The Boreal Abroad: A world-class forest
Story by Asha Jhamandas
Just in time to save all those would-be Christmas trees, Canada has recently implemented a
two-pronged protection plan for its boreal forest that makes the country an international leader
in wetland and forest conservation agreements. Made possible by the rare collective support
of forest industry, environmental organizations and aboriginal groups, the plan is to safeguard
50 percent of Canada’s boreal forest and develop the other half in an ecologically sustainable
way.
An unprecedented area of Canada’s boreal forest will be protected under the agreement -
approximately 600 million hectares. The deal includes the participation of industries previously
likely to develop the forest, such as Suncor Energy, Domtar, Tembec and Alberta-Pacific Forest
Industries.
Sprawling from Alaska to Newfoundland, the boreal forest is dominated by a rich trove of
coniferous species of tree such as pine, spruce and fir. Canada’s boreal is home to billions
of birds, great populations of wild animals and some four million people. The vast evergreen
mantle hops the Atlantic Ocean to ring sub-Artic areas of Russia and Scandinavia and is part
of the biome known as taiga.
In contrast to Canada’s northern forest, biodiversity is low in the Scandinavian boreal,
owing to the cold climate and forced migrations in the post-glacial period. It is also scarce
in its frontier old-growth forests, unlike either Canada’s and Russia’s boreal. Scandinavia
only retains about five percent of its original boreal forest, but it has a long history
of sustainable forestry.
Finland, Norway, Sweden and Denmark introduced legislation about a century ago that limited
the harvest and required regeneration efforts in the interests of high timber production.
Since this time, forest resources have doubled in Scandinavia and ecological incentives for
sustainability have become more important. The Scandinavian countries also invest some $26
million dollars in forest management research each year, mostly for improving sustainable
forest production, but also for alternative forestry methods and the preservation of biodiversity.
Contrary to Scandinavia’s strict control on its natural resources, Russia - home to 22
percent of the world’s forests - shows a distinct lack of forestry law enforcement. The state
forest management systems are outdated in many areas and still estimate the allowable annual
cut according to Soviet era calculations. These estimates exclude both thinnings and the
requirements of new forestry laws adopted in the past decade. Environmental impact assessments
are often done by unregulated and unmonitored non-governmental organizations.
After paying its employees, Russia’s forest service frequently has little money left over
to enforce rules, make inventories or fight timber fires. As a result, its forests are rife
with poachers ranging from poverty-stricken locals to large companies. In addition, forestry
statistics are outdated and the boreal has a high mortality rate from natural outbreaks of
fire and insects.
Russia does have some programs in effect to identify the unknown locations of its many
old-growth forests. It also has a system of protected nature reserves called zapovedniks,
but they cover less than two percent of Russia’s land area. The country has had difficulty
fulfilling forest protection commitments because of ambiguous mandates, little or no law
enforcement and a legislative process that allows for little communication with stakeholders.
Of immense importance from a biodiversity perspective is the Green-Belt, an ecological
bridge which runs along the Finnish-Russian (Karelian) border, connecting the continental
taiga with the more isolated areas of Scandinavia. Many species that are endangered or extinct
in Scandinavia still have viable populations in Russia and Canada.
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