CPAWS Work in Saskatchewan's Boreal Forest
Finding the Balance Between Development and Conservation

An economic boom is currently underway in Saskatchewan's forest, as society searches for and removes uranium, minerals, timber, diamonds, oil and gas, peat, rare-earth elements, wild rice, fish, wildlife, etc. We believe that Saskatchewan can have both economic development and healthy forests. But resource exploration and extraction activities are currently expanding without adequate conservation and appropriate land use planning measures. CPAWS is working with others to help fix this problem.

CPAWS Work
Our chapter works with many different people in communities, governments, industries and other non-profit organizations to establish broadly supported land use solutions. Our current projects include:

1. Conservation-based land use planning

Conservation-based land use planning looks at how people can responsibly use the land and its resources, understanding that long-lasting livelihoods depend on a healthy ecosystem. Safeguarding the health of the land is a primary objective in all decision-making. CPAWS is promoting this kind of planning in Northern Saskatchewan.

Learn more about conservation-based planning...

2. Woodland Caribou Recovery and Habitat Planning
Woodland caribou are disappearing in Saskatchewan, mostly because of change caused by human activities like commercial timber harvesting. CPAWS SK has been a member of the provincial woodland caribou recovery planning team, working to preserve critical caribou habitat so that the caribou will survive. Learn more ....

You can help. Visit our caribou online action centre.

	Nistowiak Falls. Photo by Branimir Gjetvaj

3. Protection of the Churchill River

The Churchill River is series of lovely, interconnected lakes that flow from west to east across the province's northern forest. The Churchill is rich in beauty, heritage and nature... worthy of extra-special care. CPAWS is working with others to help protect this important place. Learn more...

4. Public Education and Outreach for Forest Conservation

Many people in Saskatchewan are excited about new opportunities for economic prosperity, but few are aware of the consequences that unchecked development coupled with poor planning will bring. CPAWS is reaching out to citizens to tell the about the issues and the solutions.

CPAWS Vision

Protection: At the landscape level, our vision for protection in the boreal forest is a robust network of protected areas representing and linking many different types of ecosystems. Many human activities like tourism and traditional harvests can take place in these protected spaces, but they must tread softly on the land. Industrial developments like clear-cutting and mining are not allowed

The map to the right depicts a vision for protection in the unallocated part of the boreal forest. By unallocated, we refer to places that have not been licensed to logging companies.

The sites and connectors on the map (in orange) are based on landscape analyses of high conservation values (e.g. high biological diversity, pristine places) and analyses of representation of ecosystem types.

The network of protected areas is an initial vision for what is needed in the forest. As more data becomes available the protected area network will be enhanced. These sites, if linked and managed well, are probably large enough to help a lot in maintaining the long-term health of native species.

Careful Land Use: Outside of this protected areas network, human activities must support sustainable economies by embracing world-leading resource management practices.

In recent years, much of our work has been in regions of the forest that lie mostly north of the Churchill River. It is important to point out that lands south of the Churchill are highly deficient in protection. The map here shows a CPAWS vision for the regions that we are currently working in. But we recognize there is great need to do protected areas working in the southern forest.

Take Action

There are many things that citizens can do to support conservation in the forest. For example,

financially support CPAWS so that we can continue our work

learn about the issues and tell your friends, neighbours and co-workers

write to you provincial elected representatives, explaining your concerns and asking for specific actions

participate in CPAWS public events

Action Notice: We encourage you to visit our Caribou and You website where you can learn more about the plight of the woodland caribou and view our online action centre. If we take care of the caribou and their habitat, it is a big step towards preserve our beautiful boreal forest.

Summary of CPAWS Projects and Areas of Interest in the Forest:

LEARN MORE:

CPAWS Work An overview of CPAWS Saskatchewan's work.

CPAWS WORK: On the Prairie Links to CPAWS Saskatchewan projects and areas of interest on the Prairie.