The Cariboo Regional District (CRD) board recently requested an update of developments that the Cariboo-Chilcotin Beetle Action Coalition (CCBAC) has underway that could benefit economic prospects in the region.
Hugh Flinton is the community economic development director for the Ministry of Regional Economic & Skills Development’s Mountain Pine Beetle Epidemic Response Division.
He made a presentation at the CRD's Feb. 11 board meeting that included CCBAC projects developed in the past six months.
The top 2 projects, according to Flinton, are market development in the mountain-bike tourism sector, and a regional agriculture business “web-tooling” initiative.
CCBAC partnered with the Cariboo Mountain Bike Consortium to develop and implement a mountain biking tourism program to create and promote expanded regional business opportunities, he says.
"The Cariboo-Chilcotin is poised to become a destination for riding, and local community groups and associated businesses must create and be ready for the opportunity."
In the agriculture web tooling project, the coalition partnered with Community Futures Development Corporation, the Agriculture Enterprise Development Centre and regional agriculture sector representation.
It will offer an online platform providing producers with advanced agricultural information and online marketing tools together with workshops and methods for developing a value chain, Flinton explains.
While these CCBAC projects are regional in scope, others are collaborative projects with the Omenica Beetle Action Coalition (OBAC) and the Southern Interior Beetle Action Coalition (SIBAC) – the other beetle action coalitions in the province.
One project seeks to develop more demand for community forest timber, Flinton explains, by directly connecting forest tenures and woodlot licences with value-added businesses to build long-term supply relationships.
Another explores the rural business potential of green energy, and is intended to help communities throughout the Interior develop a business plan for such projects, he notes.
"The beetle action coalition has been really good at getting these community-based groups to come together and to work as one to the benefit of each other and the region overall."
