Protecting Forests

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Abstract

Approximately 7.6% of Canada's forest land is located in protected areas. Over 95% of protected forests are totally protected and the rest reflect degrees of human intervention such as logging, mining and agriculture. This map shows all the protected areas in Canada.

There are many kinds of protected areas in Canada. The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN), has established five categories of protection according to increasing degrees of human intervention permitted. These categories range from 'strictly protected', where industrial activities such as logging, mining, and agriculture are not permitted, to a degree of human intervention that does not conflict with the overall objective of conserving natural systems.

In Canada, 7.6% of forested land is found in protected areas and half of these forested lands are strictly protected. In the ecozones of the Pacific Maritime and Montane Cordillera, almost all of the protected forests are strictly protected. In the Boreal Shield ecozone, it is less than half of the protected forests that are stricly protected. In the Atlantic Maritime ecozone, it is one quarter.

Protected areas, or conservation areas, include parks, wildlife sanctuaries, wilderness reserves and other areas designated by federal, provincial and territorial governments, and are managed for conservation purposes. This map shows all the conservation areas in Canada.