Sunshine Coast Community Forest

05/31/2026

Since 2006, SCCF has enabled local community members to oversee forestry over 10,800 hectares.

Some highlights from our first 20 years:

• 424 hectares harvested and replanted (4% of the community forest area)

• Trees planted: 279,000

• $36 million in local spending

• Dividends paid to the District of Sechelt: $4.3M of which $2M in Legacy Fund grants has been distributed locally and nearly $2M remains in a fund for projects to benefit Sunshine Coast Communities

• Generated $2.27M in retained earnings supporting long-term stewardship and stability

To everyone who has supported, shaped, challenged, and grown with us over the last 20 years — thank you. The future of our forests is stronger when it’s rooted in community.

05/22/2026

🌿 Biodiversity starts right here at home, on the Sunshine Coast.

This , we’re celebrating the incredible diversity of life that makes our forests thrive!

In a community forest, every trail walked, habitat protected, and thoughtful forestry decision made contributes to something bigger. 🌎

🌿 One small way to support biodiversity? Use iNaturalist next time you’re out in the forest.

Snap and log the plants, fungi, insects, or animals you spot along the trail (or their evidence such as a feather or nest) 📸🍄🪲🌲

Each observation helps researchers and ecologists better understand — and protect — local ecosystems.

Tiny actions, big impact. 💚

05/07/2026

🔥 Fire Ban Alert 🔥 Effective as of 12 p.m. (noon) PDT on Thursday, May 7, 2026, most open burning – including campfires – will be prohibited across the Coastal Fire Centre, with the exception of Haida Gwaii. This step is being taken to help reduce human-caused wildfires and keep people safe.

🔥 What’s prohibited
Across the Coastal Fire Centre:
Category 1, 2, and 3 open fires are prohibited. This includes CAMPFIRES.
Exception – Haida Gwaii Forest District *visit website below for details*
This prohibition will remain in place until October 31, 2026, or until it is lifted.

📍 Where
The ban applies to:
All areas outside municipal boundaries, and
The following areas within municipalities:
Parks, conservancies, and recreation areas
Recreation sites and trails
Ecological reserves
Wildlife management areas
Private managed forest land
👉 To check locally: www.scrd.ca/fire-departments
👉 BC Parks follows BC Wildfire Service prohibitions.

🚫 Also prohibited
Under the Wildfire Act, the following are not allowed:
Fireworks
Binary exploding targets
Sky lanterns
Wood-fired hot tubs, pizza ovens, or similar (unless properly vented in a structure)
Burn barrels or cages
Air curtain burners, controlled air incinerators, and carbonizers

✅ What’s still allowed
Outdoor stoves are permitted if they are:
CSA- or ULC-rated
Use charcoal, liquid, or gas fuel
Have a flame height under 15 cm

🌲 Why this matters
Open burning is the leading cause of human-caused wildfires in B.C.
These fires are preventable, and avoiding them helps keep resources available for naturally occurring fires, especially during lightning season. Thank you for doing your part!

⚠️ Penalties
A $1,150 ticket
Up to $10,000 in administrative penalties
Up to $100,000 in fines and/or 1 year in jail (if convicted)
If a fire is caused, you may also be responsible for all firefighting costs.

📞 Report a wildfire
Call 1-800-663-5555 (toll-free)
Or dial *5555 on a cell
Or report through the BC Wildfire Service app
For current updates, visit: http://www.bcwildfire.ca

📱 Stay informed
BC Wildfire Service mobile app (iOS & Android)
Facebook: http://facebook.com/BCForestFireInfo
Contact:
Fire Information Officer
Coastal Fire Centre
250-951-4209

05/07/2026

🔥 Fire Ban Alert 🔥 Effective as of 12 p.m. (noon) PDT on Thursday, May 7, 2026, most open burning will be prohibited across the Coastal Fire Centre, with the exception of Haida Gwaii. This step is being taken to help reduce human-caused wildfires and keep people safe.

🔥 What’s prohibited
Across the Coastal Fire Centre:
Category 1, 2, and 3 open fires are prohibited
Exception – Haida Gwaii Forest District *visit website below for details*
This prohibition will remain in place until October 31, 2026, or until it is lifted.

📍 Where
The ban applies to:
All areas outside municipal boundaries, and
The following areas within municipalities:
Parks, conservancies, and recreation areas
Recreation sites and trails
Ecological reserves
Wildlife management areas
Private managed forest land
👉 To check locally: www.scrd.ca/fire-departments
👉 BC Parks follows BC Wildfire Service prohibitions.

🚫 Also prohibited
Under the Wildfire Act, the following are not allowed:
Fireworks
Binary exploding targets
Sky lanterns
Wood-fired hot tubs, pizza ovens, or similar (unless properly vented in a structure)
Burn barrels or cages
Air curtain burners, controlled air incinerators, and carbonizers

✅ What’s still allowed
Outdoor stoves are permitted if they are:
CSA- or ULC-rated
Use charcoal, liquid, or gas fuel
Have a flame height under 15 cm

🌲 Why this matters
Open burning is the leading cause of human-caused wildfires in B.C.
These fires are preventable, and avoiding them helps keep resources available for naturally occurring fires, especially during lightning season. Thank you for doing your part!

⚠️ Penalties
A $1,150 ticket
Up to $10,000 in administrative penalties
Up to $100,000 in fines and/or 1 year in jail (if convicted)
If a fire is caused, you may also be responsible for all firefighting costs.

📞 Report a wildfire
Call 1-800-663-5555 (toll-free)
Or dial *5555 on a cell
Or report through the BC Wildfire Service app
For current updates, visit: http://www.bcwildfire.ca

📱 Stay informed
BC Wildfire Service mobile app (iOS & Android)
Facebook: http://facebook.com/BCForestFireInfo
Contact:
Fire Information Officer
Coastal Fire Centre
250-951-4209

05/07/2026

Meet Fargo — our hardworking new chipper with a big appetite and a pretty important job to do. 🌲💪

We’re grateful to share that the Sunshine Coast Community Forest has received a $12,600 grant from the Wildfire Reduction Equipment Support Trust II (WREST II) Fund.

This support helps strengthen our ability to carry out wildfire risk reduction work here on the Sunshine Coast — work that helps protect communities, support forest health, and build long-term resilience on the land.

Programs like this are also a valuable opportunity for local contractors. If you’ve invested — or are considering investing — in equipment to support wildfire risk reduction, it’s worth taking a closer look.

Funding like this can help grow local capacity, spark innovation, and support the people doing this important work to help keep communities safer.

We really appreciate the Trust’s commitment to practical, on-the-ground solutions — and to the contractors and crews out there making it happen every day!

Please share this with local contractors who may be eligible for 10–25% toward the purchase of equipment that will be used for wildfire risk reduction work in BC.

Fargo fully supports this message. 😉

Visit wrestrust.ca for details.

04/22/2026

🌍 Happy Earth Day! We're so proud to share this clip from a short film about the Sunshine Coast Community Forest — featuring Kathleen's honest, heartfelt take on where we've been, where we are, and where we're headed together. 🌲

A huge thank you to the BC Community Forest Association - BCCFA for bringing this story to life as part of the beautiful Rooted Together project. 🙏

WATCH A Forest for Our Children - Sunshine Coast Community Forest Film (4mins): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hYp14QtwR-0
WATCH Rooted Together (8mins):
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HG947o031W8&t=52s

04/20/2026

Great weather, even better chats! Earth Day at its best 🌎
If you popped by, thank you for making it such a good one. And if you took home a seedling… has it claimed its new special spot yet?

04/17/2026

From standing tall to carrying us forward 🌲🪵

Since mid March, our team has been milling on-site in Cliff Gilker Park, transforming local timber into the future Gorge and Upper Falls bridges. What started as a fallen tree is slowly taking shape as something both practical and lasting — here’s a peek at the milling in action! 👀

This project is a partnership between the Sunshine Coast Community Forest and the Sunshine Coast Regional District, bringing together local materials, local knowledge, and a shared commitment to outdoor recreation and community enhancement.

One of the best parts so far has been the engagement from community members — asking questions, sharing stories, and taking an interest in the process. We’ve even had a site visit from the SCRD Board Chair, Alton Toth. It’s a reminder that projects like this don’t just build bridges, they connect people too.

A sincere thank you to the volunteers, and our skilled miller, Dave Atlee, who continue to show up and lend their time and expertise. And thank you to the SCRD team, Tetra Engineering, and everyone involved in making this happen.

Milling will continue through May, with bridge removals happening this month.

⚠️NOTE: There are closures in effect from April 15-May 15.

For a map of closed areas: https://www.scrd.ca/news/cliff-gilker-park-project-kicks-off/

Still lots to come!

03/27/2026

03/21/2026

🌲 International Day of Forests 🌲
What better way to celebrate than by getting our hands in the soil for our annual spring planting! 🌱

Our crew has been busy in the community forest preparing sites for the next generation of trees. This season we only have a bit of planting to do (about 880 trees), including Douglas-fir and about 25% western red cedar.

At the same time, our team is carrying out manual brushing by hand to help young seedlings establish. We do not use chemical sprays; instead, crews selectively manage competing vegetation using hand tools.

This work is targeted and thoughtful.

We’re not removing native deciduous trees everywhere—species like alder and maple play an important ecological role. Around wet areas, openings, and sensitive sites, we intentionally allow deciduous trees to regenerate and grow, supporting biodiversity and soil health while maintaining structural diversity in the forest.

It’s careful, hands-on work that reflects our commitment to stewardship, biodiversity, and community-led forestry—values worth celebrating not just today, but every day! 🌿

If you’re out enjoying the community forest this spring, you may see our crews at work helping the next forest take root.

📸1- Warren Hansen, SCCF's Managing Forester planting around a wetland habitat restoration site with Sunshine Coast Wildlife Project
📸2-Douglas Fir seedling