“Triad forest management is a form of zoning under which land is allocated into extensively managed, intensively managed, and reserve zones, with management tailored in each zone such that all objectives are met collectively across the landbase. ” (Montigny and Maclean, 2006).
As applied in N.S.,
– the extensively managed zones are termed the “Ecological Matrix”;
– the intensively managed zones are termed the “High Production Forestry (HPF) sites;
– the Reserve zones are variously termed “Conservation Zones” or the “Protected Lands” 0r “Reserve Zones”
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Collaborative Protected Areas Strategy
NS Government, Dec 2023. “Currently, 13.45 per cent of Nova Scotia is protected or conserved… We will identify, protect, and manage provincially administered lands and
inland waters by identifying lands to support achieving 15 per cent by 2026 and 20 per cent by 2030.”
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Comment: It is inevitable that the major portion of the lands yet to be identified for inclusion in the 20% Protected Area will come from the approx. 948,000 ha of Crown land currently not protected. We currently (Sep. 2024) stand at 13.6% protected (approx 751,402 ha) which leaves 6.4% or approx 353,600 ha to be protected.*
*See Triad Land Distribution for land area figures. “13.6%” is cited in the 2024 Environmental Goals and Climate Change Reduction Act and Climate Change Plan – Progress Report
In the meantime, the government is moving quickly to identify HPF (High Production Forestry) sites, to harvest those sites where appropriate, to build new forestry roads, and to conduct harvests on Matrix lands – all of that well before we know which of current Crown working forest lands will be, or more importantly, should be included in the 20% Protected Area.
The concern is that by not identifying most of these lands before we commit Crown lands to harvest, we will fragment or lose or otherwise degrade a large portion of forested Crown lands that should be priority candidates for protection.