preparedness strategies, aided by the knowledge and experience of our colleagues to the west, and we intend to make the most of that opportunity."

Historically, outbreaks have been limited by climate and available host trees but milder winters and more old forests have fuelled the current epidemic, which has devastated B.C.'s lodgepole pine forests. The infestation now affects about 9.2 million hectares of B.C. forests - an area nearly three times the size of Vancouver Island and is predicted to increase over the next several years.

In Alberta, the infestation has spread dramatically, growing from 19,000 infested trees in 2005 to between 800,000 and 1.5 million trees in 2006. Numbers of affected trees detected for 2007 will be confirmed following Alberta Sustainable Resource Development surveys to be completed later this month.

Although the beetles prefer lodgepole pine, it has been shown that jack pine is also susceptible. Should the beetle become established in the boreal forest, the infestation could spread throughout the range of jack pine, which extends through the northern prairies to eastern Canada.

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For more information, contact:

Rory McIntosh
Environment
Prince Albert
Phone: 306-953-3617
Email: rory.mcintosh@gov.sk.ca

Val Nicholson
Environment
Prince Albert
Phone: 306-953-2459
Email: val.nicholson@gov.sk.ca
Cell: 306-981-5645