Wednesday, July 30, 2008

Eliminate the Need to Cut Old Forests: Toronto Star Article

Toronto Star reporter Cameron Smith wrote an article in Saturday's paper revealing how forest companies in Ontario continue to log into intact boreal forests despite a downturn in the forest sector and decreased need for wood. Smith points out that companies are keen to continue expanding into pristine forests to not lose their logging rights to those areas. He makes the intriguing suggestion that the government should encourage companies to collaborate in re-designing the approach to forestry in Ontario - focusing on better management of second-growth forest and leaving old, pristine forests intact.

In the Ogoki Forest, 250 km northeast of Thunder Bay, Smith estimates the cost of new logging in intact forests is 1.03 metric tons of CO2 emissions over the next 20 years that would otherwise not have occurred in the 10,000 km2 area if companies sustainably managed second-growth forests instead.
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Thanks to CPAWS-Wildlands League for alerting me to this story.

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