|
Identified Wildlife Management
Strategy
The Identified
Wildlife Management Strategy (IWMS) is an
initiative of the Ministry of Environment in partnership
with the Ministry of Forests and Range and carried out in consultation
with other resource ministries, stakeholders and the
public. Statutory authority is provided for the Ministry
of Environment to carry out this strategy
under provisions of the Forest and Range Practices
Act and previously under the Forest
Practices Code.
Under the Forest and Range Practices Act,
the Minister responsible for the Wildlife Act, the
Minister of Environment, is authorized to establish
two categories of wildlife which require special management
attention to address the impacts of forest and range
activities on Crown land. These two categories of wildlife
are the Category of Species
at Risk and the Category
of Regionally Important Wildlife . The Species at
Risk category includes endangered, threatened, or vulnerable
species of vertebrates and invertebrates, and endangered
or threatened plants and plant communities that are
negatively affected by forest or range management on
Crown land and are not adequately protected by other
mechanisms. The Regionally Important Wildlife category
includes species that are considered important to a
region of British Columbia , rely on habitats that are
not otherwise protected under the FRPA, and
may be adversely impacted by forest or range practices.
Together these two categories of wildlife—Species
at Risk and Regionally Important Wildlife—are
referred to as Identified Wildlife under the IWMS.
The IWMS provides direction, policy,
procedures and guidelines for managing Identified
Wildlife. The goals of the Strategy are to minimize
the effects of forest and range practices on Identified
Wildlife situated on Crown land and to maintain
their limiting habitats throughout their current
ranges and, where appropriate, their historic
ranges. In some cases, this will entail restoration
of previously occupied habitats, particularly
for those species most at risk. Identified
Wildlife are managed through the establishment
of wildlife habitat areas (WHAs) and the implementation
of general wildlife measures (GWMs) and wildlife
habitat area objectives, or through other management
practices specified in strategic or landscape
level plans.
The authority to establish wildlife habitat areas and associated general wildlife measures or objectives is enabled through sections 9 and 10 of the Government Actions Regulation. This authority has been delegated by the Minister of Environment to the Deputy Minister of Environment.
The
Identified Wildlife Management Strategy (IWMS)
Version 2004 was
released in May 2004 and replaces IWMS Volume
1, released in 1999. IWMS Version 2004 contains
an updated list of identified wildlife, updated
species accounts and updated procedures for
implementing the IWMS.
This website provides
information on the implementation of the IWMS,
on the species and plant communities that make
up the strategy as well as the areas proposed
and approved as Wildlife Habitat Areas.
If you require further
information, please contact the project manager
of "Wildlife Conservation Planning" or the
Wildlife Biologist (or Ecosystem Specialist) in
the appropriate region.
Project Manager
Wildlife Conservation Planning
Ministry of Environment
PO Box 9338 Stn Prov Gov
Victoria, B.C. V8W 9M1
|
