I think awareness is growing, which will help. That is the first step to correct the problem. I try to get the word out to the people I know. Change can happen if enough people speak out.
What to keep in mind is that Island Timberlands, Timberwest, and WFP do not pay the tax rate on their vast properties that anyone else would pay. They are cut a deal by (guess who?) the same government that is benefiting from the status quo. The idea of the tax deal was to keep loggers working in the woods, and mills busy making lumber.......not to flog real estate and send all the logs overseas.
The change will come when someone decides to go after the taxes. The people of BC are being short changed on property taxes by millions of dollars a year by these three companies. Money that should go into the public coffers if they paid proper, fair market value taxes, like the rest of us do on the various properties we may own. This issue does not exist on the mainland, where it is crown land that is being logged. It is a unique situation on Southern Vancouver Island.
So..........change will come when someone decides that the "missing" property taxes on the land these companies "own" are worth more than the revenue coming into the pension plans from log sales and real estate deals. That could happen.
The end game is that the companies could never afford to pay the proper taxes on their land holdings. Ideally, they default on their taxes when commanded to pay the full amount, and some sort of “win/win” deal is then struck where the ownership of the land reverts to the public, and the companies get logging rights and maybe some other compensation. At that point all British Columbians are now shareholders in the land and have a say in its ultimate fate, be that logging, tourism, parkland, or condos. In this scenario, loggers likely keep their jobs, and maybe the voting public could even have more control over the whole Raw Log export issue.
The icing on the cake is that Timberwest, and it's lands, are "owned" by the pension plans of the Provincial and Federal Government employees (see link below). So how much do you think the government wants to block these 'forestry-land to real-estate' deals???? When you hear about these ridiculous government pension payments, pay-outs, buy-outs, and severance packages.....guess where the money comes from? Converting the Island's forests from working forests to subdivisions is the retirement savings plan for the Government.
Short term vision....and total BS IMHO. It's a huge conflict of interest, plain and simple. Technically, all actions of Timberwest are "approved by the BC Government, for the benefit of BC Government employees, in accordance with the rules made by the BC Government employees". Am I the only one who smells a rat? What about the rest of us?
People need to wake up to the fact that building a pissant little railway in the late 1800's does not quality you for owning the South Island. It was a scam back then, and we still pay for it today.
Thanks for the update on the loop. Maybe completing this loop is the new “tough truck challenge”.
Funny thing is, the brush is so thick overhead, you might be able to do it no problem in a Corrolla. Just slip underneath it all. Need a lowered Samurai ;).
Unfortunately, you may be right. I try to keep a little hope alive.
Sorry for thread hijack OP! Welcome to the forum.
I think awareness is growing, which will help. That is the first step to correct the problem. I try to get the word out to the people I know. Change can happen if enough people speak out.
What to keep in mind is that Island Timberlands, Timberwest, and WFP do not pay the tax rate on their vast properties that anyone else would pay. They are cut a deal by (guess who?) the same government that is benefiting from the status quo. The idea of the tax deal was to keep loggers working in the woods, and mills busy making lumber.......not to flog real estate and send all the logs overseas.
The change will come when someone decides to go after the taxes. The people of BC are being short changed on property taxes by millions of dollars a year by these three companies. Money that should go into the public coffers if they paid proper, fair market value taxes, like the rest of us do on the various properties we may own. This issue does not exist on the mainland, where it is crown land that is being logged. It is a unique situation on Southern Vancouver Island.
So..........change will come when someone decides that the "missing" property taxes on the land these companies "own" are worth more than the revenue coming into the pension plans from log sales and real estate deals. That could happen.
The end game is that the companies could never afford to pay the proper taxes on their land holdings. Ideally, they default on their taxes when commanded to pay the full amount, and some sort of “win/win” deal is then struck where the ownership of the land reverts to the public, and the companies get logging rights and maybe some other compensation. At that point all British Columbians are now shareholders in the land and have a say in its ultimate fate, be that logging, tourism, parkland, or condos. In this scenario, loggers likely keep their jobs, and maybe the voting public could even have more control over the whole Raw Log export issue.
The icing on the cake is that Timberwest, and it's lands, are "owned" by the pension plans of the Provincial and Federal Government employees (see link below). So how much do you think the government wants to block these 'forestry-land to real-estate' deals???? When you hear about these ridiculous government pension payments, pay-outs, buy-outs, and severance packages.....guess where the money comes from? Converting the Island's forests from working forests to subdivisions is the retirement savings plan for the Government.
Short term vision....and total BS IMHO. It's a huge conflict of interest, plain and simple. Technically, all actions of Timberwest are "approved by the BC Government, for the benefit of BC Government employees, in accordance with the rules made by the BC Government employees". Am I the only one who smells a rat? What about the rest of us?
http://vancouversun.com/news/staff-blogs/bc-supreme-court-approves-timbe...
People need to wake up to the fact that building a pissant little railway in the late 1800's does not quality you for owning the South Island. It was a scam back then, and we still pay for it today.
https://dogwoodbc.ca/news/the-great-land-grab/
I don’t know the answer to your question, but is the wall there just to block access, or is a remnant of something else?
Is this the wall?
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=Ikyp-yUCklk
https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=_KRnmkR2ZJ4
Thanks for the update on the loop. Maybe completing this loop is the new “tough truck challenge”.
Funny thing is, the brush is so thick overhead, you might be able to do it no problem in a Corrolla. Just slip underneath it all. Need a lowered Samurai ;).