Room to Grow

Signed in 1999, the Ontario Forest Accord (OFA) is an historic agreement through which the conservation community, the forest industry and the Ontario government would build a new, more constructive relationship for the future. The Accord replaced confrontation with cooperation and linked the interests of the conservation movement, the forest industry, the government, and the people of Ontario to progress through shared solutions.

Using the Accord as a foundation for progress, representatives of the forest industry, the Partnership for Public Lands (Ontario Nature, CPAWS - Wildlands League and World Wildlife Fund Canada) and the provincial government agreed to a series of commitments. Among these commitments was the “Room to Grow” policy framework that sets out how permanent increases in wood supplies will be shared between new parks and protected areas to complete ecological representation, and more wood for the forest industry to support jobs and growth.

In July 2003, the Room to Grow framework was legally enshrined through the Timber Class Environmental Assessment. The Room to Grow Policy contains three specific objectives:

• To identify the gaps in Ontario’s parks and protected areas system;
• To benchmark and secure the long-term supply of wood necessary for industrial processing; and,
• To share permanent increases in wood supplies between gaps in parks and protected areas.

All of the objectives and strategies outlined in the policy will be achieved without compromising ecological, social and economic principles as required by the 1994 Crown Forest Sustainability Act.

Status

Ontario Nature is working with its partners to ensure that the government meets its commitments under the Room to Grow framework. Proposals for mill expansions in both Northwestern and Northeastern Ontario have ‘triggered’ Room to Grow.

The Ontario Nature protected areas team has been involved in discussions with the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) with the objective of identifying and moving new candidate protected areas forward for consideration. Areas are identified using conservation value identification mapping agreed upon by the Room to Grow Task Group, made up of industry, conservation and government representatives, and applying two “gap analysis” methodologies developed by MNR and World Wildlife Fund Canada respectively.

The “gap analysis” discussions represent the preliminary technical stage of a longer process that must consider other stakeholder and First Nations interests in the proposed candidate areas.

For more information about Room to Grow visit the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources website: www.ontarioslivinglegacy.com/spectrasites/internet/oll/ofaab.cfm