How to preservate forest

1. Protect More Ancient Forests

• Eight thousand years ago, large areas of the world were
covered with ancient forest.
• As we started to farm, we cut them down for firewood, to
build houses, and then to make ships, and charcoal for our
growing industries.
• Today, as the world’s demand for timber and paper
continues to grow, almost 80% of the original ancient
forests have been logged or degraded, and we are losing an
additional 13 million hectares a year, an area the size of
Greece. As we lose the forest, we also lose the habitat for
many species, including human tribes.
• We must do whatever we can to protect the remaining
ancient forest, both worldwide, and in Canada.
 2. Use Ecoforestry in All Secondary
Forests
• In Switzerland, they banned clearcut logging centuries
ago, when they recognized how it destroyed the soil.
• Here in Canada, however, clearcutting is still practiced
quite widely.
• In 73 countries around the world, including Canada, a
new standard of socially responsible, ecologically
sensitive forestry is being embraced by some
companies, landowners, and First Nations that protects
the forests while their trees are being harvested, and is
certified by the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
 3. Support Canada’s National Forest
Strategy
• Canada has a roadmap which can hopefully guide
our country’s forestry policies, research, and
logging practices towards progressive, ecosystem-
based forest management.
• It is called the National Forest Strategy, and has
been developed in true Canadian style with input
from many stakeholders, including the provinces,
environmental groups, and First Nations.
• Every five years, it is updated and renewed. It
has a brand new “best practices” section, most of
which happen to have been FSC certified.
 4. Ban the Import of Illegally Logged
Timber
• For every mahogany tree in the tropics that is found and illegally cut
down, a bulldozer smashes its way through 60 other trees, all for
that lovely shine that looks so good on the furniture when the
guests come to visit.
• Greenpeace estimates that 90% of the timber produced in the
Amazon is of illegal origin, fuelled by bribes, corruption, and
intimidation.
• The World Bank estimates that the global trade in illegal timber is
worth $15 billion a year, with the US as the largest consumer,
spending $3.8 billion a year.
• One of the solutions is to develop strong federal legislation,
banning its import, to discourage illegal logging in forest areas
where timber harvesting is strictly prohibited
 5. Use Less Paper and Wood
• If you buy it, they will log. The more we buy, the more they log. To
reduce our demand, we can avoid using paper napkins, plates, cups,
and bags.
• We can buy paper made from 100% post-consumer recycled paper,
or from hemp, and be sure to recycle all our waste paper.
• We can try to buy FSC certified wood when we need timber, or
seek out recycled lumber from house deconstructions.
• We can remember that wood and paper are not just “stuff”: they
are made from the living fabric of our planet, home to a myriad
creatures. 11% of the lumber that is cut each year in the US is used
to make 400 million wooden pallets, that end up in bonfires or in
the landfill. That much timber could build 300,000 houses.
• We should ban all wood waste from our landfills, and encourage
the careful deconstruction of unwanted houses, instead of
demolition.