The Plus - Habitat Restoration
Each one of our Carbon Plus Credits represents a home for the plants and animals that live in the boreal region. Our goal is to create diverse and dynamic forests that will be representative of the original boreal ecosystem that once existed on the land. This will lead to increased biodiversity beyond plant life as insects, mammals and birds begin utilizing the habitat. In a recent visit to our first forest, we were delighted to find more than a dozen deer browsing, a red squirrel scampering and a bald eagle perched nearby!
The boreal region where Our Forests are located is of vital importance to many of our natural systems. Ecosystem services provided by the boreal, such as carbon storage and water filtration, are worth 2.5 times more than the value of extracting resources such as minerals and timber. Did you know that:
- more than 30 percent of North America's bird population relies on the boreal for breeding and 325 bird species depend on boreal shelter during the course of their lives;
- the boreal is home to large populations of wolves, bears, moose and a number of smaller animals; and
- boreal ecosystems contain more than 80 percent of the world's liquid freshwater.
Habitat loss is an increasing issue in the boreal region and across the world, but by becoming one of Our Offsetters you will be doing your part to reverse the trend of deforestation and fragmentation. Society can balance development with environmental stewardship and The Carbon Farmer Inc. is part of the solution. While it is no secret that the Earth's original forests have been significantly impacted by human activity (see below), there is no reason why Our Forests can not renew some of their former grandeur.
Source: About Canada's Boreal
Source: The Boreal Forest at Risk: A Progress Report
Original Forests: Original, intact forests 8,000 years ago and today
Source: http://www.borealcanada.ca/popup.html?images/maps/original-forests.gif
