Frequently Asked Questions

Do forestry companies replant after they clearcut forests?

What other methods can forestry companies use for harvesting trees?

Where is the boreal forest located in Canada?

You call the boreal an ancient forest – How old are the trees?

How many hectares of the boreal forest as clearcut each year in Canada?

Are there any tissue products that don't contribute to ancient forest destruction?

Are there endangered animals that need the Boreal forest to survive?

What products are being made from trees harvested from the Boreal forest?

What is the role of the Boreal forest in helping fight climate change?

What solutions is Greenpeace working on to help reverse Boreal forest destruction?

What is FSC wood and where can it be purchased?

How many tonnes of tissue products are used in Canada each year?

Why is Greenpeace targetting Kimberly-Clark for forest destruction?

What ecological impacts does clearcutting have on the Boreal forest?

1. Do forestry companies replant after they clearcut forests? Will replanting trees bring back a forest to its original state?
Companies are legally obligated to replant the forests they cut down, but even the most successful replanting effort does not restore the diversity or original health of these ancient forests. Replanting small seedlings simply can’t replace an ecosystem that took 15,000 years to evolve.

2. What other methods can forestry companies use for harvesting trees? Ecologically responsible forest management such as that required by the FSC seeks to ensure that the ecosystem of the forest is not damaged and only low volumes of trees are extracted. The impacts on the plant and animal life in the forest from this method of logging are minimized. Greenpeace is a founding member of the FSC and is active in its development at both the international, national and regional levels.
Read more about FSC

3. Where is the Boreal forest located in Canada?
Canada’s Boreal forest is an ancient forest that stretches across the country from Canada’s most western province to the east coast of the country. It is Canada’s largest ecosystem and encompasses almost 53 per cent of the country’s total landmass.
Read more

4. You call the Boreal an ancient forest. How old are the trees?
Canada's Boreal forest is one of the largest tracts of ancient forest left in the world. Almost 80 per cent of the world's original forests have been degraded or completely destroyed, making the protection of our Boreal forest all the more important. Canada's Boreal forest ecosystem is over 10,000 years old, and is one of the last remaining ancient forests in the world.
Read more (map of intact forests worldwide)

5. How many hectares of the Boreal forest is clearcut each year in Canada?
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.

6. Are there any tissue products that don't contribute to ancient forest destruction?
Find out which tissue products in Canada are contributing to ancient forest destruction and which are safe to buy with the Greenpeace Shopper's Guide to Ancient Forest Friendly Tissue Products.

7. Are there endangered animals that need the Boreal forest to survive?         
Moose, caribou, lynx, bear and wolves depend on the wide Boreal expanses, while eagles, hawks, owls, geese and 30 per cent of North America’s songbirds and 40 per cent of its waterfowl nest in the forests and wetlands. In fact, nearly five billion birds migrate north to breed after wintering in warmer climates. Because of its immense size, the Boreal forest represents one of the best opportunities for conservation of large intact forests.

8. What products are being made from harvested Boreal forest trees? Canada's Boreal forests are being clearcut to create building materials and consumer products such as toilet paper, office paper, books, and catalogues. Read more

9. What is the role of the Boreal forest in helping fight climate change?
The Boreal forest is a major carbon sink for battling climate change for all parts of the world. Climate change is another real threat to Canada's Boreal forest as 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.

10. What solutions is Greenpeace working on to help reverse Boreal forest destruction?
As well as working with Canadian publishers to print on 100 per cent recycled paper,  Greenpeace is working with other environmental groups. This work is focused primarily on changing corporate procurement policies to protect our ancient forests.

Numerous Canadian magazine and book publishers are switching to paper that is ancient forest friendly, and the trend is spreading as Greenpeace offices around the world take lessons learned in Canada and apply them to their own national publishing houses.

11. What is FSC wood and where can it be purchased?
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) is an international, non-profit association that issues certificates for well managed forests. It was formed by the collaborative efforts of more than 100 participants representing economic, social, indigenous and environmental interests.

As consumer demand for sustainably harvested forest products continues to grow, a variety of certification systems have been developed – often by industry alone. Labels such as “SFI”, “CSA” and “ISO” simply do not offer the assurance customers are seeking. FSC is the only certification system supported by Greenpeace and the majority of environmental organizations. If you want to support responsible forestry, look for the FSC tree logo.
Read more about FSC

12. How many tonnes of tissue products are used in Canada each year?
Over 700,000 tonnes of tissue products are used each year in Canada.
Read more about tissue products from the Boreal

13. Why is Greenpeace targetting Kimberly-Clark for destroying the forest ?
Greenpeace believes that it is simply wrong that disposable products are being produced out of ancient forests. The Boreal forest is literally being flushed down the toilet every day by millions of consumers across Canada. This needs to stop.

That is why Greenpeace has launched the Kleercut campaign to convince Kimberly-Clark, the makers of Kleenex and a major destroyer of Canada's Boreal forest, to clean up its practices.
Read more (kleercut.net) 

14. What ecological impacts does clearcutting have on the Boreal forest? 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 is the most productive wildlife habitat.

A disappearing forest means increased threats to the survival of the species that inhabit it. Already, the Labrador marten, wolverine, woodland caribou and eastern wolf are listed on endangered species lists.

Critical as a carbon sink for battling climate change as well as being home to hundreds of wide-ranging wildlife species, the Canadian Boreal forest provides the ecological link between the northern tundra and the southern grasslands and more southerly forest ecosystems.