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Is timber being harvested sustainably?

Sustainable forest management (SFM) aims to maintain and enhance the environmental, social and economic values of forests for the benefit of present and future generations. It involves conserving biodiversity and protecting forest health, while ensuring the procurement of wood-based products and ecosystem services. Canadian forests are managed under the paradigms and guiding principles of sustainable forest management (for more information, see report section The 2022 State of Canada’s Forests Report: An overview.). In 2020, about 716,000 ha of forests were harvested in Canada, which corresponds to 0.2% of the forested land.

Key sustainability indicators

Explore the report to find information on the key sustainability indicators:

  • Forest area harvested: Annual trends in forest area harvested on private and Crown land. This indicator is important for understanding the level of industrial activity in Canada’s forests and for assessing long-term sustainability of forests and the forest sector.
  • Forest regeneration: Measure of area seeded, area planted and number of seedlings planted on provincial and territorial Crown land. Monitoring regeneration activities ensures harvested areas regrow as forests and continue to produce timber and maintain ecosystem services.
  • Volume harvested relative to the sustainable wood supply: Information on the annual harvest compared to the supply that is deemed sustainable for harvest. This indicator is important to ensure the volume of industrial roundwood harvested each year falls within sustainable levels.
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Forest area harvested

Forest area harvested on private and Crown land in Canada, 2010–2020

Graph summary

In Canada, the proportion of forest area harvested on Crown lands compared to private lands remained stable from 2010 to 2020. About 90% of the forest area harvested was from Crown land, while the remaining 10% came from private land. The total area harvested has ranged from a low of about 708,000 hectares (ha) in 2011 to about 811,000 ha harvested in 2015. In 2020, roughly 716,000 ha of forest were harvested, which is a slight decrease from 2019 levels when about 747,000 ha were harvested.

Graph data

Table showing the area harvested on private and Crown lands, in hectares, for each year from 2010 to 2020.

Year Area harvested (hectares)
Provincial and territorial Crown land Private land
2010 649,314 76,067
2011 647,082 61,337
2012 679,446 59,517
2013 701,957 73,184
2014 675,913 73,693
2015 738,316 72,296
2016 718,860 74,856
2017 721,754 72,593
2018 699,709 91,876
2019 654,873 91,791
2020 631,593 78,739

Forest regeneration

Area artificially regenerated and number of seedlings planted on provincial and territorial Crown lands in Canada, 2010–2020

Graph summary

Between 2010 and 2012, the number of seedlings planted per year in Canada were at a relative low for the 10-year period of 2010 to 2020. From 2013 to 2016, the number of seedlings planted increased, then decreased until 2019, after which it increased slightly again (not exceeding 2006 levels).

For each year between 2010 and 2020, about 95% of the total area artificially regenerated was renewed by planting, of which about 5% was renewed by seeding. Between 2010 and 2012, the area artificially regenerated were at a relative low for the 10-year period of 2010 to 2020. Between 2013 and 2020, the area artificially regenerated remained fairly stable.

Graph data

Table showing the area artificially regenerated in hectares and the number of seedlings planted (in millions) on provincial and territorial Crown lands in Canada from 2010 to 2020.

Year Area planted Area seeded Number of seedlings
2010 348,154 12,063 487
2011 359,175 11,202 508
2012 348,973 10,541 487
2013 420,167 11,638 554
2014 412,939 17,268 550
2015 401,178 19,764 576
2016 401,914 28,889 608
2017 409,081 17,293 589
2018 403,268 6,232 582
2019 407,311 8,620 575
2020 417,196 9,210 601

Volume harvested relative to the sustainable wood supply

Annual harvest versus supply deemed sustainable for harvest, 1990–2020

Graph summary

The total wood supply deemed sustainable for harvest has decreased slowly from about 250 million cubic metres (m3) in 1990 to about 215 million m3 in 2020.

The total area harvested was highest in 2004, at about 210 million m3; however, it declined steeply between 2004 and 2009, to a low of about 115 million m3 in 2009. From 2009 onward, the total harvest gradually increased to about 155 million m3 in 2018 but decreased to about 140 million m3 in 2020.

The softwood harvest followed the same pattern as the total area harvested, with a high of about 170 million m3 in 2004, to a low of about 95 million m3 in 2009. From 2009 onward, the softwood harvest gradually increased to nearly 130 million m3 in 2018 but decreased to about 115 million m3 in 2020.

The softwood supply deemed sustainable for harvest was about 180 million m3 in 1990. It was highest in 2007, at about 190 million m3. Since then, supply has decreased to nearly 160 million m3 in 2020.

The hardwood supply deemed sustainable for harvest has been stable at around 60 million m3 since 1990. Hardwood harvest was lowest in 1990 at about 15 million m3, highest in 2004 at about 40 million m3, and landing at almost 25 million m3 in 2020.

Graph data

Table showing the annual volume of softwood and hardwood harvested, the total harvest, and the supply deemed sustainable for harvest (for all land types: provincial, territorial, federal and private), in millions of cubic metres, for each year, from 1990 to 2020.

Year Wood volume (million m3)
Total wood supply Total harvest Softwood supply Softwood harvest Hardwood supply Hardwood harvest
1990 247.6 156.4 180.2 141.2 63.6 15.2
1991 246.3 154.2 180.5 138.5 62.0 15.7
1992 241.5 163.7 177.0 146.8 60.6 16.9
1993 238.2 169.6 174.7 150.5 59.7 19.1
1994 238.4 177.4 174.0 154.2 60.5 23.2
1995 234.4 183.2 171.0 157.4 59.5 25.7
1996 234.9 177.9 170.8 151.3 60.3 26.6
1997 237.4 183.6 172.2 153.8 61.4 29.8
1998 235.2 173.9 170.8 142.8 61.8 31.1
1999 239.6 196.7 175.2 162.8 61.6 33.9
2000 234.9 199.5 173.3 163.3 60.5 36.2
2001 236.1 184.4 175.2 149.9 60.7 34.5
2002 237.4 195.4 176.3 159.6 61.1 35.7
2003 239.8 181.4 177.7 143.8 62.0 37.6
2004 246.9 208.1 184.7 168.5 62.0 39.6
2005 245.0 201.3 182.2 165.2 62.7 36.1
2006 248.1 182.5 185.5 148.7 62.5 33.7
2007 252.4 162.1 189.8 134.6 62.6 27.3
2008 251.1 138.3 189.7 114.2 61.3 23.9
2009 241.8 115.8 181.8 94.3 59.9 21.4
2010 237.7 141.0 179.0 117.4 58.6 23.5
2011 232.7 147.0 174.7 121.0 57.8 25.9
2012 230.6 149.3 173.4 124.6 57.1 24.7
2013 228.0 151.1 171.6 126.0 56.5 25.1
2014 230.6 150.1 171.8 124.9 58.8 25.1
2015 222.6 155.6 164.6 128.2 56.7 27.3
2016 219.1 155.2 161.7 126.4 57.4 28.8
2017 218.9 152.4 161.7 125.1 57.0 27.4
2018 217.1 155.0 159.5 127.5 57.5 27.5
2019 215.7 139.5 158.4 113.9 57.0 25.6
2020 215.3 141.1 157.8 115.6 56.4 25.5
Sources and information

See Sources and information in the downloadable report for detailed sources.

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