Hurray for the Great Bear Rainforest
Yesterday, environmentalists, government representatives and First Nations leaders announced their intent to protect a huge section of Pacific Coast rainforest, known as the Amazon of the North:
The deal will save a vast area of forest for wildlife, while allowing sustainable logging in other parts. The settlement between tribes, loggers and environmentalists is being hailed as an example for other countries. The land covered by the Great Bear Rainforest is huge. At 64,000 sq-km (25,000 sq-mile), it is about twice the size of Belgium.
The deal is the result of ten years of conflict, bargaining and compromise among the interested parties: a very Canadian problem, with a very Canadian solution.
