Interior cedar - hemlock zone

Fed by abundant rain and heavy winter snows, the interior cedar-hemlock zone (ICH zone) contains the most productive forests of British Columbia's Interior as well as more tree species than any other ecological zone in the province.

Tree species descriptions

These forests cover the lower slopes and valley bottoms in the province's southeast and northwest, providing rich habitat for many plants and animals. Some of the province's best grizzly and black bear habitat is located here.

The ICH zone occupies two separate parts of B.C. – the southeast and the northwest. Most of the zone occurs in the southeast quarter of the province, where it takes in the lower slopes of the Columbia and Rocky mountains. In the northwest, the zone occupies most low- to mid-elevations in the Nass River basin, as well as smaller parts of the Skeena, Iskut, and Stikine basins. The lower elevations of Wells Gray Park and the towns of Creston, Nelson, Revelstoke, and Likely all lie within the southern part of the zone. Hazelton is the largest settlement in the northern part.

Subzone/variants in the ICH zone

Tree species descriptions:

• dk subzone (PDF, 140KB)
• mc subzone, variant 1 (PDF, 185KB)
• mc subzone, variant 2 (PDF, 265KB)
• mk subzone, variant 3 (PDF, 157KB)
• mm subzone (PDF, 185KB)
• vc subzone (PDF, 185KB)
• vk subzone, variant 2 (PDF, 188KB)
• wc subzone (PDF, 187KB)
• wk subzone, variant 3 (PDF, 188KB)
• wk subzone, variant 4 (PDF, 155KB)