Forestry and Wetland Management Partnership Awarded for Group Achievement  

September 27, 2023 – Edmonton, Alta. – Ducks Unlimited Canada (DUC) is proud to announce that the Forest Management and Wetland Stewardship Initiative (FMWSI) has received the Canadian Institute of Forestry’s 2023 Canadian Forest Management Group Achievement Award. The recognition couldn’t be more timely as the FMWSI celebrates six successful years of collaboration this fall.

Wetlands make up over 30 per cent of Canada’s boreal and provide a wealth of ecological, social, and economic benefits. Wetlands and upland forests are highly interconnected systems in the boreal. Because of these connections, sustainable forest management is key to sustaining healthy wetlands and vice versa.

The FMWSI is an innovative partnership focused on finding sustainable solutions to operating in and around boreal wetlands. The partnership, initiated in 2016, brings together Alberta-Pacific Forest Industries Inc., Canfor, DUC, the Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC), Tolko Industries Ltd., West Fraser, and Weyerhaeuser Company. Through the partnership, these organizations share knowledge and leverage resources to advance wetland stewardship and sustainable forest management across the boreal forest. Over two, three-year terms, the group has collectively undertaken projects felt to have the most widespread influence on forest management practices concerning wetlands and waterfowl.

The CIF Group Achievement Award recognizes the outstanding achievements by teams or groups of managers in the field of natural resource management related activities in Canada. Read CIF’s announcement of the award here.

“We are delighted to receive the Canadian Institute of Forestry’s Group Achievement award with our FMWSI partners for our work to advance wetland and waterfowl stewardship in the boreal forest,” said Kylie McLeod, DUC’s head of boreal conservation programs. “As DUC and foresters know, wetlands are prominent features in forests and are often part of interconnected systems that link all forest ecosystems. When it comes to wetland conservation in the boreal, working together in collaborative partnerships like the FMWSI is integral to finding win-win solutions.”

Perhaps the greatest benefit of such a partnership is the opportunity to build relationships amongst several forestry companies and DUC. Conservation in the boreal is complex and requires many stakeholders to work together to achieve outcomes. The FMWSI is an excellent example of how working together to share knowledge and advance wetland best management practices can make a difference to sustainability in Canada’s boreal.

The work of the first term of the FMWSI (2016 – 2019) won an FPAC Award of Excellence in 2020 and the partnership is honoured to have been short listed for the 2023 Alberta Emerald Award Water Category. 

As part of the second term of the partnership (2020-2023), the FMWSI completed projects focused on sharing knowledge and moving that knowledge into practice, including: 

1. Wetland Stewardship in Alberta’s Timber Harvest Planning and Operating Ground Rules 
2. Training and Relationship Building for Wetland and Waterfowl Stewardship and Forest Management 
3. Boreal Wetland Subsurface Carbon Storage Mapping 

“FPAC has been incredibly proud of the work completed to date, as well as the collaboration and partnership opportunities provided through the FMWSI.  Working collectively to conserve and sustainably manage important wetland and waterfowl habitat continues to be a shared priority among partners.  FMWSI partners are very honoured to have received the recognition from CIF, and we look forward to further work together to contribute to sustainable forestry and biodiversity conservation for years to come,” said Kate Lindsay, SVP and chief sustainability officer, FPAC.

The FMWSI is excited to continue to work together to promote wetland stewardship and sustainable forest management across Canada’s boreal forest.  

Learn more about the FMWSI partnership and past projects.  

The FMWSI has been made possible by funding delivered through the Forest Resource Improvement Association of Alberta, the North American Wetland Conservation Act, and each FMWSI member.

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About Ducks Unlimited Canada: Ducks Unlimited Canada is the leader in wetland conservation. A registered charity, Ducks Unlimited Canada partners with government, industry, non-profit organizations, Indigenous Peoples, and landowners to conserve wetlands that are critical to waterfowl, wildlife and the environment. To learn more about Ducks Unlimited Canada’s innovative environmental solutions and services, visit www.ducks.ca