396 



Canadian Forestry Journal, October, 1919 



as Dominion National Parks. These last are 

 not under the jurisdiction of the Dominion 

 Forest Service. 



Basis of Organization. 



The legal basis of our administration is, so 

 far as forest reserves are concerned, a Dominion 

 Forest Reserve statute, and regulations estab- 

 lished thereunder: Outside of reserves, Dom- 

 inion forest officers enforce the British Columbia 

 Forest Act. Under an arrangement made with 

 the provincial government the Dominion service 

 has taken over the responsibility of fire pro- 

 tection on alienated lands within the Railway 

 Belt, and our men issue the brush-burning per- 

 mits required by the Provincial Act under 

 special cx-officio appointments as provincial fire 

 wardens. The only exception to this is in the 

 case of certain long-settled areas in the lower 

 Fraser Vahey, where exemptions from permits 

 have been granted. 



In conformity with the status of the lands 

 .protected the Dominion Forest Service is sep- 

 arated into two main divisions, namely a forest 

 reserve organization, similar in plan and func- 

 tions to the United States Forest Service, and a 

 fire ranging organization which, as I have said 

 before, replaces the private protective organiza- 

 tions found in this country. Distinct field or- 

 ganizations have been built up in each of the 

 public land provinces, but the general super- 

 vision of both IS united in the office of a District 

 Forest Inspector in each province. In addition 

 an inspection service is carried on of railway 

 patrols conducted by the railways themselves 

 under the orders of the Board of Railway Com- 

 missioners, and the District Forest Inspectors 

 are appointed officers of the Railway Board with 

 wide powers, for this purpose. 



Quantity and Character of Timber 



The total stand of timber in the Railway Belt 

 is estimated by the Canadian Commission of 

 Conservation to be approximately twenty-one 

 and a half billion feet. The important com- 

 mercial species follow in the order of their 

 occurrence : 



Douglas fir 31 per cent. 



Red cedar 26 



Western hemlock 14 



Spruce (Englemann and 



Sitka) 13 " 



Yellow pine 5 



Balsam (seeral species) 4 



Lodgepole pine 3 



Western white pine 2 



Owing to the proximity to settlement and 

 transportation the forests in the Railway Belt 

 are particularly valuable in view of their stra- 

 tegic position with regard to the further de- 

 velopment of the timber industry in British 

 Columbia. The Dominion Forest Service rea- 

 lizes the responsibility laid upon us to see that 

 all possible protection is given these resources. 



These then are the conditions under which 

 we operate. What then of our record? Syste- 

 matic fire protection was inaugurated in 19)2 

 when the first forest service office was opened. 

 We did not get into our stride before 1914 and 

 subsequently have carried on under the double 

 impediment of decreased allotments and absence 

 of practically the entire supervisory and a con- 

 siderable percentage of the field staff overseas. 

 Six of our men made the supreme sacrifice for 

 liberty and justice. 



The Fire Record. 



For the five years, 1914 to 1918 inclusive, 

 the average number of fires reported was 375 

 with average percentage of causes as follows: 



Unknown 27.5 per cent. 



Campers 20.0 



Lightning 12.0 



Railways 12.0 



Settlers burning 11.5 



Saw-mills logging 6.5 



Incendiary 3.0 



Careless smokers 3.0 



From U. S. A 2.0 " " 



Miscellaneous, known causes 

 under 1 per cent each 2.5 



100 " 

 The average proportion of large to small fires 

 was 1 7.5 per cent. 



The occurrence of these fires gives an index 

 of the nature of the fire hazard in a normal 

 season. The average is as follows: 



April _- 2 per cent. 



May 16 " 



June 13 



July 23 " " 



August 24 " 



September 19 



October 3 



100 " 

 The May fires usually come early in the 

 month during a period of warm dry weather 

 which is generally followed by intermittent rains 

 until about July first. The ensuing summer 

 heat, normally unbroken by rains of any conse- 



