The Heart of the Boreal Forest is a breathtaking expanse of woodlands, marshes and over 1.5 million lakes straddling  the border between the provinces of Ontario and Manitoba, Canada.  The  forest is a  haven for caribou, wolves and wolverines, great gray owls, black bears, and millions of songbirds. It is also a critical storehouse of carbon - primarily in the peat soils.

NRDC has worked with the First Nations there to stave off destructive development and to secure protection for the area. The First Nations have formed a unique partnership with the Provincial Governments to seek recognition by the United Nations of their area as a World Heritage Site.  Just recently, the Premier of Manitoba, Gary Doer, announced the creation of a $10 million trust fund to move this process forward.

Yet additional legal protections will not shield the boreal forest from the impacts of climate change: 

• By the end of the century, Manitoba's average temperature could rise 4-6 degrees Celsius. These warming trends would drastically impact the region's rain patterns, vegetation and extreme weather events and could lead to more forest fires and insect outbreaks.
• Many of the migratory birds that spend the winter in the tropics may begin arriving to the Boreal too late to be able to find enough food for their young if warming temperatures cause insects to emerge earlier.
• 12-14 million ducks migrate to Canada's Boreal each summer to breed among the ponds and marshes, called the "prairie potholes." But researchers have already documented the drying of these critical wetlands from global warming, which could drastically affect these duck populations.
• Species of birds that typically live further south have already moved into this region because of warming temperatures. But these birds may be unprepared to face the new challenges of from changing habitats.

The degradation of the Heart of the Boreal Forest  from climate change is danger not only to the wildlife there, but the potential loss of its ability to absorb massive amounts of carbon (here's a great map illustrating the area's carbon intensity) could add to the greenhouse gas pollution and mean even more to global warming.  We can do something about it.  Please join NRDC and 350.org in participating in the International Day of Climate Action on October 24th.