The Ancient Forests

What are ancient forests?

Ancient forests are the planet’s irreplaceable original forests.  Diverse, beautiful and pristine, these forests are refuges for endangered wildlife, sources of clean drinking water and invaluable sources of inspiration, recreation and cultural heritage.

Ancient forests also store enormous amounts of carbon, making them critical in the fight to stop global warming.  For millions of years, forests have helped regulate the environmental systems that are essential for life on Earth, cleaning the air, producing oxygen, regulating rainfall, protecting soil and filtering water.

Ancient Forests at Risk

According to the World Resources Institute, about 80 percent of the world's original forests have been destroyed. Industrial logging, agribusiness, river damming and fossil fuel extraction continues to cut, burn and degrade our remaining ancient forests.

More than 25 million acres of ancient forest are destroyed every year around the world. As these forests fall, plants and animals that depend on these them – from orangutans and tigers to caribou and wolverines – are pushed toward extinction. Indigenous peoples and local communities who rely on these forests for economic and cultural survival suffer as well.  As global warming increases, we all feel the effects of forest destruction.

The Boreal Forest: North America's Wilderness

Stretching across North America from eastern Alaska to Labrador, the Boreal Forest has evolved for over 10,000 years. It is, by far, the largest tract of ancient forest left on the continent. Representing 25 percent of the world’s remaining ancient forests, the North American Boreal Forest is a global treasure worth protecting.

Old-growth trees and its thick layers of soil and peat make the Boreal Forest one of the world’s largest terrestrial storehouses of carbon. For this reason, the Boreal Forest must be protected to help stop global warming.

“The North American Boreal Forest is a global treasure worth protecting.”

The Boreal Forest is also home to hundreds of wildlife species, including caribou, moose, lynx, wolverines, cougars, bears and wolves. Nearly half of all North American bird species – including those that visit backyards in the United States – depending on the Boreal during yearly migrations.

The Boreal Forest also supports a rich cultural legacy. 80 percent of Canada’s indigenous communities depend on the Boreal Forest to sustain their livelihood and culture.  As industrial logging slices deeper into intact forests, controversy and conflict is growing between Canadian government agencies, logging giants and indigenous communities.

Despite its importance to people and the planet, companies like Kimberly-Clark continue to fuel the destruction of the Boreal Forest for disposable paper products.