West Babine Sustainable Resource Management Plan

Xsu gwin lik’l’inswx: West Babine Sustainable Resource Management Plan
Executive Summary
The West Babine Sustainable Resource Management Plan (SRMP) has been developed to
recognize the many unique and important environmental, social cultural and economic values of
the lower Babine watershed and to manage these values in a sustainable manner. The plan
provides for economic opportunities while sustaining ecological integrity. Consultation has
occurred with First Nations and stakeholders to ensure that the Ministry of Sustainable Resource
Management (MSRM) understood the interests of the different groups and was able to accurately
reflect their interests in the plan.
The West Babine plan area has great significance to the Gitxsan and Lake Babine First Nations,
within whose territories all or part of the plan area lies. The Babine River is a unique river,
standing out amongst the other rivers in the Skeena River drainage. Fish values in the Babine
watershed are extraordinarily high and the river is world-renowned for its angling opportunities.
Wildlife values are very high, with large concentrations of grizzly bears drawn to the area during
spawning time. Nature-based tourism operations associated with the Babine draw in clientele
from around the world and local residents prize the river for its fishing and river-based
recreation. Tourism potential for additional wilderness type activities, especially centred around
First Nations cultural heritage is high. Timber values are significant in portions of the watershed
and there is moderate to high potential for mineral and energy development. In addition,
opportunities for hunting, trapping, berry picking and mushroom collecting exist within the plan
area.
A brief summary of the key management direction within the plan is as follows:
Area to which Management
Direction Applies (see Map 1,
Page iv)
Atna Shelagyote Special
Management Zone 1
Values Managed For Overview of Management
Direction
Ecological
Backcountry tourism
No commercial logging or road
building.
Core Ecosystems Biodiversity: old forest No logging or road building
Landscape Riparian Corridors Biodiversity: connectivity Logging restricted, no road
building.
Babine River Special Management
Zone 2
Wildlife (Moose, grizzly bear)
Wilderness
No permanent motorized access,
winter harvest only, openings <
15 ha in size.
1 The Atna Shelagyote SMZ was created by the Kispiox LRMP. The West Babine SRMP modified boundaries of the SMZ to
more accurately reflect the values the SMZ was intended to manage for. As a result of the high ecological values, commercial
timber harvesting will be precluded from the SMZ. This replaces the temporary deferral from the Kispiox LRMP. This is
primarily to maintain the integrity of the large wetland complexes and wildlife habitat. An assessment of timber values has
shown that the timber values in the SMZ are low and that the economic impacts of designating the area as no logging are
minimal.
March 2004 Page i