Christian Messier

Old-growth forests, which remain undisturbed by humans and natural elements, are far and few between in Quebec. Those recognized by the government represent a mere 0.06 per cent of the province’s public forests. This means only about 477 square kilometres of Quebec’s government-managed forests are considered old-growth. Old-growth forests in southern Quebec were historically hit hard by colonization and urbanization, while those in the north have been largely impacted by invasive insects and fires. Forest researchers worry logging, public unawareness and limitations of Quebec’s old-growth management system mean these centuries-old ecosystems will continue to vanish. …Critics argue that Quebec lacks a protocol for identifying old-growth. …Christian Messier, a professor of forest management at the Université du Québec en Outaouais and Canada Research Chair in Forest Resilience to Global Changes … agrees logging threatens old-growth but says it also creates an opportunity to enrich and protect ancient trees by planting newer, better-adapted ones nearby.