Government began releasing maps today, Sept. 30, that, for the first time, show harvest allocations on the certified western Crown lands.

The allocations announced last spring allowed 15 mills in Nova Scotia to harvest 185,810 green metric tonnes.

Those allocations were scheduled to expire today, but are now extended for up to 90 days. During that time, government will engage with stakeholders, and long-term allocations will be released in the near future.

“Sharing these maps is our first step towards keeping stakeholders more aware of where harvesting is taking place in the western Crown lands,” said Natural Resources Minister Zach Churchill. “People want to know how government is managing these areas in a responsible, balanced way, and we are being as transparent as possible.

“The maps are part of the high standard of certification we are following as we harvest these forests for the wood-fibre products we all use,” said Mr. Churchill.

None of the spring allocations is on land in the Parks and Protected Areas Plan, which has made Nova Scotia a national leader in conservation.

The maps can be found at http://novascotia.ca/natr/forestry/maps-and-forest-info.asp .

Source: Release