Decision Date: February 10, 2009

Panel: Alan Andison

Keywords:  consent order; road use permit; road maintenance

Canadian Forest Products Ltd. (“Canfor”) holds a road use permit within the Fort St. James Forest District that requires Canfor to carry out maintenance on certain roads.  In May 2007, there was a partial washout on one of those roads.  On January 22, 2008, the District Manager determined that Canfor had contravened section 79(6)(a) of the Forest Planning and Practices Regulation by failing to replace a failed culvert where the washout occurred with an appropriate permanent structure.  The District Manager also held that Canfor did not establish a defence of due diligence because it did not take necessary steps to protect the structural integrity of the road prism.  Concurrent with issuing the determination, the District Manager also issued a remediation order requiring Canfor to re-establish a road prism at the washout location, including installing a suitable permanent structure.  Canfor appealed both the determination and the remediation order.

Before the appeals were heard, the parties reached an agreement to settle the appeals.  By consent of the parties, the Commission ordered that the determination and remediation order were rescinded.

Accordingly, the appeals were allowed.