Global Warming Needs to Stop
Forests and wild lands store vast reserves of carbon, shielding us from global warming. They must be protected through a strong system of national parks and other protected areas.
Canada's globally important Boreal Forest is already experiencing the stress of global warming, including thawing permafrost, reduced tree growth and survival, and increased incidence of fire and insect damage.
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The Petition Letter You'll be Sending:
Dear Prime Minister Harper,
Global warming due to climate change is the greatest environmental threat facing our society today. I believe we have a unique opportunity to help address global warming by protecting forests.
Forests and wild lands store vast reserves of carbon, shielding us from global warming. At the same time, about 25 per cent of all global emissions come from deforestation and changes in land use.
By protecting existing forests and making better land management decisions we can conserve and enhance existing carbon stores and prevent future greenhouse gas emissions. We can also help plant and animal species adapt to global warming, by giving them time to resist and bounce back from changes to their habitat as a result of the changing climate.
This path to reducing greenhouse gas emissions has other significant benefits. Forests, grasslands, wetlands and other natural ecosystems provide billions of dollars in ecological goods and services — clean air and water, productive soils, forests and oceans, genetic resources for food and pharmaceuticals, pest and disease control, to name just a few.
I call on the Government of Canada to complete its system of National Parks and other protected areas as quickly as possible, and to develop land-use plans that recognize the huge contribution these forests make to the fight against global warming.
How we treat our planet's land and waters, and the ecosystems they support, will have a direct effect on my health, that of my family and of my community.
Thank you for considering my views.
Forests and Global Warming:
Photo: Garth Lenz
Most of the increases in atmospheric CO2 concentrations come from the use of fossil fuels (coal, oil, and natural gas) for energy, but few realize that about 25 per cent of all global emissions come from deforestation and changes in land use, like the clearing of forests and the cultivation of soils for food production.
The carbon stored in trees and soils is released to the atmosphere when forests are cleared and cultivated. When forests regrow, they take back carbon from the atmosphere and store it again in trees and soils.
By protecting existing forests and making better land management decisions we can conserve and enhance existing carbon stores and prevent future greenhouse gas emissions.
What are Forests Worth?
Photo: Chris Beers
Conserving forests supports the Canadian economy:
- A 2005 study of the natural capital values of Canada’s boreal forest estimated that the total non-market value of boreal ecosystem services is $93.2 billion — 2.5 times greater than the net market value of boreal natural capital extraction
- Canadian and US visitor spending on nature related activities in 1996 contributed $12.1 billion to Canada’s Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and sustained 215,000 jobs
- Parks Canada sites alone generate $1.5 billion in visitor spending per year — five times the amount invested by government to operate them — and support 37,600 jobs
- Conserving forests supports Canadian competitiveness in the international marketplace as global consumers seek to buy products from sustainable, healthy ecosystems
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