Title: Acadia Research Forest: a Primary Forest Research Facility for Natural Resources Canada, Canadian Forest Service - Atlantic
Abstract: The Acadia Forest Experiment Station was established in 1933 as the second in a series of federal sites across Canada to research and demonstrate good forest management for greater productivity, sustained yield, and economic benefit (Place 1992). It was later renamed the Acadia Research Forest (ARF). The ARF comprises about 9000 ha (22,230 acres) of softwood, hardwood, and mixed forests of both the Grand Lake and Eastern Lowlands Ecoregions. It is located approximately 25 km (16 miles) east of Fredericton, NB, Canada, where the main office of the Atlantic Forestry Centre (AFC) is situated. Since its establishment, many different experiments, studies, and projects have been conducted in various research disciplines or themes. In the early 1930s, Canada’s Department of the Interior used the ARF for unemployment relief projects and the National Forestry Program, setting up and establishing long-term silvicultural experiments and demonstrations (Thompson 1955, Place 1992). In the early 1940s, during World War II, the ARF was used by the Department of National Defense as an internment camp and many of the longterm silvicultural experiments, demonstrations, and infrastructure were established by the internees. Entomological and pathological studies have been and still are conducted at the ARF. In 1950s and 1960s, concerns about clearcutting resulted in a number of long-term alternative silvicultural studies. A tree improvement program was formalized and established at the research forest in 1958. By 1965, the nursery at ARF was producing more than 100,000 trees annually to support research in tree improvement and reforestation programs. The nursery is now located at the AFC’s main office in Fredericton. Since the 1980s, several experiments and studies have been initiated to respond to environmental policy concerns over air pollution, global change, carbon sequestration, and biodiversity. The facilities and forest history often attract researchers from other organizations for ongoing cooperative research projects. In addition to research and sustainable forest management, the ARF provides an area for educational forestry training, forestry demonstrations, and non-industrial uses such a bird watching. In summary, the ARF is steeped in history, possesses great natural beauty, and continues to be used for long-term research for present and future benefits. More information is available at the following website: http://www.atl.cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/index-e/who-e/role-e/role-e/acadia-e.htm.
Publication Year: 2005
Publication Date: 2005-01-01
Language: en
Type: article
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