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OWA gets $1.2M towards Nature Smart Climate Solutions project

The Ontario Woodlot Association (OWA) is receiving a $1.2 million investment over five years to support its Nature Smart Climate Solutions project.

OWA’s John Pineau.

OWA’s executive director John Pineau told CFI that the project covers all of Ontario’s private land. “OWA is grateful to Environment and Climate Change Canada for its support of private forest owners in Ontario, to better manage for climate change, ecosystem resiliency and biodiversity,” Pineau said.

“Climate change has become a key area of concern for OWA members. The funding allows us to work toward both mitigating and adapting at local, regional, and provincial scales,” OWA president Paul Robertson said.

“Private landowners across Ontario will gain a better knowledge of the make-up of their forests and will learn new solutions and skills that contribute positively to our era’s greatest ecosystem challenges,” Robertson added.

MP Anthony Rota (seated far left) and OWA members and executives.

In a Facebook post on his verified account, Anthony Rota, MP for Nipissing-Timiskaming, who announced the funding at the Canadian Ecology Centre in Mattawa, Ont. on August 9, explained that the money will be doled out over five years and will help improve biodiversity and forest health within privately owned land throughout the province. The funds will also be used to “develop state-of-the-art forest inventories to inform the application of the application of best management practices that enhance carbon storage for many landowners.”

“Conserving and restoring nature is fundamental to mitigating climate change. Using nature-based solutions will help reduce greenhouse gas emissions while providing benefits for biodiversity and human well-being,” Rota’s post read.

The funding comes from the Nature Smart Climate Solutions Fund, a new federal 10-year fund of $631 million meant to reduce two to four megatons of greenhouse gas emissions annually.