|
|
FORESTRY BACKGROUNDCanada is leading the way in responsible forest management with some 145 million hectares of certified forest land. Canada has the largest area of certified forests of any country in the world. Having maintained over 90 per cent of its original forest cover, Canada is already a global leader in balanced forest, protection and use. Today, Canadian forest companies are embracing certification as a natural step in sustainable forest management. These are numbers that the industry is very proud of and believe they are important statistics for the purpose of further educating the general public. In Nova Scotia forests cover over four million hectares, or 75 per cent of the province of Nova Scotia. These forests are a diverse and productive resource providing citizens of our province with environmental, economic, social and cultural benefits. Indeed, primary forestry and related manufacturing is the industrial anchor of the Nova Scotia economy. An Atlantic Provinces Economic Council (APEC) study commissioned by FPANS in October 2005 concluded that Nova Scotia's forestry industry generated an estimated $695 million in provincial GDP in that year, directly and indirectly employed approximately 11,000 Nova Scotians and exported over $1 billion worth of products internationally. Including indirect effects on other industries, the forest industry accounts for an estimated 3.6 per cent of the province's employment and GDP.
|
|
