The Dirt: Confessions of a Tree Planter

Hey everybody. I felt called to do a special episode and get it out to everyone ASAP. I sat down with Jordan Tesluk again last night, to discuss his role and the current state of affairs with our industry amid the covid19 pandemic. We talk about what has happened thus far, what is still happening, and how and if we may be able to proceed with a viable interior planting season here in British Columbia. That being said, this is BC specific and I am working on covering the situations in other provinces if I can. It is essentially a summary and discussion of all of Jordan's recent updates and posts on King Kong. Hope this helps!

30 Mar 202047min

Welcome to another new series that will be active during the planting season. I am starting this off with mostly my own personal ramblings and realizations from my time on the block this season. However I welcome this out to others to share their own feelings, thoughts and words!  If you are a planter interested in participating please send me your story or audio recording to erin@wildewords.ca

23 Mar 20203min

In this episode, as I have just celebrated my birthday, I thought it was appropriate to interview myself! I answer all the questions I ask everyone else all the time, so you can get an idea more of my own planting journey. I hope everyone learns a little more about me and this podcast! LINKS Facebook page: https://www.facebook.com/thedirtconfessionsofatreeplanter/

20 Mar 202052min

I want to preface this with a trigger warning about sexual harassment and assault. Although we do not discuss specific incidents, we are covering this topic. I sat down with Britt White from the Northern Society for Domestic Peace to talk about the survey they have created to collect information about sexual harassment and misconduct within the tree planting industry. Their initial findings were recently presented at the Western Forestry Contractor’s Association (WFCA) back in late January. Shortly thereafter a CBC article was released about the findings. We chat first about Britt’s planting career and go into how she got involved with NSDP, how the survey came about, and what they are hoping to do going forward. We discuss work they are currently doing with some companies in the industry, as well as how the industry is changing as a whole on these issues. As the survey is ongoing, I hope to do a follow up later on to hear some more of the results. LINKS  Survey Link: https://www.surveymonkey.com/r/BF7CR5P CBC article: https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/british-columbia/tree-planter-camps-sex-assaults-1.5446211 VICE article: https://www.vice.com/en_ca/article/evwyyn/bush-workers-deal-with-sexual-harassment-in-the-middle-of-nowhere?utm_source=vicefbca&utm_campaign=global Northern Society for Domestic Peace  NSDP Administration  Open 8:30 a.m. - 4:30 p.m., Monday to Friday 3772-1st Avenue - PO Box 3836, Smithers, BC, V0J 2N0  Tel: (250) 847-9000 or Toll Free in BC: 1-877-633-9933 Fax: (250) 847-8911  Email: info@domesticpeace.ca  Website: http://domesticpeace.ca

6 Mar 202046min

Today I sat down with Lautaro Cepeda. Born in the Netherlands, he came to Canada at 2 years old. Lautaro is currently starting his own business, building a meal planning app and also owns a kitchenware store. He is based in Sooke, British Columbia. Lautaro started planting unusually early, at age 17, as he graduated high school early. He then took his first season in BC and continued it across the globe in the UK and Australia. Lautaro shares his experiences of his first season of planting, as well as the differences he saw between the other countries he planted in. A fresh perspective in this episode, and a great listen for anyone getting into planting this year! LINKS Instagram https://www.instagram.com/lautarocepe/ Website www.thefub.ca

28 Feb 202029min

This is my best attempt at explaining a bit about the tree planting family that is created within this industry. Referring to the loss of Neil Whan recently, I try to explain why losses in the planting community make all of us so upset. A bit of a ramble on reflections and thoughts about how I see the connection and the bonds we all share as tree planters. I hope this can shed some light on it for those of you not involved, and help those who are to put it into words a little better.

26 Feb 202014min

Today I sat down with Jordan Tesluk, a rising force within the tree planting world. He is the forestry safety advocate for silviculture and consultant forestry in BC. He helps to provide a liason role engaging industry members in conversation about health and safety issues, as well as distributing that and getting feedback in the field. He planted for 15 years on the coast and interior, and put in more than one million trees. We talked about his academic background and how he contributed to tree planting through research. Then we talk more about what he does and how he acts as a liason between tree planters, their respective companies, as well as larger organizations here in British Columbia. We talked about the changes within tree planting over the decades, specifically within health and safety, and where the future of this industry may be going.  Jordan is a wealth of information, and I hope you all enjoy this very informative interview! LINKS Employment Standard 37.9 for Silviculture Workers https://www2.gov.bc.ca/gov/content/employment-business/employment-standards-advice/employment-standards/forms-resources/igm/esr-part-7-section-37-9 An All-In-One Stop for Workers Standards across Canada http://www.replant.ca/employmentstandards.html The book he mentions to me in conversation: Mill Town Mine Town Rail Town by Rex Lucas https://www.amazon.ca/Minetown-Milltown-Railtown-Canadian-Communities/dp/0195428870 Another book recommendation by Jordan: Green Gold by Patricia Marchak https://www.amazon.ca/Green-Gold-Forestry-Industry-Columbia/dp/0774801832

21 Feb 202052min

This is a special tribute to Neil Whan, whom the planting community lost last week. You can find the memoriam here on the Brinkman website: https://www.brinkmanreforestation.ca/new-page-3 If you have any stories about Neil you would like to share, please email me.

20 Feb 202011min