Eb. Peterson et al., SOME PRINCIPLES AND CRITERIA TO MAKE CANADA PROTECTED AREA SYSTEMS REPRESENTATIVE OF THE NATIONS FOREST DIVERSITY, Forestry Chronicle, 71(4), 1995, pp. 497-507
The current network of protected areas in Canada, numbering almost 300
0, owes much to initiatives taken under the International Biological P
rogram (IBP-CT) beginning in the 1960's, and maintained by member agen
cies of the Canadian Council on Ecological Areas (CCEA). Several crite
ria for the selection of areas were identified under IBP-CT. The first
of these concerned representation of the diversity of the world's eco
systems. Recently, the need for protected areas has gained prominence
at all levels of government. In its 1992 National Strategy, the forest
sector committed itself to protecting the diversity of forest ecosyst
ems in Canada. In this review we advocate that representativeness is m
ore than a criterion by which areas are selected for protection: it is
a fundamental principle. We examine how this principle can be applied
and suggest that features of the landscape define the scale on which
a comprehensive system of protected areas is built. Also discussed is
the role for forest ecosystems that have been disturbed by human activ
ity in such a system. Our main recommendation is that landscape should
be accepted as the basic stratification by which representation is to
be judged. On the assumption that species and species assemblages ass
ociated with landscapes are not in jeopardy, and that a representative
range of the nation's landscapes will contain a representative range
of Canada's biotic diversity, this article suggests that a comprehensi
ve system of protected landscapes will, in large measure, represent th
e nation's diversity of animal and plant communities. Until it is clea
rly evident that timber management can accommodate the broad array of
conservation needs, forest managers should consider designating areas
for protection in which the integrity of ecosystem functions and dynam
ics can be assured for both managed and natural forest types under the
ir control.