National Forest Inventory — A New Tool for Monitoring Canada’s Forests
By Nathan Lowther Issue 43, January 2010
The NFI team (L to R): Frank Eichel, Kristian Arndt, Alex Song, Katja Power, Mark Gillis, Ben Rancourt, Paul Boudewyn, Glenda Russo
Information on Canada’s forests has become more consistent and accessible, thanks to the recent launch of the new National Forest Inventory (NFI). Built on partnerships between various governmental agencies, the NFI’s activities are coordinated by National Resources Canada’s (NRCan’s) Canadian Forest Service (CFS).
The NFI is designed to monitor the extent, state and sustainability of Canada’s forests. Starting in the late 1990s, the federal government, working with the provinces and territories, began to map out a permanent national grid for collecting data. The resulting 20,000 plots, spaced 20 kilometres apart, allow for the collection of highly detailed information on forest area, wood volume and total biomass.
Alex and Mark use the NFI database to crunch inventory data.“This is the first national forest inventory data set based on uniform standards and definitions allowing for consistent reporting across the country,” says Mark Gillis, Manager of the NFI.
