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More than 850 anti-logging protesters have been arrested in Canada since April 2021, setting a record for the country’s biggest act of civil disobedience.
The protesters are aiming to protect trees in the old-growth forest that lies within Vancouver Island. While most of the trees have been logged, the protestors want to preserve the remaining trees that are hundreds of years old.
In their fight to preserve the trees, protesters have clashed with the Royal Canadian Mounted Police.
The protesters, who are a part of the Rainforest Flying Squad, have used various methods to resist logging: they have locked their bodies to the road, chained themselves to logs, and stayed in the trees.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police have reportedly responded aggressively. “The [police] are getting very frustrated by our tenacity because we’re constantly rebuilding and coming up with new ideas. People aren’t giving up,” protester Jean-François Savard told The Guardian.
The police have also been criticised for covering their faces, removing name badges, and preventing the press from covering the ongoing dispute.
The protesters are also protecting the Marbled Murrelet chicks, which are endangered species that live within the old-growth trees.
Logging can also cause soil to become dry, making the land prone to wildfires.
Surrey-based Teal-Jones was granted an injunction by the BC Supreme Court on 1 April to start logging in Fairy Creek area, which is in the South Vancouver Island region.
Even as tensions escalate, the Rainforest Flying Squad has no plans to stop protesting.
The Royal Canadian Mounted Police did not respond to request for comment.
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