While still a young man, Merve acquired 138 acres of untouched forest, near Quennnel Lake, not far from Ladysmith, Vancouver Island, where he was born. Intending to farm, he enrolled at the University of British Columbia for courses in agriculture. There he was fortunate enough to meet Professor Paul Boving, of Sweden. This man, having seen Merve's acreage, exclaimed, "You must not farm this beautiful land. You must keep it as it is, and sustainably log it."

Sadly, UBC had none of the necessary courses, but the good professor taught his student material he had brought from his homeland. Merve graduated with a handmade certificate created by the professor himself. He began the practice of sustainable logging, and his first cut showed 30% of his income for 20% of his time. He had learned stone masonry and carpentry, to make building his other income, and became known for his fine work including fireplaces and stone walls which are still standing. His last stone retention wall, built in 1992, was 150 feet long. He also built his log home next to the lake, with timber from his land.

He became active in the community and he and his wife began fostering, and continued that for twenty-seven years. He continued to glean his beloved forest but recognition of his work came slowly. It did not mesh with the government's and the Forestry Companies' ideas of clearcutting, and he was regarded by many with suspicion. It was another matter in other parts of the world.

He had already begun hosting and teaching many groups of school children, as well as college and University classes, environmental and naturalist groups. Then came foresters, journalists and film crews from many places, including the U.S.A., Britain, Chile, Siberia, Australia, and Europe, especially Germany, where the clearcut and plant method had been initiated and failed. He hosted Conferences. He helped produce two instructive videos and co-authored a book, "Wildwood, a Forest for the Future," which sold internationally. He helped produce a series of programs for Knowledge Network, on B.C. Forestry. He was in demand. He has been the recipient of many honors, including, in 2001, The Order of Canada.

During the 1993-94 protests against the provincial government's decision to allow clearcut logging in Clayoquot Sound, he persuaded the angry people to change "No Logging!" to "No Clearcut Logging!" After standing with his wife for seven hours at the Kennedy River Bridge, he was arrested, with others, and tried, but earned the respect of the judge, who declared him "magnificently unrepentant" and sentenced him to Community Service. His fellow-dependants named him their mentor, and applauded whenever he appeared. He was unable, however, to change the thinking of the government or the Logging Companies.

So his forest still stands, as if untouched. Fifty years after his first cut, he has the same amount of timber he started with. Today, the delightful shady groves still consist of trees of differing sizes, above a lush, mossy floor. Some old trees lie where they have fallen, becoming "nurse trees" to a medley of smaller growth. Other old sentinels have been kept for "seed trees'. From them come the young saplings that grow in areas he has selected, under a canopy of alder, which protects them and keeps them straight. Later this canopy will be carefully thinned and at last destroyed. He has never planted a tree--he has no need to; he possesses such knowledge of where the seeds will fall!
He looks sadly at other parts of Canada, where clearcutting is rampant. "We're running out of trees," he says, "that's the tragedy of it. Greed and stupidity have destroyed our forests." Forests which he believes could have survived in all their pristine beauty had they been sustainably managed.

The site manager is now Jay Rastogi. Merve, whose wife Anne died in June, 2006, at eighty-five, has lifetime tenancy, but the land is being purchased by the Land Conservancy, and will be maintained as a demonstration site and learning facility. It is still welcomes visitors.

Goody Niosi has written a biography, aptly named "Magnificently Unrepentant", which is available in bookstores. Our leaders and Forestry Companies could have learned so much from this remarkable man - one of Canada's heroes.

Feb 07, Dodi Morrison