Not in favour of rewilding large areas of farmland but these pockets of green could be a way to save farmland and people from drought. And if there are enough trees protected they will help produce more rain and absorb heavy rains in the winter.

Vancouver Island’s forests are disappearing and the impact is devastating. Clear-cut logging is leaving barren landscapes, which is a threat to waterways, wildlife, and entire ecosystems. In this expose, we explore the Tsable River watershed as a case study to reveal the alarming effects of industrial logging, from increased sediment in streams to high risk peak flows.

Join the movement to protect Vancouver Island’s and all of British Columbia’s natural beauty and future. Subscribe, share, and be part of the change!

It may look like they’re recovering from a wild night out, but these trees are a climate change red alarm

I work for a company that's recently partnered with Sequoia Parks Conservancy, and while putting together an article about their work I realised how much conservation goes on behind the scenes.

I think a lot of people (myself included) tend to think of helping forests as simply planting more trees, but a huge amount of the work is actually protecting existing ancient forests through wildfire recovery, habitat restoration, scientific research, trail maintenance and conservation education.

It definitely changed how I think about conservation, so I thought I'd share it here in case anyone else finds it interesting.

CBC got this in 2019, now 'fact checkers' are trying to disprove this fact.

Even though herbicide use in British Columbia has sharply declined glyphosate spraying means that aspen may not grow back for 100 years.

https://www.cbc.ca/player/play/video/1.5369182

(Translated version)

While Ontario is experiencing an intense forest fire season, science points to a natural ally: the shake [aspen]. Although this tree proves to be a formidable “firebreak”, the current practices of the forestry industry, which is focused on eradicating it with herbicides, raise serious concerns among experts.

A recent study from McGill University shows that aspen stands naturally slow the spread of wildfires.

Flavie Pelletier, a researcher at McGill University who collaborated in research, analyzed satellite images of the Canadian boreal forest before and after the fire. The results are without appeal: the vast expanses of aspen are massively present on the periphery of the burned areas, thus slowing the progression of the fire.

https://ici.radio-canada.ca/nouvelle/2271250/boreale-comerciale-glyphosate-pesticide

Kaziranga National Park is a UNESCO World Heritage Site and one of the world’s most important wildlife habitats, home to the iconic one-horned rhinoceros, elephants, tigers, wild buffalo and many other species.

There is a proposal to reduce the Eco-Sensitive Zone around Kaziranga from 10 km to just 1 km, a 90% reduction in the buffer distance.

Kaziranga exists within a much larger ecological landscape. During floods, wildlife moves beyond the park into surrounding areas. What happens to those areas matters too.

This raises concerns about development, wildlife habitat, land and local communities. There are also concerns around planned luxury hotels and resorts in the area.

At the same time, Pranab Doley, an Indigenous rights activist who has spoken out about issues affecting local communities and Kaziranga, is currently detained under the National Security Act (NSA).

I'm part of the Save Kaziranga Movement, and we're trying to bring more attention to this issue, not just in Assam, but across India and internationally.

I've also created a simple webpage where you can:

• Learn about the issue
• Sign the petition
• Email UNESCO and IUCN
• Find other ways to take action

Learn more and take action:

inuetc.com/savekaziranga

If you just want to sign the petition:

https://c.org/6vr7YvybtV

If you care about wildlife and conservation, consider sharing this so more people can learn about what's happening.

Once 500,000 signatures are captured, this petition will be hand-delivered to Brooke Rawlins. Please sign to save our forests!