B.C.’s Forests Ministry told to protect cultural sites, First Nation’s water source

-CP-The Forest Practices Board says the British Columbia government “did not follow the law” when it approved range use plans that near the Halfway River First Nation’s watershed and at its culturally significant sites. The nation complained to the board in 2023 about grazing livestock being allowed to damage the sites, while displacing wildlife in its territory in northeastern B.C. The board says in a statement that it also found problems with the government investigation of the nation’s complaint about its drinking water being safe, and it urged B.C.’s Natural Resource Officer Service to review its probe into cattle being allowed to gather near the Halfway River. Keith Atkinson, chair of the Forest Practices Board, which also oversees range use, says the Forest Ministry had two range agreement holders in…

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