Home Objectives of the Trust Some of our Programs Conservation Research Forest Conservation Private Stewardship Fund Raising Merchandise Adopt an Eagle Protected Properties Membership Contact Us Links	Forest Conservation “[PEI] is one entire forest of wood; all the exceptions to the truth of this literally are not much more, even including the present clearance, than the dark spots upon the moon’s face...” (Walter Johnstone, 1821). From the time of Prince Edward Island’s early aboriginal inhabitants until well into the 19th century, the Island was blanketed with what is sometimes called the Acadian Forest. Upland areas were dominated by a mixture of beech, yellow birch, sugar maple and red spruce, with scatterings of pine, oak and fir, among others. In lower, wetter areas, trees such as elm, ash, cedar, hemlock and black spruce would have been found. By 1900, roughly 70% of the Island had been cleared and much of the rest had been cut-over to varying degrees. Today, just over 50% of the province is forested, but very little of this resembles our original forest. Only a few hundred acres of these older growth stands are protected. In an effort to protect more of our Acadian-type forest, Island Nature Trust has developed an extensive forest conservation program. In 1998, we began a review of every forest stand on PEI searching for areas that have characteristics of the original forest and/or that have rare forest species such as ironwood, ash, or oak. Our Geographic Information System (GIS) identified over 200 individual properties in 58 areas of the Island. In 1999 (after securing permission from landowners) we began the job of visiting each of these areas to assess the forest. During the site visits, we determined how closely the woodland resembles descriptions of the original Acadian Forest, and inventory what tree, plant and other wildlife species are present. Landowners of forests that passed the assessment were then contacted with information about how they can voluntarily protect their lands and what incentives are available. To date, nearly 10% of the landowners contacted agreed to legally protect their woodlands.  Despite some roadblocks in the provincial land protection system, we will continue to visit new sites and contact landowners, encouraging them to protect their forests. This project is linked with our Research and Private Stewardship programs. The forest assessments have added greatly to our knowledge of the plants of Prince Edward Island. In 1999 alone, two plant species new to PEI were found and many new site locations for some of our rarest flora were identified. The landowners contacted through our forest conservation work are incorporated into our Private Stewardship program. We maintain contact with them should they wish to protect their lands in the future. This work was supported by Wildlife Habitat Canada and World Wildlife Fund’s Local Action Fund, with in-kind assistance from the Government of Prince Edward Island. We were able to continue site visits and landowner contact in 2000 thanks to the generous support of Mountain Equipment Co-op and the McCain Foundation.
ISLAND NATURE TRUST P.O. Box 265 Charlottetown PE C1A 7K4 Phone: (902) 566-9150 | Fax: (902) 628-6331 email: intrust@isn.net