The Issue: Logging in Threatened Caribou Habitat
Critical habitat for two of Alberta’s most threatened caribou herds, the Little Smoky and A La Peche, is being clearcut by logging companies in Western Alberta, Canada. Much of the wood from these forests is being used by 'West Fraser' in their Hinton pulp mill which supplies pulp to tissue product giant Kimberly-Clark. Logging continues in the face of multiple scientific reports that have concluded that if logging continues to occur, the caribou herd will decline rapidly, resulting in possible extinction within 37 years.
The Location: Western Alberta, Canada wilderness
West Fraser is logging in an area of boreal forest located in the Rocky Mountain and Foothills wilderness areas of western Alberta, Canada. This forest has been intact since the last Ice Age, approximately 10,000 years ago.
The Species at Risk: Caribou, Grizzlies and other Rare Wildlife
Over the last 20 years, the Little Smoky woodland caribou herd has declined by 20 percent. A 2004 University of Alberta study found that “the caribou population would be seven times larger without development in its habitat.” In addition to woodland caribou, many species, including cougar, lynx, grey wolf, and grizzly bear are threatened by logging in this region. The Foothills contains close to 20% of Alberta’s grizzly population, which is not only itself endangered, but also an important umbrella species for conservation. In fact, statistical modeling by the University of Alberta has shown that grizzy bear habitat will be entirely displaced in the next 30 years, if logging, oil and gas companies continue with current practices. The area also provides crucial habitat to raptors that are dependent on old-growth forests, including the barred owl. Almost all of these species are listed under Canada’s federal Species at Risk Act and the Alberta Wildlife Act due to their need for vast undisturbed habitat and their slow reproductive rates.
-West Fraser Timber Company Ltd-
West Fraser is a forest products company that produces lumber, plywood, and pulp to make tissue paper and newsprint. The West Fraser pulp mill in Hinton, Alberta, produces approximately 468,400 tons of pulp each year. Many of the old-growth trees that 'feed' West Fraser's mill come from forests containing the habitat of endangered caribou. In 2004, West Fraser conducted its own caribou habitat assessment report which concluded that logging was hurting caribou populations, yet the company continues to use trees from caribou habitat for its mill.
West Fraser claims that it is committed to responsible stewardship of the environment, relying heavily on their certification by the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) and Sustainable Forest Initiative (SFI). Both of these groups receive more than 80 percent of their funding from forest industry associations; their ecological standards are simply not credible. For example, West Fraser’s logging plans certified by CSA and SFI would, over time, eliminate 80 to 100 percent of older trees that are between 80 and 160 years old.
-Kimberly-Clark-
Kimberly-Clark purchases pulp from the West Fraser pulp mill in Hinton, Alberta, despite claims that it holds suppliers to high standards of sustainability. Kimberly-Clark buys most of its pulp from logging operations that have not been certified under the Forest Stewardship Council's management and certification system -- the only credible measure of sustainability.
-Alberta Government-
The Alberta government awarded West Fraser a forest management area for the period of June 15, 1988 to June 14, 2008, consisting of 999,559 hectares of publicly owned land (more than 2.4 million acres). In June 2005, the Alberta government decided to ignore the recommendation of a committee of industry, government, scientific and environmental representatives—a committee assembled by the government itself--calling for an end to new logging in critical caribou habitat.
The facts at a glance
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Location:
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Rocky Mountain and Foothills wilderness in western Alberta
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Size of Hinton Forest:
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1 million hectares (2.4 million acres)
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Preferred method of logging:
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clearcutting
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Age of forest:
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growing since last Ice Age, approximately 10,000 years ago
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Wildlife in forest:
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grizzly bears, woodland caribou, wolverine, cougar, elk
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Age of trees being cut:
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70 to 180+ years old
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Company logging forest:
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West Fraser Timber
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Pulp mill being supplied:
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West Fraser pulp mill, Hinton, Alberta
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Amount of pulp produced:
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425,000 tonnes (468,400 tons) per year
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Major customer of West Fraser:
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Kimberly-Clark
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Example of forest crime:
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West Fraser's Hinton pulp mlls continues to use trees from threatened caribou habitat.
