Ancient Forest Research Report No. 3

THOUGHTS ON AN INTERIM CONSERVATION STRATEGY FOR
OLD-GROWTH RED AND WHITE PINE FORESTS IN ONTARIO

by Peter A. Quinby

1993

DEFINITION OF OLD-GROWTH FOREST

Any definition of old-growth forest must include the statement that old-growth forests are a "non-renewable" resource. Ecologists have recognized this for many years, but it was only recently (1984) that it was also recognized by the Society of American Foresters:

Recently, the Ontario Round Table on Environment and Economy (1990) came to the same conclusion:

"...old-growth forest habitats should be viewed as non-renewable and essential parts of our natural heritage."

Any conservation strategy for old-growth forests that does not recognize and address the "non-renewability" of these ancient ecosystems is, in my opinion, destined for failure.

DEFINITION OF A CONSERVATION STRATEGY

A definition of conservation should include a gradient of resource management from "full protection" to "full consumptive use". And, the interim strategy should be designed "...to ensure that options for maintaining old-growth white and red pine in the landscape are left open during the development and implementation of the overall strategy."

MAINTAINING OLD-GROWTH WHITE AND RED PINE FOREST

In order to maintain these endangered ecosystems, we need to know the status of both old-growth white and red pine forest throughout its natural range. In other words, how much is left relative to the original amount? Data from a study that I am currently completing indicate that there is less than 1% left (see Table 1 on pgs. 6-2 and 6-3). To me, this is the critical information - if there was 80% left, none of us would be involved in developing a conservation strategy because there would be no need. Ecologists and conservation experts have told us that we should maintain between 10 and 50 percent of the landscape in its natural state, preferably more, to maintain local, regional and global ecosystem health (Table 1, pg. 23-3).

If we assume that each portion of the earth's surface, no matter how small or how large, is dominated by one and only one type of ecosystem, then the minimum percentage protection principle (e.g. 10%) can apply to ecosystem types as well as broad landscapes. Thus, if 10% of every ecosystem type were protected, in sum it would total to 10% landscape protection.

The implication for the development of this strategy is that at least 10% of the original old-growth white and red pine forest should be protected. However, what remains is far below this minimum of 10%. In fact, in my opinion, when less than 1% of any ecosystem remains, that ecosystem should be considered "endangered". Not only is there very little old-growth white pine forest left, but approximately 95% of these old-growth stands are less than 200 ha in size and most are located within a fragmented landscape.

It is unlikely that the majority of these remaining stands are self-sustaining due the fragmentation and fire suppression that has affected them. Also, although my data have not yet been summarized, it looks as if old-growth red pine forests are in even worse shape than old-growth white pine forests.

In my opinion, the first step towards maintaining old-growth white and red pine forest in the Ontario landscape is to exclude logging from all of these stands. Next, in order to perpetuate many of these stands, active management will be required to mitigate and/or counter the impacts that human activities have had upon them.

Taking this minimum 10% protection approach does not necessarily mean that in the future no logging will take place in any old-growth forest of any type. The key will be determining how much of each type remains. If more than 10% remains, then logging should be considered a viable option.

RECOMMENDATIONS FOR AN INTERIM STRATEGY

1. criteria
   
   
   • must ensure options for maintaining old-growth white and red pine forest in the landscape
   • old-growth forest is non-renewable
   • a minimum of 10% of each ecosystem type should be protected


2. fact - less than 1% of the original old-growth white pine forest ecosystem type remains. There is little doubt that the same is true for the old-growth red pine forest ecosystem type. For both ecosystem types, much less than 10% remains. In my opinion, the "status" of these ecosystem types is "endangered".



3. synthesis - if we accept the above criteria, and address these criteria in the context of the statusof old-growth white and red pine forest ecosystems, then we must conclude that all remnants of these ecosystem types should be protected.



4. required action - place a logging moratorium on all potential old-growth white and red pine stands until the final conservation strategy is completed and/or until the old-growth character of each stand can be assessed.

5. means of identifying potential old-growth white and red pine stands
   
   
   • Pinto's 1989 listing based on age (120+ yrs.) and pine dominance
   • resource manager survey being compiled by the Old-Growth Secretariate
   • operational criteria that can be applied in the field by MNR foresters - for example:
   • at least 9 white and/or red pine per ha
   • each at least 140+ yrs.
   • other verifiable information supplied by interested groups or individuals
   • the Old Growth Scientific Advisory Committee could serve as a reviewer of forest stand information for determining the old-growth designation

Table 1. Percentage of landscape recommended for protection

LITERATURE CITED

Gillis, A. M. 1990. The new forestry: An ecosystem approach to land management. Journal of Forestry 40:558-562.

Government of Canada. 1990. Canada's Green Plan. Canada Ministry of Supply and Services, Ottawa, Ontario.

Hammond, H. 1991. Seeing the Forest Among the Trees. Polestar Press Ltd., Vancouver, B.C. 309 pp.

Hummel, M. 1989. The Upshot. In: Endangered Spaces: The Future for Canada's Wilderness, Ed. by M. Hummel. Key Porter Books, Toronto, Ontario. pp. 267-274.

Munro, D. A. and M. W. Holdgate. 1991. Caring for the Earth: A Strategy for Sustainable Living. IUCN/UNEP/WWF, Gland, Switerland. 228 pp.

Noss, R. F. 1991. Wilderness recovery: Thinking big in restoration ecology. The Environmental Professional 13:225-234.

Ontario Round Table on Environment and Economy. 1990. Challenge Paper. Queen's Printer for Ontario, Toronto, Ontario. 37 pp.

Quinby, P. A. In Prep. Global Status of Old-Growth White Pine Forests: An Endangered Ecosystem. Ancient Forest Exploration & Research, Powassan, Ontario.

Society of American Foresters. 1984. Scheduling the harvest of old growth. SAF, Wash. D.C. 44 pp.

World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED). 1987. Our Common Future. Oxford University Press, New York. 400 pp.

World Wildlife Fund Canada (WWFC). 1991. Endangered Spaces Progress Report Number 2. Toronto, Ontario. 40 pp.

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