Michael Eastwood, a computer operator in the Fort Nelson District office, recently won a Forest Service employee recognition certificate for writing a computer program that frees operators from some tedious tasks and allows them to work more efficiently.

Michael and the people who will benefit from his new program are LIM Operators—people who draw computer-based maps in a Land Information Management system.

Previously, they had to translate forest-cover files one at a time in a labour-intensive process. With Michael’s program, the user provides some information up front and then the program runs on its own.

Barry Miller, Planning Forester, Sunshine Coast Forest District, and Ross Kreye, Water Resource Planner from MELP’s Lower Mainland region, won a bronze for teamwork at the Public Service Awards dinner held in Vancouver recently. The citation noted their excellence in overcoming many obstacles to create an integrated watershed management plan for Haslam Lake and Lang Creek in the Powell River District. The plan protects the sources of Powell River’s drinking water, respects resource tenures and provides a model for watershed management planning elsewhere.

Barry Miller (centre left) and Ross Kreye flanked by co-nominators Valerie Cameron and Mike Younie.