The Story of a Great Bear Rainforest-friendly product

There have been lots of times in life when I wish I had a smell recorder, and every trip I take up to the pristine coast of British Columbia is no exception. The Great Bear Rainforest is truly home to a bouquet of fragrances: from the earthiness of the rainforest floor (rich with decaying wood, giving vital nutrients back to the soil) to the sweet scent from cedars and hemlocks, all mingling with salty breeze from the ocean.

Now, there’s a way to bring the rich smell of the Great Bear Rainforest home in a bottle with this new line of bath products: After five years, the sustainable line of bath products from the Great Bear Rainforest is a reality!

As part of the Great Bear Rainforest Agreements, ForestEthics collaborated with First Nations to create the $120 million "Coast Opportunity Funds" to help kick-start a new conservation-based economy as an alternative to logging. The following is a story about the beginning of a new conservation-based economy in the Great Bear Rainforest and a symbol that environment and economy can truly be in tune:

Five years ago, Heiltsuk hereditary chief Harvey Humchitt came to ForestEthics' office in Vancouver and asked me to help create a product from the leftover "slash" from logging operations on his territory. “Like cedar oil.” Right there and then, the idea to extract essential oils from coastal rainforest trees, instead of cut them down, was born.

A group of community members from the Haida, Haisla and Heiltsuk First Nations, Coastal First Nations-Great Bear Initiative, Royal Roads, and ForestEthics formed a working group. Over the course of five years this group came together to learn how essential oils are made, from theory to practice, and we got our hands dirty, collecting boughs, chipping them, and distilling the needles from cedar, hemlock, spruce and pine. (Sometimes, we were literally up in our arms stripping boughs and clipping needles by hand!)

Lab analysis of preliminary oils showed that the oils were of high quality. Valuable connections were made with expert distillers, business development consultants, aromatherapists, and scientists. Daniela Cubelic, aromatherapist and owner of Silk Road spa, in Victoria, B.C., blended the oils then added them to a line of shampoo, conditioner, lotion, bath salts and bath oils, provided exclusively to guests at the Laurel Point in Victoria.

Coastal First Nations team members were rejoicing, "Yay, we finally made something!"

The scent is surprisingly reminiscent of walking in the rainforest. Daniela said it was the hardest blend she's had to make in her life. This seems fitting, considering the coastal rainforest ecosystem is complex, and so was achieving a world-class model of conservation in the Great Bear Rainforest!  

These bath products represent a perfect example of how high value products can come from our precious forests, not just raw logs or other low-value timber products. Learn more about the Great Bear Rainforest and ForestEthics' work to build sustainable local economies here.

If you would like to soak your weary bones in Great Bear Rainforest scent, the bath products can be purchased from Laurel Point on-line.