Talk and Log Jeremy Wilson, 482 pages, 1998, Paperback, about $30
For more than three decades, British Columbia's old growth forests have been a major source of political conflict. In Talk and Log, Jeremy Wilson presents a comprehensive account of the rise of the wilderness movement, examines the forest industry's political strategies, and analyzes the inner workings of the policy process. Wilson describes a number of major political battles, such as those resulting in preservation of South Moresby, the Carmanah, and the Valhalla wilderness, and investigates the factors that pushed the government towards a more comprehensive approach to expanding the protected areas system. He considers a wide range of forest policy developments and assesses the effectiveness of government and industry attempts to contain the wilderness movement.
In the final part, he explores the Harcourt NDP government's reform initiatives, including the Commission on Resources and Environment (CORE), the Protected Areas Strategy, and the Forest Practices Code. Talk and Log illuminates the forces behind controversies that have divided British Columbians, preoccupied the provincial government, and drawn the attention of people across Canada and the world. Wilson identifies the currents likely to dominate BC wilderness debates in decades to come. Jeremy Wilson teaches in the Department of Political Science at the University of Victoria, and has written extensively on forest and environmental politics.