This week, ForestWorks spoke to Mike Hicks, the elected Capital Regional District director for Juan de Fuca, a huge but sparsely populated electoral area covering 1,500 square kilometers of rural southern Vancouver Island – Port Renfrew, East Sooke, Malahat, and the contested Fairy Creek region. Mr. Hicks has represented this area since 2008 and is steeped in its culture and issues of forestry, fisheries, tourism, park creation, and infrastructure. In our conversation, we delve into his work with local First Nations, and his pushback at the move by other CRD directors taking a stand against old-growth forestry and logging in the area when they didn’t really understand the larger issues at play. It’s a lively one!
This week, ForestWorks spoke to Mike Hicks, the elected Capital Regional District director for Juan de Fuca, a huge but sparsely populated electoral area covering 1,500 square kilometers of rural southern Vancouver Island – Port Renfrew, East Sooke, Malahat, and the contested Fairy Creek region. Mr. Hicks has represented this area since 2008 and is steeped in its culture and issues of forestry, fisheries, tourism, park creation, and infrastructure. In our conversation, we delve into his work with local First Nations, and his pushback at the move by other CRD directors taking a stand against old-growth forestry and logging in the area when they didn’t really understand the larger issues at play. It’s a lively one!