This forest has been clearcut to produce Kimberly-Clark toilet and tissue paper products even though recycled alternatives exist.
Canada's Boreal forests are being clearcut to create building
materials and consumer products such as toilet paper, office paper,
books, and catalogues.
The
logging industry continues to cut down over 290,000 hectares of
forest in Quebec, 185,000 hectares in Ontario and 67,000 hectares
of forest in Alberta every year. This means that an area of forest
larger than Prince Edward Island is lost every year in these three
provinces alone.
Approximately half of the Boreal forest has been allocated or
licensed to logging companies. The heaviest development is
concentrated in the southern reaches of the Boreal, which also is
the most productive wildlife habitat. Over 90 per cent of this area
is clearcut, with individual clearcuts sometimes extending over
10,000 hectares in size or approximately 17,000 football fields.
This makes them some of the largest clearcuts in the world.
A disappearing forest means increased threats to the survival of
the species that inhabit it. Already, the Labrador marten,
wolverine, woodland caribou, eastern wolf are listed on endangered
species lists. Global warming is another real threat to Canada's
Boreal forest. Scientists predict that parts of the forest will
become much warmer because of climate change. This will mean
increased forest fires and outbreaks of insect infectations.