Ecosystem Restoration

The Cariboo-Chilcotin Ecosystem Restoration Committee (CCERC) has worked since 2008 to identify and restore critical grasslands in the region.

The CCERC is a partnership between provincial and federal government, local First Nations, BC Cattlemen’s Association, various conservation societies and forest industry professionals. FBC offers support as secretariat.

The land base of the Cariboo-Chilcotin region has changed significantly in the last hundred years. Decades of fire suppression in what was naturally a fire-maintained ecosystem has contributed to more frequent and intense wildfires throughout the region, tree encroachment onto natural grasslands, losses in wildlife habitat and forage opportunities, and an in-growth of trees in previously open forests.

Ecosystem restoration is the process of assisting with the recovery of an ecosystem that has been degraded, damaged or destroyed by re-establishing its structural characteristics, species composition and ecological processes. This is being addressed in areas of the Cariboo-Chilcotin in an effort to help mitigate some of the negative effects to the natural balance of the grasslands and forests.

The approach taken is a combination of thinning trees with a machine, hand slashing, removing trees, chipping, slash burning and prescribed burning. The treatments vary and depend on the goals of the prescription for each site.

Ecosystem Restoration Benefits

Through its project work, the Committee seeks to:

Improve habitat for grassland-dependent native wild species, including wild deer, bighorn sheep, moose and many bird species, and provide rangeland for domestic cattle, by allowing grasses, shrubs and other native plants to flourish
Contribute to the region’s rich biodiversity by providing habitat for variety of at-risk species
Increase flora important for First Nations cultural use, helping to sustain traditional ways of life
Restore forest health and improve timber quality
Reduce wildfire risks by removing forest fuels