Please consider all of the…

Please consider all of the following content from a variety of respected conservation and scientific organizational sources:

The boreal population of caribou was already assessed as threatened when the Endangered Species Act took effect in 2008.(www.ontario.ca/page/caribou-boreal-population)

This vast forest is home to billions of migratory songbirds, half of North America's waterfowl, vast caribou herds, healthy populations of wolf, moose, grizzly bears, and an abundance of game fish like lake trout, northern pike and walleyes. Canada's boreal forest is important to our well-being because it is one of the largest reservoirs of fresh water in the world. This remarkable region helps shield us from global warming by storing more carbon in its soils, forests and wetlands than any other ecosystem on the planet. Even with the tremendous globally significant benefits the boreal forest provides, only 8% of it is protected across Canada and, at present, a mere 12% in Ontario. (Ontario Nature)

Caribou - Disturbance levels on the Black Spruce forest are too high – way above thresholds identified by Environment Canada to sustain caribou populations. Scientists have shown a strong link between landscape disturbance (caused by forestry, roads, development, fires, etc.) and calf survival rates. The Black Spruce forest overlaps with the Brightsand caribou range, located west of Lake Nipigon and north of Thunder Bay, where caribou populations are declining. Studies published last year by the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) showed the Brightsand caribou range has one of the lowest annual caribou survival rates in the province, with an average rate of population decline at 13 percent per year. Calf survival is also below the number required for a stable population, and according to MNRF these rates “indicate low recovery potential.” (Ontario Nature

Caribou Conservation

Populations of forest-dwelling caribou have receded in the face of industrial forestry in Ontario. (https://canada.wcs.org/Wild-Places/Northern-Ontario-Boreal-Forest.aspx)

Wolverine Conservation

Wolverines have a low tolerance for changes caused by industrial development, particularly roads, and they are affected by changes in snow pack. (https://canada.wcs.org/Wild-Places/Northern-Ontario-Boreal-Forest.aspx)

Freshwater Fish Conservation

The lakes and rivers in northern Ontario represent one of the largest areas of high fish biodiversity experiencing the least amount of human alteration. Five of the 12 remaining undammed and unregulated watersheds in North America south of 55 degrees latitude are in northern Ontario. WCS is focusing on understanding how coldwater fish like lake trout and brook trout respond to warmer temperatures due to climate change. We are also looking at ways to understand the impacts of dams on lake sturgeon populations and of fish stocking and climate change on smallmouth bass invasions using genetic analyses. Finally, we are examining how increased road access to previously remote lakes impacts fisheries. (https://canada.wcs.org/Wild-Places/Northern-Ontario-Boreal-Forest.aspx)

Woodland caribou habitat will decline in the Ogoki-Kenogami Endangered Forest Area by 57% if logging continues as planned. (http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…)

Five Endangered Forest Areas in Quebec, Ontario and Manitoba were identified as being priorities for immediate protection. These areas supply forest products to the global marketplace. As a first step, moratoria on logging and roadbuilding in these areas must be implemented by forest products companies until conservation planning can be completed. Until then, products from these areas will threaten their High Conservation Values, will be a reputational risk for customers and will likely violate existing procurement policies. (http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…)

Ogoki-Kenogami Forest

Size: 1,800,014 hectares
Intact: 84.1%
Legally protected: 5%
Habitat for species at risk?: YES

Logging/Management company: Under management by Ontario Government (pending transfer)
Mills supplied from this Endangered Forest Area: Terrace Bay pulp mill
Ontario has the third largest area of intact Boreal Forest in Canada, after Quebec and the Northwest Territories. As in Quebec, decades of logging have fragmented Ontario’s forests. More than 70% of Ontario’s commercial forest has already been fragmented by logging and other industrial development14, and unfortunately only 11.3% of the province’s allocated forests are protected.15 If the current pace of development continues, the remaining intact forests in Ontario’s commercial Boreal Forest will disappear by 2025. (http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…)

In Ontario, the Ogoki Forest and the northern part of the Kenogami Forest are at the northern extent of the managed forest. At nearly 2 million hectares, this Endangered Forest Area has significant High Conservation Value due to the presence of threatened caribou herds and wolverine, its relative intactness, carbon storage, presence of wetlands, river and lakes, and its proximity to an existing large protected area. The forest licenses for the Ogoki-Kenogami Endangered Forest Areas are currently held by the Ontario Government (pending transfer). Less than 5% of the region is protected and the forest’s remaining intact areas have been allocated for logging. The Matawa Tribal Council, representing ten First Nations whose traditional territories overlap with this tenure, launched a lawsuit against the Ontario government in 2007 for failing to consult with them on logging operations. These forests supply the Terrace Bay pulp mill, recently purchased by rayon manufacturer Grasim Industries (BSE: 500300, NSE: GRASIM), a subsidiary of the multinational Aditya Birla Group. A new company, AV Terrace Bay, has been created to manage the mill. As part of the purchase agreement, the provincial government forgave a $24.2 million loan that had been granted to the mill. The Terrace Bay mill, which re-opened in early October 2012, could viably operate using wood from areas already impacted by industrial activity and of lesser ecological value, yet intact areas are currently allocated to supply this mill. The mill is currently geared for the production of northern bleached softwood kraft pulp but will be converted to produce dissolving pulp for the manufacture of viscose staple fiber to be used in textiles in the next two years.
(http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…)

Trout Lake - Caribou Forest

Size: 1,617,536 hectares
Intact: 86.6%
Legally protected: 8%
Habitat for species at risk?: YES

Logging/Management company: Resolute Forest Products, Domtar Corporation Mills supplied from this
Endangered Forest Area: Resolute Forest Products Thunder Bay paper, pulp and saw mills, Domtar Dryden pulp mill
The Trout Lake-Caribou Endangered Forest Area is prized for its caribou habitat including important calving areas. Largely intact, relative to other areas of managed forest in Ontario, this Endangered Forest Area contains significant High Conservation Values currently under threat. (http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…) Trout Lake Forest is licensed to Domtar (NYSE/TSX: USF). The forest supplies the Dryden NBSK pulp mill, which has FSC chain of custody certification (SWCOC-001318). Due to the fact that High Conservation Values in this forest are under serious threat, in fall 2010 Greenpeace raised concerns with the company that wood from this forest is not compliant with the FSC controlled wood designation. The company subsequently agreed to pursue full FSC forest management certification on this forest to ensure ecological values are protected. However FSC alone will not be adequate - a large network of protected areas is required to preserve the values in this Endangered Forest. "According to the current Forest Management Plan for Trout Lake, there will be a 27% loss of caribou habitat in the forest if planned logging operations proceed."17 Connected by a thin band of intact forest along the northern limits of the allocated forest, the Trout Lake Forest is connected to the Caribou Forest. The Caribou Forest includes the entirety of the range of the Brightsand caribou herd. This forest, 718 217 hectares large, is valued for its intactness, carbon stores, and many other ecological values. Just to the south of the Caribou Forest, a small portion of the adjacent English River Forest also serves as important caribou habitat and a buffer to the Wabikimi Wilderness Park. Less than 8% of these two forests are legally protected and logging threatens identified High Conservation Values. There is currently no sciencebased conservation plan completed for the area. The FSC certificate for the Caribou Forest (SW-FM/COC004570) is not compliant with the FSC National Boreal Standard for failing to set aside adequate protected areas and for adopting a caribou management plan that allows continued decline of the species. A complaints process was initiated in August 2012 for violation FSC Principles 6, 7 and 9 of the FSC standard. "The FSC certificate for the Caribou Forest (SW-FM/COC-004570) is not compliant with the FSC National Boreal Standard..." Resolute Forest Products is the major operator in the Caribou and English River forests. The fiber collected is used to supply the company's Thunder Bay saw, pulp and paper mills with a capacity of 300 million board feet of lumber and 574,000 metric tonnes of market pulp, newsprint and commercial printing paper. It also supplies the Fort Frances pulp mill which produces 254,000 metric tons of market pulp and commercial printing paper per year. "According to a provincial forest audit of the Caribou Forest, woodland caribou habitat will decline in the forest by 42% over the planning cycle, if operations continue as planned." (http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…) Areas conserved should be considerably larger than the size of any possible natural disturbance22. In Boreal forests, natural fires commonly burn across 100,000 hectares and in some cases even exceed 500,000 hectares23. Such a large-scale natural disturbance means that creating very large protected areas is needed in order to maintain the natural diversity of growth stages in forests (areas that are naturally disrupted, young forests, old-growth forests, etc.) and their associated biodiversity24. A review of more than 159 scientific works shows that the scientific community recommends between 30% and 50% targets for conserving biodiversity and maintaining ecological functions in any given ecosystem.25 Studies in northeastern North America show that the average minimum area required to maintain large mammals is at least 500,000 hectares, or 5,000 km2 . 26 However, in Boreal forests, the area required to protect mammals is larger. Woodland caribou is the species with the largest range, from 150,000 hectares to more than 900,000 hectares (1,500 km2 to 9,000 km2 ) Therefore areas of this magnitude should be protected in the Boreal Forest to ensure their survival. Conservation science and practical on-the-ground experience demonstrate that, in the absence of a comprehensive network of protected areas, simply improving how logging takes place is not sufficient in itself to preserve biodiversity and ecological functions over the long term in the Boreal Forest. Conservation planning must be carried out at multiple scales that, when combined, provide guidance on where and how much of the forest must be preserved to ensure ecological integrity. This should then be followed by the identification of a connected protected areas network, a reserve system and improved logging practices. Together, these elements provide the foundation for an integrated plan for managing the forest in a precautionary manner that is implemented by governments and verified by FSC. FSC must be paired with legal protection of intact forests if biodiversity and ecological function are to be maintained over time. (http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…) Biodiversity and Species at Risk: In Canada, intact Boreal forests play an important role in maintaining healthy ecosystems and threatened species. The Boreal Forest contains rich array of wildlife, including half of Canada's bird population, as well as wolves, bears, waterfowl, and species at risk such as woodland caribou and wolverine28. Because of variation in soil, climate, and landscape over the boreal region, the forest has a wide variety of tree species and ages, which support a multitude of wildlife species29. Woodland caribou are an iconic boreal species. With a low tolerance for human activity, they require up to 9,000 km² of undisturbed Boreal forest to survive30. They are also considered an "umbrella species", meaning that maintaining caribou across the landscape ensures the survival of dozens of other species that share the same habitat31. The health of woodland caribou is a key indicator of the overall health of the Boreal. (http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…) Carbon: Intact areas also play a critically important role in mitigating global climate change because of their capacity as carbon storehouses and sinks. The Boreal region holds some of the highest quantities of terrestrial carbon in the world32; an estimated 208 billion tonnes of carbon are stored33. In addition to these immense carbon reservoirs34, recent studies show that old-growth areas in the Boreal Forest are active sinks that capture carbon from the atmosphere for hundreds of years. (http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…) Woodland caribou: Woodland caribou, once abundant throughout Canada's Boreal Forest have suffered a dramatic decline in the last 100 years. Logging and road-building and the resulting fragmentation of the forest lead directly (loss of habitat, disturbance)37 and indirectly (increase in predation)38 to the extirpation of woodland caribou. According to caribou scientists, 77 to 84% of a woodland caribou population's range must stay intact (without natural or human disturbance) for the species to have a 70% likelihood of survival over 100 years39. Once the total disturbance in a given range has passed 38%, a population is no longer self-sustaining, and it will decline and eventually become extinct. The majority of caribou herds in Canada are no longer self-sustaining40. This indicates that Canada's Boreal Forest is under severe stress and its ecological values at risk. (http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…) Endangered Forest Areas require immediate protection from industrial threats. The fate of threatened wildlife species, such as woodland caribou, as well other ecological values such as biodiversity, air and water quality and carbon storage, rest in the balance. Science indicates that not nearly enough of Canada's Boreal Forest is protected to ensure that these important ecological values are conserved. Logging continues to be a primary threat to Boreal Forest in general, and to the Endangered Forest Areas identified in this report. At this moment, logging is degrading these last intact forests.

(http://www.greenpeace.org/canada/Global/canada/report/2013/01/HotSpotRe…)
Please consider the whole following article: https://www.nrdc.org/experts/anthony-swift/maps-show-steady-decline-ont…
It is summarized as:
How to Protect Boreal Caribou
While these maps tell a concerning story about the plight of boreal caribou in Ontario, the story doesn’t need to have a tragic end. With strong environmental policies, caribou ranges could be protected and restored. For example, Ontario’s own reports note that southern parts of the Churchill range have “the potential to be renewed to suitable habitat” but are “not currently on track to do so.”
However, Ontario just missed an important federal deadline for releasing caribou range protection plans, and its strategies around boreal caribou toothlessly contain no enforceable protections for critical habitat. Ontario has also gutted its own Endangered Species Act by giving industry broad exemptions that allow logging companies and other industries to degrade threatened species’ habitats.
While these facts are enormously disappointing, Ontario can still protect its boreal caribou, but it needs to act quickly.
Ontario can prevent the trend of declining caribou habitat by immediately halting new industrial activity in the critical habitat of caribou ranges that have exceeded 35% disturbance. Ontario should prepare long-term range plans with the consent and partnership of Indigenous Peoples. The province should repeal the Endangered Species Act exemptions it gifted to industry, and it should implement mandatory and enforceable protections against critical habitat destruction.
The federal government, meanwhile, has a critical new opportunity to step in and protect caribou, especially now that Ontario and other provinces have missed the federal deadline for submitting range plans. Under Canada’s Species at Risk Act, Canada has the authority to assess which areas remain unprotected, and conserve the vulnerable habitats that need protection.
Time is running out for the boreal caribou. This is the moment for Canada’s federal and provincial governments to demonstrate that they are, in fact, committed to protecting Canada’s iconic caribou. Time will not delay, and if they are to save this treasured species, neither can Canada’s governments. https://www.thestar.com/opinion/commentary/2017/10/25/will-anyone-act-t…
Boreal woodland caribou have been scientifically assessed as threatened with extinction across Canada. Of 51 populations of boreal woodland caribou recognized in the federal recovery strategy, 37 were shown to be declining. They need large, intact swathes of boreal forest to survive, and that habitat is disappearing. In Ontario, a major driver of their decline is industrial logging and logging roads, which fragment their habitat and alter predator-prey dynamics by giving wolves new and effective ways to hunt them. More than five years ago, under the federal Species at Risk Act, the Canadian government appointed a blue-ribbon panel of scientists to identify the habitat caribou need to survive and recover. These scientists discovered a relationship between the amount of disturbance in a caribou range and whether a population increased or declined. Below a certain level of usable habitat, caribou populations begin to wane. Using this analysis, the federal government directed provinces to complete caribou range plans to maintain or restore the habitat boreal caribou need to survive. The provinces and territories were given five years from the Oct. 5, 2012, release of the federal recovery strategy, but failed to produce range plans. In Ontario, the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry is responsible for preparing these plans and overseeing species at risk protection and recovery. Not only did the provincial ministry miss the federal deadline for caribou range plans, it spent the last decade kowtowing to industrial lobbying at the expense of caribou recovery. Under the ministry’s watch, the logging industry was granted a five-year exemption from Ontario’s Endangered Species Act, the provincial law designed to ensure human activities do not harm a species or destroy its habitat. Instead of implementing caribou recovery plans, the government has allowed logging and logging roads to continue to expand into unfragmented forests, causing critical caribou habitat to be lost. Scientists have warned that delays in addressing industrial expansion will result in a lower likelihood of recovery. When the Oct. 5 deadline came and went without so much as a boo from Ontario, an unnamed ministry spokesperson had this to say: The “ministry has been exploring possible solutions that protect species-at-risk and their habitat, minimize impacts on forest operations and wood supply, and provide economic opportunities for communities in Northern Ontario.” The ministry’s interest in minimizing impacts on industry is likely because logging levels in the province have declined by approximately 40 per cent since their early-2000s peak. The internet and a disappearing newspaper industry mean fewer pulp and paper mills are operating. Declining logging levels should be seen as an opportunity for solutions that allow caribou and logging to coexist, instead of the foot-dragging we’ve seen from the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry. Scientists know what is needed to manage boreal woodland caribou habitat to advance their recovery. Innovative ways to manage forests for both caribou conservation and a healthy economy have been proposed in the province. But the only way caribou will survive is if their needs are addressed at the same time as logging plans. The failure of the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry to produce and release caribou range plans as required by the federal government is more than just an embarrassment; it’s an abrogation of its responsibility to Ontarians to set limits to the continual expansion of the industrial footprint in the boreal forest and to steward the boreal so that it continues to support abundant wildlife populations. It is time for somebody else to manage the endangered species in our forests. Clearly the “Ministry of Wood” can’t or won’t. Rachel Plotkin is the Ontario science projects manager for the David Suzuki Foundation. Tim Gray is the executive director of Environmental Defence.
Please include pages 31 to 35 of "Progress Report on the State of Boreal Caribou Critical Habitat Protection in Canada" By Wildlands League October 2017 related to Ontario which can be found as a document on the following website: http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/sudbury/caribou-boreal-species-protect-wi…
Please include the content and recommendations from the following source:
Ontario's Threatened Bird Nursery https://www.wildernesscommittee.org/sites/all/files/publications/2009_b…

Boreal Forest Bird Nursery
The Yellow Rail is a threatened species that breeds in Canada’s boreal forest
What makes Canada’s boreal forest one of the most productive places for breeding birds in the world?Water.
The wetlands and waterways of the boreal play a crucial role in providing a feast of insects and fish for the one to three billion birds that breed in the boreal every year.
While the boreal forest wetlands provide abundant habitat for a multitude of wildlife, birds are the most visible. With spring at our doorstep, billions of birds will soon be returning from their wintering grounds after a long migration. Their return coincides with a surge in available food throughout the boreal forest.
Insects are hatched from the multitude of water bodies as soon as the ice melts, yielding a protein bonanza for the birds’ survival. Swarms of midges, mosquitoes, black flies and a host of other insects define the months of June and July in the boreal. Many species of birds, and later their young, take full advantage of this rich food source and its abundant larvae. Boreal breeding birds and their offspring also feed on fish and aquatic invertebrates that live in the waterways.
All birds – landbirds, waterfowl, waterbirds and shorebirds – that breed in the boreal, depend the wetlands for safety, shelter and food so that they can successfully raise their broods and prepare for risky migration across vast distances.

Quick Facts:
An estimated 38% of all waterfowl of Canada and the United States breed in the boreal forest
As many as seven million shorebirds are estimated to use the boreal’s wetlands for breeding. The boreal forest supports more than 50% of the global population of 96 bird species.
( http://naturecanada.ca/news/boreal-forest-bird-nursery-of-the-north/ )

[Original Comment ID: 212640]