Definitions and interpretation

1   (1) In this Act:

"affiliate" means a corporation that is affiliated with another corporation within the meaning of section 1.3 (3);

"allowable annual cut" means

(a) in respect of a timber supply area or the licence area of an area-based licence, the rate of timber harvesting determined for the area under section 8, as increased or reduced under this Act, and

(b) in respect of an agreement entered into under this Act specifying an allowable annual cut, the rate of timber harvesting specified in the agreement, as increased or reduced under this Act;

"allowable annual cut available" means the following:

(a) in relation to a tree farm licence, the portion of the allowable annual cut in respect of the tree farm licence area that is accessible by the holder of the tree farm licence after taking the following into account in accordance with the regulations or in accordance with an agreement authorized under section 151 (2) (a.2):

(i) a reservation referred to in section 35 (1) (h) or (n);

(i.1) a reduction under section 35 (1) (n.1);

(ii) a deletion of Crown land from the tree farm licence area under section 39.1 respecting

(A) a reservation under subparagraph (i) of this paragraph, or

(B) a reduction under subparagraph (iv) of this paragraph;

(iii) except for the purposes of sections 69 and 70, a reduction under one or both of those sections;

(iv) a reduction under section 3 (3) of the Forestry Revitalization Act;

(b) in relation to a community forest agreement, the portion of the allowable annual cut in respect of the community forest agreement area that is accessible by the holder of the community forest agreement after taking the following into account in accordance with the regulations:

(i) a reservation referred to in section 43.3 (1) (g.2);

(i.1) a reduction under section 43.3 (1) (g.3);

(ii) except for the purposes of section 70, a reduction under that section;

(c) in relation to a first nations woodland licence, the portion of the allowable annual cut in respect of the first nations woodland licence area that is accessible by the holder of the first nations woodland licence after taking the following into account in accordance with the regulations:

(i) a reservation referred to in section 43.55 (1) (h.1);

(i.1) a reduction under section 43.55 (1) (h.2);

(ii) except for the purposes of section 70, a reduction under that section;

(d) in relation to a forest licence, the portion of the allowable annual cut in respect of the forest licence that is available to the holder of the forest licence after taking the following into account in accordance with the regulations:

(i) a reduction under section 14 (1) (g.2);

(ii) except for the purposes of section 70, a reduction under that section;

(e) in relation to a woodlot licence, the portion of the allowable annual cut in respect of the woodlot licence area that is accessible by the holder of the woodlot licence after taking the following into account in accordance with the regulations:

(i) a reduction under section 45 (1) (f.2);

(ii) except for the purposes of section 70, a reduction under that section;

"area-based licence" means the following:

(a) a tree farm licence;

(b) a community forest agreement;

(c) a first nations woodland licence;

(d) a woodlot licence;

"BC timber sales agreement" means

(a) a licence, or

(b) a permit

referred to in any of paragraphs (b) to (f.1) of section 109 (2);

"BCTS" means the BC Timber Sales program within the ministry;

"BCTS licence" means

(a) a timber sale licence under section 20, or

(b) a forestry licence to cut under section 47.6 (3);

"bioenergy" means energy derived from Crown timber;

"bioenergy supply contract" means an energy supply contract as defined in section 68 of the Utilities Commission Act

(a) under which bioenergy is sold to the British Columbia Hydro and Power Authority, and

(b) that is designated by the minister under section 13.2 (a) as a bioenergy supply contract;

"bonus bid" means a bid

(a) tendered in order to acquire the right to harvest timber under an agreement under this Act,

(b) calculated on a dollar value per cubic metre of competitive species and forest products harvested and measured in compliance with the agreement, and

(c) payable from time to time in accordance with the agreement;

"bonus offer" means an amount of money that is tendered in order to acquire the right to harvest timber under an agreement under this Act, irrespective of the volume and type of competitive species and forest products harvested under the agreement;

"chief forester" means the chief forester appointed under the Ministry of Forests and Range Act;

"commercial operation date" means the date determined under a bioenergy supply contract as the commercial operation date;

"commission" has the same meaning as "Forest Appeals Commission";

"commissioner" means the person designated to be the commissioner under section 142.11 (1);

"community forest agreement area" means the area of land subject to a community forest agreement;

"control", in relation to a corporation, means control of the corporation within the meaning of section 1.3 (2);

"Crown land" has the same meaning as in the Land Act, but does not include land owned by an agent of the government;

"Crown timber" means timber on Crown land, or timber reserved to the government;

"cultural heritage resource" means an object, a site or the location of a traditional societal practice that is of historical, cultural or archaeological significance to British Columbia, a community or an aboriginal people;

"cutting permit area", in relation to a cutting permit or a proposed cutting permit, means the area of land to which the cutting permit applies or would apply, if issued;

"district manager" means a district manager appointed for a forest district under the Ministry of Forests and Range Act;

"dwelling" means

(a) a structure that is occupied as a private residence, and

(b) if only part of a structure is occupied as a private residence, that part of the structure;

"eligible bioenergy application" means an application for a non-replaceable forest licence under section 13.1 that

(a) is made by an applicant

(i) who is the seller of bioenergy under a bioenergy supply contract, and

(ii) whom the minister or a person authorized by the minister considers to be qualified to perform the obligations specified under section 13.1 (2) (c),

(b) conforms to section 13.1 (2), and

(c) is not refused under section 81 (2);

"first nations woodland licence area" means the area of land subject to a first nations woodland licence;

"Forest Appeals Commission" means the Forest Appeals Commission continued under section 140.1 of the Forest and Range Practices Act;

"forest landscape area" means

(a) a forest landscape area within the meaning of the Forest and Range Practices Act, or

(b) an area of land that was formerly a forest landscape area within the meaning of that Act;

"forest officer" means a person employed in the ministry of the minister responsible for the administration of this Act who is designated by name or title to be a forest officer by the minister;

"forest operations map" means a forest operations map under section 15.1 of the Forest and Range Practices Act;

"forest operations plan" means a forest operations plan under the Forest and Range Practices Act;

"forest region" means a forest region established by regulation;

"forest service road" means a road on Crown land that is declared under this Act or the former Act to be a forest service road;

"forest stewardship plan" means a forest stewardship plan under the Forest and Range Practices Act;

"former Act" means the Ministry of Forests Act repealed by the Forest Act, S.B.C. 1978, c. 23;

"government" means the government of British Columbia;

"holding corporation" means a holding corporation within the meaning of section 1.3 (5);

"licence area" means the following:

(a) in relation to a tree farm licence, the tree farm licence area;

(b) in relation to a community forest agreement, the community forest agreement area;

(c) in relation to a first nations woodland licence, the first nations woodland licence area;

(d) in relation to a woodlot licence, the woodlot licence area;

(e) in relation to a timber licence, the area of land to which the timber licence applies;

"licence to cut" means

(a) a master licence to cut,

(b) an occupant licence to cut,

(c) a forestry licence to cut, and

(d) a fibre supply licence to cut;

"major licence" means

(a) a timber sale licence that was issued under section 23 (1) (a) before its repeal,

(b) a forest licence,

(c) a timber licence,

(d) a tree farm licence, and

(e) a forestry licence to cut that

(i) specifies that it is a major licence,

(ii) is issued to satisfy the obligations of the government under a pulpwood agreement, or

(iii) is entered into under section 47.3 (1) (a);

"merchantable timber", for the purposes of sections 28, 30 (c) and 74, means timber that

(a) on January 1, 1975 was older than 75 years, and

(b) is on an area of Crown land in quantities determined by the minister to be sufficient to be commercially valuable at the time when a timber cruise submitted under section 74 is made;

"objectives set by government" means objectives set by government as defined in section 1 (1) of the Forest and Range Practices Act;

"operational plan" means an operational plan under the Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act, before its repeal, or the Forest and Range Practices Act;

"Peace River Block" means that rectangular block of land in the Peace River Land District of British Columbia with corners having these geographical values:

northeast corner, latitude 56º40'57.95", longitude 119º59'59.25";

southeast corner, latitude 55º38'09.04", longitude 119º59'59.76";

southwest corner, latitude 55º37'15.75", longitude 121º56'02.45";

northwest corner, latitude 56º40'01.66", longitude 121º59'13.18";

"private land" means land that is not Crown land;

"private tenure" means a timber licence, or private land, in a tree farm licence area;

"professional forester" means a professional forester as defined in the Professional Governance Act;

"Provincial forest" means forest land designated under section 5;

"pulpwood agreement" means a pulpwood agreement entered into before April 1, 2003 under Part 3, Division 7;

"pulpwood area" means an area designated under section 40 before its repeal;

"regional manager" means a regional manager appointed for a forest region under the Ministry of Forests and Range Act;

"related person", in relation to a corporation, means

(a) a person who controls, or who is a member of a group of persons referred to in section 1.3 (2) that controls, the corporation,

(b) a person who controls, or who is a member of a group of persons referred to in section 1.3 (2) that controls, a holding corporation whose subsidiary is the corporation, or

(c) an affiliate of the corporation;

"revenue minister" means the Minister of Finance;

"road use permit" means a road use permit issued under section 119.5, 119.6 or 120.1;

"salvaged logs" means salvaged logs as defined by regulation;

"special forest products" means forest products designated by regulation as special forest products;

"special purpose area" means an area of Crown land that is designated under Division 2 of Part 15 as a special purpose area;

"special use permit" means a special use permit referred to in section 2 of the Forest Practices Code of British Columbia Act;

"subsidiary" means a subsidiary within the meaning of section 1.3 (4);

"supplemental forest licence" means a forest licence referred to in section 14.2 that includes the condition described in subsection (2) of that section;

"timber" means trees, whether standing, fallen, living, dead, limbed, bucked or peeled;

"timber processing facility" means a facility that processes timber or wood residue or both;

"timber sales manager" means

(a) [Repealed 2006-13-1.]

(b) a timber sales manager appointed under the Ministry of Forests and Range Act for a BC timber sales business area;

"timber supply area" means land designated as a timber supply area under section 7;

"tree farm licence area" means the area of land subject to a tree farm licence;

"wood residue" means wood chips, slabs, edgings, sawdust, shavings and hog fuel;

"woodlot licence area" means the area of land subject to a woodlot licence.

"woodlot licence plan" means a woodlot licence plan under the Forest and Range Practices Act.

(2) A reference in this Act to the minister or the minister's designate, or the minister or a person authorized by the minister, or any similar reference is not to be construed as meaning that a reference to the minister alone requires the minister to deal with the matter personally, and a reference to the minister alone is to be construed as a reference to the minister or any appropriate official of his or her ministry.

(3) Despite the Expropriation Act, that Act does not apply, except as expressly provided in this Act, in respect of a taking, deletion or reduction, under this Act, of any right or interest held by a person under this Act or the former Act.

(4) For the avoidance of doubt it is declared that the reference in subsection (3) to a taking, deletion or reduction includes a taking, deletion and reduction in respect of which notice was given before that subsection came into force.

(5) For the purposes of this Act, unless the context otherwise indicates, a reference to a licence, agreement or permit listed in section 12 is a reference to that licence, agreement or permit as entered into or granted under this Act.

Delegation of minister's powers and duties

1.1   (1) Subject to a regulation made under section 151 (2) (b.1), the minister, in writing, may

(a) delegate a power or duty of the minister under this Act, including a quasi-judicial power or duty, to

(i) a person employed in a ministry,

(ii) a class of persons employed in a ministry, or

(iii) an agent of the Crown,

(b) provide directions that are binding on the delegate respecting the exercise of the power or the performance of the duty, and

(c) vary or revoke a delegation or direction.

(2) In respect of a power or duty delegated under this section, this Act and the regulations apply to the delegate as they apply to the minister.

(3) A delegate, if not prohibited by a direction of the minister under subsection (1) (b), may subdelegate the power or duty to

(a) a person employed in a ministry,

(b) a class of persons employed in a ministry, or

(c) an agent of the Crown.

Delegation of chief forester's powers and duties

1.2   (1) The chief forester, in writing, may

(a) delegate a power or duty of the chief forester under this Act to

(i) a person employed in a ministry, or

(ii) a class of persons employed in a ministry,

(b) provide directions that are binding on the delegate respecting the exercise of the power or the performance of the duty, and

(c) vary or revoke a delegation or direction.

(2) In respect of a power or duty delegated under this section, this Act and the regulations apply to the delegate as they apply to the chief forester.

Corporate relations

1.3   (1) In this section, "effective director" means an effective director as defined in the regulations.

(2) For the purposes of this Act, a corporation is controlled by a person, or a group of persons not dealing with each other at arm's length, if

(a) shares of the corporation are held, other than by way of security only, by or for the benefit of the person or group, as applicable, and

(b) the votes carried by the shares referred to in paragraph (a) are sufficient, if exercised and considered in the aggregate,

(i) to elect or appoint 50% or more of the effective directors of the corporation, or

(ii) to otherwise effectively control the operations and direction of the corporation.

(3) For the purposes of this Act, one corporation is affiliated with another corporation if any of the following apply:

(a) one of the corporations is a subsidiary of the other;

(b) both are subsidiaries of the same holding corporation;

(c) both are controlled by the same person or group of persons;

(d) one of the corporations is controlled by a person or group of persons and the other is a subsidiary of a holding corporation controlled by the same person or group of persons, as applicable;

(e) one of the corporations is a subsidiary of a holding corporation controlled by a person or group of persons and the other is a subsidiary of a different holding corporation controlled by the same person or group of persons, as applicable.

(4) For the purposes of this Act, a corporation is a subsidiary of another corporation if any of the following apply:

(a) the corporation is controlled by the other corporation;

(b) the corporation is controlled by a group made up of

(i) the other corporation, and

(ii) one or more persons who are not at arm's length from the other corporation, including a corporation that is controlled by the other corporation or by a person who controls the other corporation;

(c) the corporation is a subsidiary of a subsidiary of the other corporation.

(5) For the purposes of this Act, a corporation is the holding corporation of a corporation that is its subsidiary.