Ontario's forest sector is undergoing a significant shift owing to declining markets for traditional products; this shift is further exacerbated by a cyclical industry downturn. These factors are leading to extensive job losses in Ontario's north as well as rural community upheaval. Governments are striving to reverse these effects by stimulating new industries focused on using forest biofibre for products such as fuel for energy, specialty chemicals, and polymers. In light of these new demands, provincial and federal policy and science experts are examining the range of potential forest biomass utilization opportunities in terms of their long-term implications for sustainability, role in an emerging bioeconomy, and the possible influences of, for example, a changing climate and technological advances. Current research and broad-scale monitoring projects are helping to answer several important questions in the ecological, economic, policy, resource supply, and technological realms, while new questions must be continually addressed. In this paper, we describe the legislative, policy, and administrative context in which the sustainable biofibre industry may exist. We argue that social, economic, and environmental goals for a sustainable forest biofibre industry in Ontario can best be achieved by adhering to the principles of adaptive management. Market forces and third-party certification, which can influence the biofibre sector, are also discussed.Key words: forest biofibre, forest biomass, sustainable forest management, forest science, forest policy, precautionary approach, adaptive management, federal-provincial cooperation RÉSUMÉ Le secteur forestier de l'Ontario connaît une réorientation marquée suite au déclin des marchés des produits traditionnels; cette réorientation est exacerbée par un ralentissement cyclique de l'industrie. Ces facteurs ont entraîné des pertes massives d' emploi dans le nord de l'Ontario ainsi que des bouleversements au sein des communautés rurales. Les gouvernements cherchent à redémarrer l' économie locale en stimulant le développement de nouvelles industries centrées sur l'utilisation de la biofibre forestière pour la production de carburant à des fins énergétiques, de produits chimiques spécialisés et de polymères. En fonction de ces nouvelles demandes, les experts provinciaux et fédéraux en matière de politiques et de recherche étudient un ensemble de possibilités d'utilisation de la biomasse forestière en fonction de leurs implications à long terme pour la durabilité, de leur rôle au sein de la bioéconomie en émergence et des effets potentiels, à titre d' exemples, des changements climatiques et de nouvelles percées technologiques. Les projets actuels de recherche et de suivi à long terme permettent d'apporter une réponse à certaines questions déterminantes touchant les domaines de l' écologie, des politiques, de l'approvisionnement en matière première et des technologies, tandis que, sans cesse, de nouvelles questions doivent trouver réponse. Dans cet article, nous décriv...

Canada is seeking cost-effective means to mitigate anthropogenic greenhouse gas emissions, particularly CO 2 , that have been linked to global climate change. In 2003 the Government of Canada launched the Forest 2020 Plantation Development and Assessment Initiative to assess the potential for fast-growing woody crops to sequester carbon from the atmosphere. Across the country 6000 ha of plantations were established and monitored on nonforested lands (afforestation) using a variety of methods. Economic analyses assessed the investment attractiveness of this mitigation measure for a range of species and suitable lands, taking into account such factors as growth rates, agricultural opportunity costs and a range of possible carbon values. Analyses illustrated that at current trading prices for carbon and for much of the available lands and expanding markets for forest bioproducts, expected rates of return on investment for afforestation were relatively low. However, higher future carbon prices, combined with monetary values for environmental benefits, could dramatically change the economics of afforestation in the future.Key words: afforestation, carbon sequestration, forest carbon offset project, climate change mitigation, policy analysis, risk analysis, forest investment analysis, hybrids, hybrid poplar, fast-growing trees RÉSUMÉLe Canada est à la recherche de moyens pour réduire les émissions de gaz à effets de serre issues de l'activité humaine, notamment le CO 2 , qui ont été reliées aux changements climatiques de l' ensemble de la planète. En 2003, le Gouvernement du Canada a lancé le Programme d' évaluation et de démonstration de plantation de Forêt 2020 dans le but d' évaluer le potentiel d'utilisation des plantations d'arbres à croissance rapide pour piéger le carbone contenu dans l'atmosphère. Dans l' ensemble du pays, 6 000 ha de plantations sur des terrains non boisés (boisement) ont été créés et ont fait l' objet de suivis selon différentes méthodes. Des études économiques ont permis d' évaluer les incitatifs financiers rattachés à cette mesure de réduction des gaz dans le cas de différentes espèces et de divers terrains propices au boisement, en prenant en considération des facteurs comme le taux de croissance, les coûts d' opportunité agricole et un ensemble de valeurs possibles du carbone. Les études ont indiqué que selon les valeurs actuelles de transaction du carbone, de la plupart des terres disponibles et des marchés en progression des bioproduits forestiers, les taux attendus de retour sur l'investissement dans le cas de boisement étaient relativement faibles. Cependant, des valeurs plus importantes du carbone dans l'avenir associées à la valeur monétaire des bénéfices environnementaux, pourraient modifier de façon importante l'aspect écono-mique du boisement.Mots clés : boisement, piégeage du carbone, projet forestier de piégeage du carbone, mesure d'atténuation des changements climatiques, étude des politiques, analyse du risque, analyse des investissements forestiers, hybrides, peupli...

A white spruce outplanting trial, with about 480 trees, was established on a fertile mixedwood site in Ontario (47°N, 84°W) in 1967 to study the effects of two site preparation methods and early chemical tending on the development of the crop species and non-crop woody vegetation. Nineteen-year results are presented. Early chemical tending of white spruce resulted in a significant increase in growth on the drum-prepared block, but not on the blade-prepared block. On the drum-prepared block, mortality of white spruce outplants did not differ significantly between herbicide-treated and untreated plots. On the blade-prepared block, mortality was significantly greater with herbicide application than without it. Similar non-crop tree and shrub species were found on sites prepared with both sharkfin drums and angle-dozer blades. However, woody weeds were less abundant on the herbicide-treated plots than on the untreated plots. Key words: white spruce outplant performance; chemical weed control; 2.4-D and 2,4,5-T; mechanical site preparation; herbicide efficacy; silvicultural efficacy; early tending; sharkfin drum; angle-dozer blade.

Seeding trials were established on four different sites in northern Ontario (46°41′N to 49°19′N) in 1979 and 1980. Jack pine (Pinus banksiana Lamb.) was seeded on two medium sand sites, black spruce (Picea mariana [Mill.] B.S.P.) on a sandy clay site, and white spruce (P. glauca [Moench] Voss) on a clay site. Conventional bare spot seeding was compared with spot seeding under Finnish-designed plastic shelters. At least two seeding dates were compared in each trial. Third- and fifth-year stocking and fifth-year height data are presented.Stocking of all three species was increased, regardless of sowing date, when shelters were used. With the exception of June-sown black spruce and one June sowing of jack pine, height growth was not significantly improved through the use of seed shelters. Shelters may prove to be a viable regeneration option only on cooler, exposed sites with little vegetative competition. Key words: Shelter spot seeding, bare spot seeding, Pinus banksiana Lamb., Picea mariana [Mill.] B.S.P., P. glauca [Moench] Voss.