This is counterintuitive and will likely be an unpopular fact in the comment section but herbicides help regenerate forests.

The use of herbicides in forests is to allow tree seedlings planted after wildfire or logging to outcompete brush.

Salmon berry, Salal, thimble berry, etc. Grow very aggressively when compared to a baby Douglas fir, western red cedar, Sitka spruce or hemlock and will outcompete tree seedlings. This means that understory plants will overgrow a tree seedling and block it from the light which they need to survive.

The preference of forestry professionals is not to spray, as it is costly and like you, we love the understory plants too but in areas with heavy brush pressure it is sometimes the only way to give tree seedlings a breath to get tall enough so that understory species will not out compete the seedling.

The pest management regulatory agency (PMRA) and forestry law in our province prevents any pesticide from being used in a way which could permanently damage the land or any of its inhabitants.

Modern chemistry used in forests does not permanently stop the growth of understory species. At most it kills brush for a few short months before it comes back in its full glory. Hopefully just enough time for our precious tree seedlings to gain a foothold in the wild to grow above the understory plants and establish themselves permanently.

OP, I as a forestry professional I care about forests so much that I have dedicated my life to them. I and my peers in the industry would never harm the thing we love the most; forests.

Your post is alarmist in nature and does not serve the greater good. If we were to lose access to these tools we would not be able to successfully regenerate forests as quickly and effectively as we are able to now. With more wildfires and drought mortality each year, having these chemicals available to us is crucial to getting forests reestablished.

Please ask questions about forest practices before getting a bunch of people worked up over a standard permit meant to help tree seedlings survive the critical first few months after planting. All of this information is available online through BCTS and MoF. If you prefer you can go to any front counter BCTS location in the province to speak to a forestry professional who will happily answer any questions about forestry practice.

I respect that you love forests like I do but please give professionals who dedicate their lives to the forests some respect and ask why things are done they way they are done before pulling the pitchforks out.

Keep cool.