Forest Landscape Baseline No. 16 Brief Progress and Summary Reports 1997

PRESENTATION TO THE GREAT LAKES-ST. LAWRENCE ROUND TABLE

ANCIENT FOREST EXPLORATION & RESEARCH
December 10, 1997

Dr. Peter Quinby, Thomas Lee, & Michael Henry

List of Issues, Concerns and Recommendations

1.1 Issues and Concerns

· Ongoing Process - There is an urgent need to take action to protect the natural diversity of Ontario's plant and animal communities. The Lands for Life process is addressing that need. However, the work needed to adequately inventory this natural biological diversity has not been completed, and is currently being carried out by Ancient Forest Exploration & Research (AFER) and others. This work is an ongoing process and the need to modify protected areas, and add new ones, may become apparent as more detailed scientific information becomes available in the future.

#1. Recognize the need for future work.

#2. Build some flexibility into the land use decisions that will allow the possibility for future protected areas once more information is known.

2 Ancient Forested Landscapes

2.1 Issues and Concerns

· Nature's Blue Print - Ancient Forested Landscapes are pristine environments that have never been logged and have had only minimal disturbance from other human activities. These scarce environments provide us with the unique opportunity to observe natural processes at work when they are left to their own devices. Without pristine areas we will lose our ability to collect scientific baseline data that will be an invaluable asset for improved forest management, and the maintenance of protected areas (Part III, in handout).

· Historical Logging - Ancient Forest Exploration & Research has maps of historical cutting for the 4E site region. These maps were made from MNR records and may be helpful to the LFL planning process. These maps can be made available to the GLSL round table upon request.

· Fire - Fire suppression is one of the most significant human influences in ancient forested landscapes. Throughout the GLSL planning area, fire has played an important part of the forests ecology. If we are to preserve the natural processes that make ancient forested landscapes so valuable, there should be some areas that are designated "free from fire suppression", and allowed to burn.

#3. Ancient forested landscapes should be one of the most important features in designating protected areas.

#4. Allow fires to burn in some designated protected areas.

3.1 Issues and Concerns

· Ontario's Heritage - Ontario has had a long history of logging red and white pine forests. This logging has resulted in comparitively small and fragmented red and white pine forests, where they were once prolific (Quinby 1997, Ch.30 in handout). It has been a goal of the Ontario government to protect representative natural communities through its commitment to the Endangered Spaces Campaign. In order to fulfill this goal, there needs to be some special management of red and white pine forests to allow a partial restoration of our natural heritage.

#5. Half of the remaining red and white pine forest currently existing on the landscape should be designated for special management. These areas would be open to logging, but would be managed for old-growth characteristics (see recommendations #7 - #9).

4.1 Issues and Concerns

· Less than 1% remaining - Old growth forests are dominated by trees that are relatively old (120 years old, for red and white pine). Estimates of how much old growth white pine forest was on the landscape, before Europeans came to North America, indicate that less than 1% of the original old growth white pine remains world wide (Quinby, Ch.6 in handout). Although less work has been done to document the abundance of old growth red pine, preliminary studies show a situation that is almost as dire for old growth red pine, with only about 1.2% remaining (Quinby, 1997 - Ch.7 in handout).

· Special Management - Red and white pine trees have been shown to live from up to 350 years (red pine), to 500 years (white pine) (>>>>>). Currently, red and white pine forests are managed for harvest on a rotation that is far below these time spans, perhaps only 120 years. Managing these forests based on the time it takes for the growth of the tree to taper off, and not on its natural life span, would be akin to saying a 21 year old man is ready for retirement. These management practices prevent the forest from evolving to its natural state.

#5. Protect endangered ecosystems - Old growth red and white pine should be recognized as endangered ecosystems, and stands currently over the age of 120 years should be protected from logging, mining, and hydro-electric development.

#6. Experimental logging for better management - A select few stands of old growth red and white pine could be used for experimental logging that would facilitate a better understanding of appropriate management of future old growth stands.

#7. Restore old growth - Continue to manage half of the red and white pine forests using sustainable management practices. On the other half of the red and white pine forested landscape a special land use designation should be established. This designation would specify that forest management should aim to restore to the landscape at least the minimum old growth characteristics described by Quinby (Ch. 10 in handout).

5.1 Issues and Concerns

· Ecological Integrity - To ensure the long term viability of protected areas, their ecological integrity must be maintained. To maintain integrity protected areas need to be large, free from logging, mining, and hydro-electric development, and connected.

· The Superior-Temagami "Corridor" (STC) - The STC is a proposed connectivity corridor that will join protected areas stretching from the Ottawa River to Lake Superior. The route has been designed to connect ecologically significant areas, while also providing for excellent tourism and recreation opportunities. The corridor is currently being promoted by Joanie and Gary McGuffin through their trans-STC journeys by canoe and by dog sled. The STC offers excellent economic opportunities but will take more time to develop (see recommendations #1 & #2).

· The Lower Spanish Pine Landscape - this area between the Spanish and Wakonasin rivers (Ch. 11 in handout) is the largest example of an ancient pine dominated landscape left in the world. Ancient Forest Exploration & Research, the Ministry of Natural Resources, and Geomatics have done research that identifies this area as being very ecologically significant.

· The maps provided to the GLSL round table show the minimum area that the proposed Gawgige-Jiwong (Forever Flowing Water) protected area should encompass. More work is being done to identify other significant features in this region that may extend these boundaries. Copies of our final maps will be forthcoming.

#8. Protected areas should be as large as possible and should be connected to other reserves through corridors.

#9. Logging, mining, and hydro-electric development should not be allowed in protected areas.

#10. The "core" areas within reserves should be as road free as possible, and should be insulated from disturbed areas by buffer zones.

#11. The Superior-Temagami Corridor needs to be considered for future protection.

#12. The Gawgige-Jiwong region of the Lower Spanish Pine Landscape should be protected as a wilderness park.

#13. All logging of current allocations should cease within the boundaries of the proposed Gawgige-Jiwong reserve until the final Lands for Life recommendations are made.

Forest Landscape Baselines are a periodic publication of Ancient Forest Exploration & Research, a non-profit charitable organization dedicated to the study, protection and scientific application of ancient forested landscapes. Our publications are available online at www.ancientforest.org/publications.html Back to top of page Back to Publications