Canada urged to protect water in boreal forests

Canada's federal, provincial and aboriginal leaders are being urged to step up protection of the boreal forest, which a new report describes as the world's largest store of freshwater. "Without prompt action, Canada may miss the opportunity to protect this global treasure," says an international science panel, which issued an open letter Wednesday reminding Prime Minister Stephen Harper and provincial and aboriginal leaders that "water is the essence of all life." The letter was released with a report outlining the unique freshwater ecosystems in the forests, and the threats posed by Canadian mining, water diversion and energy projects. "Canada has the unrivalled opportunity to protect the world's largest intact freshwater ecosystem and the responsibility to enact sound conservation and sustainable development policy to safeguard the boreal forest," says the International Boreal Conservation Science Panel, composed of leading scientists from Canada and the U.S. It's a matter of global importance, says panel member David Schindler, a water expert at the University of Alberta. To read moreof Margaret Munro's article, please go to: http://www.canada.com/Canada+urged+protect+water+boreal+forests/4449660/story.html#ixzz1GmLXdPml