Sustainable forest management is the philosophy, science, and art of enhancing or maintaining the long-term health of a forest ecosystem, while providing environmental, economic, and social opportunities for the benefit of present and future generations. The Algoma Highlands Conservancy, together with partners Astina Forest AG and the Stokely Creek Lodge, believe strongly in this concept and are working together to transform the concept into reality. Our efforts include not only enhancing the long-term health and value of the diverse forests in this area, but also parallel efforts to promote conservation, outdoor education, and silent sport recreation in the Algoma Highlands region.
On properties that the conservancy currently or may prospectively own, only trees posing a threat to safe use or impeding maintenance of trails will be harvested. In these conservation forest areas, "Soft-touch" single tree removal techniques will be employed, with felled trees either left on site or provided to our partners at Stokely lodge as a source of renewable energy. While conservation will be the focus of all activities on all AHC-owned properties, we will also be working directly with our partners and neighbours to encourage sustainable forest management practices on all adjoining properties such that continuity of the mixed-wood forest ecosystem and its ecological functions are enhanced over the broader landscape.
The terrain of the highlands varies from gently rolling to very steep, with occasional rock outcrops. The glacial activity that took place 10,000 years ago created the coarse-textured soils that now support forests dominated by tolerant hardwoods. Historically, forests in the area were comprised of a shifting mosaic of conifers and hardwoods, as periodic wildfires, insect and disease outbreaks, and wind storms created relatively large 
disturbances and opportunities for natural forest regeneration. In more recent times, an absence of periodic wildfires and several partial harvests since the late 1940s have reshaped forests in the area. Forest structure is now simpler, with reduced species and genetic diversity and little variety in tree age and size. A few scattered white spruce, eastern white pine, eastern white cedar, eastern hemlock, and northern red oak stand as legacy remnants of what were much larger components of the Great Lakes - St. Lawrence Forest Region.
Scattered decaying stumps and much of the current trail network (former logging trails) remain as testaments to this early activity. Several of these old logging trails now form part of the extensive trail system that is enjoyed by thousands of cross-country skiers every winter, as well as other visitors pursuing a wide variety of other silent sport recreation and outdoor leisure activities. Under the specific trail agreement now forged with our partners, use of the trails for motorized recreational activities is no longer allowed, resulting in significantly reduced disturbance and less potential for deleterious impacts on the diverse array of wildlife and plant species typical of this part of the Great Lakes – St. Lawrence forest region.
Modern sustainable forest management paradigms recognize the need to balance environmental protection with use of the resource for economic, recreational and spiritual benefit of humans. In this context, a healthy forest can be thought of as a bank account, where sound maintenance of the forest (capital) can provide a sustained level of growth in stands of trees and associated flora and fauna (interest) through time. Periodic tree harvests (withdrawals from the account) can be made in a sustainable fashion, provided they do not erode the forest growth stock (capital) or ecological integrity of the system (investors insurance). While harvesting the forest to ensure that the growing stock of the forest is never depleted, there is also an opportunity to remove low-quality, diseased and damaged stems, thus producing a gradual improvement in the health, composition and structure of the forest. Foresters refer to this activity as improvement cutting. The purpose of improvement cutting is to thin the 
existing forest to: 1) channel the site’s growing resources to remaining high-quality stems, and 2) create opportunities for forest regeneration. The removal of single trees, or small groups of trees, mimics natural disturbances, such as incidental disease or wind-throw, and favors the regeneration of shade-tolerant sugar maple. Species such as white spruce, white pine, yellow birch, and red oak require more sunlight than sugar maple to regenerate and grow. Consequently, the removal of groups of 30 or more trees may mimic larger natural disturbances and favor the regeneration of these less tolerant species. The goal of these harvesting activities is to allow economically feasible re-entry every 20 to 25 years following the initial improvement cut, with the ratio of high-valued products to pulpwood and fuelwood increasing in subsequent harvests.
These harvests are specifically designed to:
- create favorable environments for the regeneration of sugar maple and species that have been slowly excluded from highlands forests (white pine, white spruce, red oak, and yellow birch),
- maintain or enhance critical habitats (riparian zones, wetlands, nesting cavities),
- preserve and protect species and sensitive areas (steep slopes, shallow soils, lakes, and streams), and
- protect the aesthetics and recreational values of the area.
It is within this protective framework that forest harvesting activities in this part of the Algoma Highlands will be undertaken. Under the partnership agreement forged between Astina Forest AG, the Algoma Highlands Conservancy and Stokely Creek Lodge, the three parties will work to annually review forest management plans for the area with a view to mitigating any potential negative impacts on recreational trail use, and ecological integrity of sensitive wildlife habitat and rare plants. For example, under this plan, provincially rare plant species in the area, such as the Braun’s Holly Fern, Oval-leaved Billberry and Wild Licorice that occur in and around the King Mountain area will be protected, as will habitat for rare wildlife species such as the eastern wolf and peregrine falcon that also frequent this portion of the highlands. Unbeknownst to many, ecological restoration harvests have been previously employed in some portions of this area with demonstrable increases in economic, environmental and social values associated with the new forest. A detailed plan documenting these efforts is available.
Dr. Doug Pitt, the current Algoma Highlands Conservancy president and the forester who designed and provided oversight to these operations, views these areas as a legacy gift to future generations of owners, local residents and visitors alike.
