The assessment conducted by a group of consultants, looks at the economic, environmental, and social impacts of managing Intact Forest Landscapes (IFLs) in Canada and advances our understanding of the characteristics of Intact Forest Landscapes and the impacts of protecting them, in the short to mid-term.
This project was established as a result of Motion 34) passed at FSC’s General Assembly in 2017 requiring FSC to conduct regional assessments around the world of the short and long-term impacts – both positive and negative – of the management and protection measures of associated with the implementation of Motion 65/2014 and the International Generic Indicators.
The consultants in Canada used literature reviews, GIS analysis and mapping and interviews with Indigenous community leaders, forest managers, environmental groups, and others as a basis for their assessment with a primary focus on British Columbia, Ontario, and Quebec.
The sheer number of IFLs in Canadian forest management units (81 tenures have them), limited data, and the high variability across contexts and regions made it difficult to conduct detailed modelling of hypothetical futures. However, there was strong agreement within the standards development group (SDG), consultants and staff that the report should not assert, hypothesize, or make conclusions that went beyond the information and data available.
FSC Canada believes that our collaborative process of working with the SDG to develop IFL requirements, followed by public consultation and testing, is the best mechanism to decide on the management of IFLs. FSC Canada will recommence developing IFL indicators in fall 2021.