Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement

The Canadian Boreal Forest Agreement (CBFA) is a collaborative, multi-year agreement that was signed in 2010 by major Canadian forest companies belonging to the Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) and environmental groups. The agreement commits signatories to achieving strategic goals that address both environmental and economic sustainability in the boreal forest. The geographic scope of the agreement spans more than 72 million hectares of boreal forest across Canada.

Although Canfor and Canfor Pulp remain committed to the CBFA, it was acknowledged by all parties that changes are needed to create a more effective and responsive implementation model that will be able to engage more proactively with local communities, provincial governments, First Nations and other non-signatory environmental groups who share our commitment. Industry will lead this new project framework, however, we remain committed to working collaboratively with our existing ENGO partners.

The CBFA continues to be an exemplary model for a cooperative conservation agreement and the support of the Canadian government in showcasing this to other countries remains a key component of the environmental mandate of the Canadian government.

Canfor staff are actively involved with CBFA activities in both Alberta and British Columbia. The current work plan is focused on an area in west central Alberta, which includes a portion of our Grande Prairie Forest Management Area, as well as a scoping project of all the mountain and boreal caribou initiatives in British Columbia.

We continue to participate on the national working groups, including Goal 1 World Leading Boreal Forest Practices and Goal 4 Climate Change. The Goal 1 group endorsed a way to implement forest management practices through use of an approach called natural range of variation. It is anticipated that the Goal 4 work will ultimately become part of FPAC’s "30 By 30" Climate Change Challenge, which will support the Canadian government’s objectives in achieving its CO₂ emissions reduction target.