Scott Rennick loves the feeling of peace that comes from living on his forested acreage and spending time outdoors is something he has valued since childhood.
“My mom would always say how much I loved being outside when I was a little kid. I absolutely love being in the forest.”
While Scott calls the tiny Robson Valley hamlet of Dome Creek, British Columbia home, he was raised in a forestry family in Vernon, B.C.
Scott and his partner Steph live on an expansive couple hundred-acre cattle farm, where Scott unwinds because as a B.C. Wildfire Officer, life can be demanding. Scott found himself extraordinarily busy this fall with a particularly tough wildfire season.
Into October, firefighters were still being deployed across the province yet despite the tough year, veteran Scott has experienced worse.
On June 30, 2021, Scott was the on duty Fire Control Officer for the Lillooet fire zone that encompasses Lytton B.C. the night Lytton, burned, and he remembers it as “a tragic season” and says, “You have to really like firefighting to stick with it.”
Scott and Steph enjoy getting outside and adventuring together when they are not working (All photos submitted).
The Logger Doesn’t Fall Far From the Tree
Growing up in a forestry family in Vernon, halfway up a road to the local ski hill suited Scott’s passion for outdoor adventure perfectly and Scott’s connection to the woods is all but genetic.
His grandfather worked as a forester and owned a small mill in Vernon and Steph, his partner, also hails from a logging and small mill-running family.
“I come from multi-generational families in the milling and logging industry; it was just part of life,” says Scott. “The forest industry has helped me get where I am in my career. I’m very intertwined with it, and definitely thankful for it.”
As a teenager, Scott served as an Emergency Firefighter for a summer which led him into wildfire fighting, reforestation, and logging.
After university, Scott didn’t land a desk job because the call of wildfire fighting was too strong.
“I have been born and bred for it my whole life,” says Scott, who loves the sense of accomplishment and comradery that comes with the job. He even met Steph at work.
Wildfire fighting attracts many like Scott who crave adventure and love the forests that our province offers.
When Beloved Forests are at Risk
While Scott believes wildfires are part of nature, he worries that climate change is making them worse.
“I fear our province will look different in the decades to come,” says Scott. “It creates a sense of anxiety about the future.”
Scott also sees that B.C. forests are at risk for other reasons, from invasive insects to some logging practices.
“There’s a lot of different approaches to how trees have been harvested and processed, and it’s very impactful to the economy and the communities I’m part of,” says Scott. “We do things like clear cutting and replanting with monoculture, which has advantages and disadvantages.”
Scott wants his fellow B.C. residents to enjoy the forests in the same way he does for generations to come.
Scott often collaborates with logging companies in his job, yet is aware that clear cutting causes habitat loss, soil erosion and waterway damage, and even with replanting forests take years to restore.
While the forest industry has provided a good quality of life for Scott’s family and friends, that’s not necessarily true anymore.
Thousands of mill workers have been laid off over the last few decades as B.C. forests continue to be managed for profit, and the values forests provide for local communities, like good paying jobs, clean air and water, and homes for wildlife, are put second.
As someone whose own family has been employed by forestry work for generations, these impacts aren’t lost on Scott.
Having Forests for the Log Haul
Scott notes that there are many other options to explore than clear cutting, like selective logging, which he practiced when he worked in forestry, where trees are carefully hand cut to preserve forests.
He draws inspiration from the small, family-owned mills common in B.C. during his grandfather’s time. Scott hopes to see more small forestry businesses return to the area.
“I am seeing some small mills rising. They’re finding a niche. It’s been a lot of change, but it’s coming back around in small ways too.”
The forest industry in B.C. once provided a high quality of life for families and communities, like this 1912 sawmill in Lumby, near Vernon did. [Photo courtesy of Mary (Edbom) Saunders Collection].
Scott supports “a nuanced version of managing forests” and believes it’s time to create a better balance between healthy forests and good jobs in B.C.
He’s aware of a proposed policy called the biodiversity and ecosystem health law, and agrees that a change in forestry legislation that prioritizes healthy ecosystems would create more long-term sustainable forestry jobs, where forestry workers can provide for their families while defending nature too.
Scott thinks if people come together as a community, then protecting solid forestry industry jobs, and maintaining forests for the next generation may be possible.
“We have momentum building… we need to harness that to make our forests safe and healthier in any way we can.”
People in forest-dependent communities like those in the Robson Valley or Vernon, have a perspective that the provincial government will listen to and many are working together to advocate for a law that prioritizes healthy ecosystems, so they can secure sustainable forestry jobs while defending forests for the future.
As Scott enjoys the brightly coloured leaves on his beautiful forested property—taking a break from managing wildfires—he knows he’ll keep defending the forests that surround him.
In addition to his love of the forests surrounding him, boating and trout fishing are important parts of Scott’s life.
