It's rare that success comes on such a scale so this is one worth celebrating. The provincial government of British Columbia in Canada has announced the protection of 2 million hectares of ancient forest with strict ecological management for the rest.
It's the impressive result of a 10-year campaign fought by a coalition of environmental groups, including Greenpeace, Forest Ethics, Rainforest Action Network and the British Columbia chapter of the Sierra Club.
The victory means 33 per cent of the rainforest will be permanently protected, an area twice the size of America's Yellowstone National Park. By 2009, the remainder will only be open to loggers who maintain a strict ecosystem-based management system, making exploitation of the forest's natural resources totally sustainable.
The newly protected areas of the Great Bear Rainforest
"The world's last ancient forests need a global network of protected areas to survive," said Gavin Edwards, Global Forest Campaign Coordinator at Greenpeace International, "and the Great Bear Rainforest is a good start."
"Today's announcement plants the seeds to safeguard this global treasure," said Amanda Carr, forest campaigner for Greenpeace Canada, "but the true measure of success will be signs of change on the ground and in the forest, Greenpeace will be watching to see if the British Columbian Government follows through on these commitments."
The benefits will be immense as the forest is home to a variety of threatened or endangered species. It boasts bald eagles, northern goshawks, wolves, salmon, grizzly bears, black bears and white 'Spirit' bears, as well as 1,000-year-old cedar trees and ancient spruce.
In addition, the 25 First Nations whose traditional territories include the Great Bear Rainforest will be involved in the management of their lands.
An innovative $120m financing package will be created to fund conservation management projects and ecologically sustainable business ventures. To date, $90m of this has already been raised with $30m coming from the provincial government, but the Canadian government still has to stump up its $30m share.
The protection of the Great Bear Rainforest is a fantastic success and one that has seen results even before this historic announcement. Since 1995, the campaign waged by Greenpeace and our collaborators has caused many consumers, both domestic and industrial, to refuse products made from ancient forest timber.
This is a remarkable achievement and we would like to thank all our supporters for your help in securing it.
