Trust Council Resolution Submission - New Legislation for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Health

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2022 RESOLUTION SUBMISSION TO UBCM 
 
 
NEW LEGISLATION TO PROTECT AND RESTORE 
BIOLOGICAL DIVERSITY AND ECOSYSTEM HEALTH 
ISLANDS TRUST 
 
RESOLUTION: 
WHEREAS a healthy environment is essential for the wellbeing of residents, local communities and local 
economies;  
AND WHEREAS the cumulative impacts of inadequate provincial environmental regulations impose costs 
and risks on local communities, including risks associated with climate change, drinking water supply, 
wildfire hazard, flooding, and security of municipal infrastructure, and may undermine local government 
planning;  
THEREFORE BE IT RESOLVED that UBCM call upon the Province of British Columbia to, in partnership with 
Indigenous leadership, develop and communicate in a timely way the process and timelines through which 
they will develop new legislation to protect and restore biological diversity and ecosystem health, in a 
manner consistent with the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and with the 
involvement of local governments, civil society groups, Indigenous Knowledge Holders, scientists, and 
members of the public.  
 
 
BACKGROUNDER: 
 
In 2020, an Old Growth Strategic Review report commissioned by the Province of British Columbia 
identified several actions needed to foster a paradigm shift in the way forests are managed in B.C.  
One of the report’s key recommendations was to declare conservation of ecosystem health and 
biodiversity in British Columbia as an overarching priority and enact legislation that legally established 
this priority for all sectors. In September 2021, the Union of B.C. Indian Chiefs-in-Assembly (UBCIC) called 
on the Province to explicitly and publicly commit to the enactment of new, overarching legislation for the 
protection of biodiversity and ecosystem health, to be developed in cooperation with Indigenous 
Peoples, aligning with the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, and upholding Title and 
Rights to strengthen biodiversity conservation and management.  
In the face of a climate emergency, the ecosystems that Indigenous Peoples and B.C. communities 
depend on for their spiritual, cultural, economic, and health needs are increasingly under threat. It is 
urgently important for the Province of B.C. to enact legislation to better protect ecosystem health and 
biodiversity without further delay. Doing so in collaboration with First Nations and Indigenous people will 
be critical to the Province’s reconciliation commitments and to the creation of inclusive and effective 
legislation. It will also be critical for the Province to involve local governments, civil society groups, 
Indigenous Knowledge Holders, scientists, and members of the public in the development of this 
legislation, to ensure that their unique vulnerabilities, perspectives, and interests are considered.

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