PARK HISTORY

Establishing Algonquin Provincial Park was first proposed in 1878 in a published volume entitled "The Undeveloped Lands of Northern and Western Ontario". Authors Alexander Kirkwood and J. J. Murphy worked in the office of the Ontario Department of Crown Lands. Recommendations made by Kirkwood and Murphy were shortly reinforced and elaborated on by the Provincial Land Surveyor for the area, Mr. James Dickson. Dickson's reports were based on his first hand knowledge of the area and contained detailed descriptions of resources of the area and specific recommendations.

In 1892 a Royal Commission recommended creation of a park, and in 1893 the Algonquin National Park Act was passed by the Legislative Assembly of the Province of Ontario.

Objectives listed for establishment of the Park were:

• to preserve the headwaters of the watersheds;
• to preserve the native forest;
• to protect game and fur bearing animals, fish and birds;
• to provide an area for forestry experimentation;
• to serve as a health resort and pleasure ground for the benefit, advantage and enjoyment of the people of the province.

The Park included 18 townships and covered an area of 379,987 hectares. Additions were made in 1894, 1904, 1911, 1914, 1951, 1960 and further additions were proposed in the Park Master Plan of 1974. These proposed additions were completed between 1974 to 1993. Today, the area of the Park is 760,699 hectares.

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LOGGING HISTORY

Logging for square timber (white and red pine) began about 1830 when James Wadsworth obtained a timber licence to cut red pine from Round Lake to the source of the Bonnechere River. In 1846, 141,600 cubic metres of red and white pine were harvested and floated down the Madawaska, Bonnechere, and Petawawa Rivers. Peak of the square timber trade was reached in 1864 and the last square timber was cut near the Petawawa River north of Brûlé Lake in 1912.

 

Major improvements in transportation resulted with the construction of the Canada Central Railway from Pembroke to Mattawa in 1881, and the Ottawa, Arnprior, and Parry Sound Railway (J. R. Booth) in 1897. In 1915 the Canadian Northern Railway was built across the northeast side of the unit (now CNR). These railroads greatly facilitated access to the unit and the sawmill industry benefited significantly. The last train to use the railroad was in November 1995 and the CNR rails have since been lifted.

Raw material for these early sawmills was still predominantly pine. In subsequent cuts, smaller pine and spruce were taken. By the 1930s, species other than pine were cut. Yellow birch was the first hardwood sought out. This evolution resulted from a variety of factors:

• Reduced availability of pine and spruce.
• Introduction of trucks for transport instead of river driving.
• Use of birch veneers for the manufacture of the "Mosquito" bomber of World War II.
• Incidence of birch dieback in some parts of the unit which led to a salvage effort.
• Development of a domestic furniture industry.

In the early 1950s, diameter limits were applied as a means to control the amount of timber harvested from specific areas.

These limits were usually 38 centimetres for yellow birch, maple, and hemlock and 46 centimetres on pine. Diameter limits were used in some areas up until the 1970s as the mechanism to carry out the selection or uniform shelterwood silvicultural systems.

Around 1950, individual trees in the former Petawawa Management Unit were first marked with paint to designate either their removal or retention. In the rest of the unit, diameter limits prevailed until the late 1960s and early 1970s when marking became the rule, to implement the selection system in the tolerant hardwoods or uniform shelterwood system in the pine working group. Presently, all stands are marked before cutting.

The dominant logging system in the 1970s and 1980s was: fell with chain saw; skid tree length by wheeled skidder  to central landings; cut, sort, and pile the products and then load and haul using trailer type trucks.  Although the above mentioned system is still used to a certain extent, the primary method now is to cut and skid to small landings, and haul treelengths to central landings outside the park where products are manufactured. This process allows for better recovery of the more valuable forest products, provides more flexibility in haul schedules and, more importantly, reduces both the amount of area required for landings in the bush and the quantity of machinery in the Park, and therefore , less noise.

The use of species and their quality has been evolving steadily.  There are three apparent reasons for the changes:

• Tree marking systems adopted since 1974 designate declining trees for harvest and the better quality for retention in the residual forest.
• Markets for pulp quality products have developed.
• Lower quality stands are harvested when the pulp component is marketable.

In recent years, pulp mills have actively increased their purchases of sawmill-produced pulp chips. 

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AFA HISTORY

In the late 1960s and early 1970s there was considerable controversy about logging in Algonquin Park. The controversy centred around the principle of logging in a provincial park, and how the logging was being done.

Considerable public debate and study of the issues resulted in  the 1974  Master Plan for Algonquin Provincial Park. This plan provided for zoning of the Park into several categories, some of which allowed logging, and others which did not (25%). The Master Plan also set out specific strategies for the conduct of forest management activities. The method of harvest was specified (primarily shelterwood and selection) and a variety of conditions pertaining to timing, location, and standards were established.

The Algonquin Forestry Authority (AFA) was established in 1974 and is classified as an "Operational Enterprise" Crown Agency. The Authority is a commercially-oriented, operational agency and is self-financing. The AFA was established by Bill 155 "An Act to Incorporate the AFA, 1974" (First Board of Directors Meeting - January 20, 1975).

The timber licenses previously held by 20 companies were cancelled and the timber rights were assigned to the AFA. The companies receive a commitment for the supply of certain volumes and products from Minister of Natural Resources which the AFA supplies.   These commitments are based on what the forest can sustainably provide.

In 1983, the Ministry of Natural Resources (MNR) and the AFA concluded a Forest Management Undertaking which transferred the responsibility for forest management, silviculture, wood measurement, and maintenance of public access roads from the MNR to the AFA. This agreement continues today but is now called the Algonquin Park Forestry Agreement. The MNR retains an audit role on all activities of the AFA.

Silvicultural activities are financed via the renewal portion of the Ontario Government stumpage matrix for Algonquin Park.  Renewal fees are paid by the consuming mills and fully cover the renewal and tending  costs associated with forest management activities.  The balance of the activities are funded by the AFA.

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