Problem Statement and Goals

Problem Statement:

The Seed Planning and Registry (SPAR) provides the centralized management of the province's tree seed supply used to support reforestation requirements. SPAR supports reforestation, forest and ecosystem rehabilitation and wildfire recovery and maintains the province’s tree seed inventory valued at over $100 million. SPAR connects the inventory of tree seeds managed by the Tree Seed Center with the Forestry Companies need for seedlings and the Forestry Nurseries that grow them to seedlings ready for planting. SPAR allows the Ministry to ensure the multi-year supply of tree seedlings meets the reforestation and provide supporting data to the Climate-based seed transfer system used by the Forest Improvement and Research Management Branch and Forest Genetics Council of BC. Use of this service is required for Forest Sector companies operating in BC to meet their regulatory obligation. While most client organizations are located within BC, to meet capacity requirements some BC Forestry companies and Forestry Nurseries as well as are located in other parts of Canada and in the USA. SPAR is designed around Climate Based Seed Transfer (CBST) to help forests adapt to climate change. SPAR guides users through the selection of suitable seedlots using the transfer rules found in the Chief Forester’s Standards for Seed Use. This supports the selection of the appropriate species and variety of tree seedling for the planting location considering factors such as biodiversity and climate-change resilience. The original Seed Planning and Registry (SPAR) entered production in 2003. SPAR its users to: • Order seeds or seedlings, request cone and seed processing, and seed testing • Invoice customers for seed orders. • Enter and update information about their seedlots, orchards, and parent trees, and • Generate reports about seedling requests, and the seedlot inventory to stakeholders including First Nations, government and non-government organizations, wood lot owners, and research scientists as part of their environmental, regulatory, and economic management efforts.

Interested parties:

• Forestry nurseries (both Canada and the US)
• Tree Seed Centre Staff
• Forestry companies (both Canada and the US)
• Forest Improvement and Research Management Branch Staff
• Non-governmental/non-profit environmental organizations
• First Nations
• Wood lot owners
• Research Scientists

Goals:

1. The modernized Seed Planning and Registry application (SPAR) will be designed and developed to meet the needs of its varying user groups.
2. Digital products & services developed as part of the FDS project will use the Open ID Connect (OIDC) standard for security whenever possible.
3. The modernized application will provide an intuitive user interface and meet the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) international standards.
4. SPAR will be built in line with the Chief Forester’s Standards for Seed Use.