As committed stewards of the land, Canada’s professional foresters play a critical ‘boots on the ground’ role in keeping our forests healthy and our communities safer from wildfire risks. As trees age, forests become more susceptible to disturbances such as fire, pest outbreaks, droughts, and storms. Though natural disturbances are normal in the forest, they are becoming more frequent and severe as a result of climate change, jeopardizing not only the health of our forests and the safety of our communities, but also releasing tremendous amounts of carbon dioxide and other GHGs, turning our forests from climate change assets into liabilities.

When we manage forests through carefully planned harvesting and replanting, we can minimize these disturbances, making our communities safer and keeping our forests healthy, while also ensuring ongoing carbon sequestration and storage through forest renewal.