MAY/JUNE 2012, VOL. 88, NO. 3 — THE FORESTRY CHRONICLE 233

OLD GROWTH FORÊTS ANCIENNES

he Atlantic Forestry Centre is cele-brating 100 years of forestry research

in New Brunswick. The Canadian Forest Service (CFS) presence in NewBrunswick had a humble beginning. In 1912, a two-room prefabricatedwooden building was purchased at thecost of $200 and put in place on thecampus of the University of NewBrunswick. This marked the beginningof the federal forestry presence in theprovince. The last century has seenmany changes and improvements to thebuildings that have served as laborato-ries and offices for the staff, culminatingin the state-of-the-art facilities at theHugh John Flemming Forestry Centrein Fredericton. The original role of fed-eral forestry in the province was theprotection of the forest from harmfulinsects, a role that is still prominent

today. Over the years, research projectswere expanded and now encompassmany other vital areas of forest research.

John Douglas Tothill was the firstfederal forestry employee in NewBrunswick. He was born in England in1888 and came to Canada to study atthe Ontario Agricultural College, wherehe specialized in entomology andbotany. He later received a doctoratefrom Harvard University. After workingfor a short time with the US Bureau ofEntomology Gypsy Moth Parasite labo-ratory, Tothill joined the EntomologyBranch of the Dominion’s Departmentof Agriculture (CFS antecedent) and setup a laboratory on the University ofNew Brunswick campus in Fredericton.Over the next 10 years, he directedintensive research on invasive pests,such as the brown-tail moth (Euproctis

chrysorrhoae) and the gypsy moth(Lymantria dispar), and native insectssuch as the forest tent caterpillar (Mala-cosoma disstria), the fall webworm(Hyphantria cunea), and the sprucebudworm (Choristoneura fumiferana).In 1923, Tothill transferred to the ForestInsect Division in Ottawa. In 1924, hewas seconded to Fiji to fight the Lev-uana moth (Levuana iridescens) andbecame that country’s Director of Agri-culture. He later held similar posts inUganda and Sudan. Although his careerin Canada spanned but a dozen years,Dr. Tothill’s work and legacy live on. Heis credited with being the founder of

One Hundred Years of Federal Forestry Presence in New BrunswickT

Field Officer John Douglas Tothill, NewBrunswick’s first federal forestryemployee.

A humble beginning: this small two-room prefabricated wooden building on the Universityof New Brunswick campus was the first federal forestry laboratory in the province.

conflit et de reconnaître que la foresterieet la conservation ont toutes deux lamême origine : la durabilité. L’énergie etle talent des deux parties opposées de cedébat sont requis immédiatement pourconcevoir et mettre en place des sys-tèmes qui assureront la durabilité detoutes les valeurs que nous voulons reti-rer de nos forêts. »

ReferencesFensom, K.G. 1972. Expanding ForestryHorizons. A History of the Canadian Insti-tute of Forestry/Institut Forestier du Canada1908–1969. 547 p.Gillis, P.R. and T.R. Roach. 1986. TheAmerican Influence on Conservation inCanada: 1899–1911. Journal of Forest His-tory October: 160–174.Irland, L.C. 2007. Professional Ethics forNatural Resource and Environmental Man-

agers: A Primer. Yale School of Forestry andEnvironmental Studies.Kimmins, J.P. 1992. Balancing Act, Envi-ronmental Issues in Forestry. UBC Press.Natural Resources Canada. 2010. Trail-blazer – Elihu Stewart, 1844–1935 [online].Available at http://www.nrcan.gc.ca/trail-blazers/elihu-stewart/593.Stewart, E. 1913. Down The Mackenzie andUp The Yukon In 1906. J. Lane, London.

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biological pest control in Canada andfor initiating a science-based approachto forestry.

Long-term research installations arean integral part of forestry research. In1933, the Acadia Forest ExperimentalStation, now known as the AcadiaResearch Forest (ARF), was establishedby the Dominion Forest Service(another CFS antecedent). This 9000-hatract of federal land is situated in theheart of the Acadian Forest Region. It isthe site of some of the oldest docu-mented forest research studies inCanada, including direct seeding exper-iments that were conducted in the early1920s. The ARF serves as an outdoorlaboratory for work in silviculture, treeimprovement, physiology, entomology,and a host of other disciplines. TheAtlantic Forestry Centre is responsiblefor the management of the ARF andcurrently maintains about 2000 ha inresearch sites. The ARF is steeped in his-tory and, during the Second World War,was used by the Department of NationalDefence as an internment camp tohouse German and Jewish prisoners ofwar. These men, building on work donein the 1930s under the National ForestryProgram, and with the assistance of localfarmers who participated in shortforestry training programs, establishedmost of the infrastructure and early sil-vicultural study plots that helped formthe basis of modern forestry concepts.The remnants of the internment campcan still be seen at the Acadia ResearchForest, and a museum has been estab-lished in nearby Minto, New Brunswick,to preserve artifacts from the camp forpublic viewing.

The longest-serving “Officer-in-Charge” over the last hundred years wasDr. Reginald Ernest Balch who tookcharge of the DominionEntomology Laboratory atFredericton in 1930. Hisaccomplishments includedirecting the Europeanspruce sawfly (Dyprion her-cyniae) project to its suc-cessful conclusion, direct-ing the first sprucebudworm spray program,conducting definitiveresearch into the balsamwoolly adelgid (Adelgespicea), and persuading thecity of Fredericton to adopta sanitation program tohelp preserve elm treesagainst Dutch elm disease.Two of the more notableprograms and projects thatwere started during Dr.Balch’s 30-year tenure werethe Forest Insect and Dis-ease Survey, and the GreenRiver Project.

In the early 1930s, the forests of NewBrunswick and Quebec were being rav-aged by the European spruce sawfly,and there was a need to develop ameans of tracking the outbreak. Dr.Balch, in collaboration with J.J. deGryse, Chief of the Forest Insect Divi-sion in Ottawa, established the ForestInsect Survey, which later evolved intothe Forest Insect and Disease Survey(FIDS). FIDS is recognized as being thelongest uninterrupted project in the his-tory of the Canadian Forest Service.During its 60-year run, FIDS was an

important component of the federalforestry presence in the Maritimesregion, employing more than 70 staff,and benefiting from the expertise ofseveral hundred provincial, federal,industrial, municipal, educational, andprivate cooperators.

The monitoring and study of forestinsects requires extensive field workand, in 1944, in the wake of the birchdieback and great European sprucesawfly outbreak and just as the sprucebudworm outbreak of the 1940s and1950s was getting under way, the GreenRiver Project was formed. The forests ofnorthern New Brunswick were chang-ing, and there was a need to study thesechanges and find ways to control them.The long-term research installation atGreen River was a collaborative effortthat included the Forest Biology Divi-sion of Agriculture Canada and the

Dominion Forestry Service (bothantecedents of the CFS), the NewBrunswick Department of Lands andMines, and Fraser Companies Ltd.

The Green River Project’s originalobjective was focused on forest insectresearch. However, the scope of theproject was quickly expanded to includestudies in pathology, small mammals,ecology, utilization, logging methods,management, silviculture, and growthand yield. A field station was establishedat Fraser Companies’ Summit Depot,and over the years, hundreds of univer-

Sampling for spruce budworm at Green River in 1947.

Current premises: state-of-the-art laboratory at the Hugh John Flemming Forestry Cen-tre in Fredericton.

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sity students toiled alongside scientistswhile battling mosquitoes and blackflies to discover ways to best protect andgrow the forest.

In addition to the scientists, students,and support staff, the families of some ofthe researchers also spent their summersat Summit Depot, transforming thisquiet and remote area of northwesternNew Brunswick into a vibrant commu-nity. The installations at Summit Depothold many fond memories of summersspent in the deep New Brunswickwoods. The Green River Project endedin 1984, as did the community that con-sidered Summit Depot their summerhome for 40 years. However, as is oftenthe case with long-term research instal-lations, activities at Green River did notend with the closing of the Project.

Between 1959 and 1961, Dr. GordonBaskerville established the Green Riverthinning trials. These trials representthe oldest known replicated precom-mercial thinning experiments in east-ern North America. The trials consistedof five experimental blocks, each con-taining three spacing intensities, and anunthinned control. Measurements wereconducted at five-year intervals up toyear 30. In 2004, CFS scientists revisited

the Green River thinning trials andremeasured all of the plots. The GreenRiver thinning trials have influencedhow young softwood stands are man-aged and are adding to the knowledgeof growth response to thinning, whichis being used to refine provincial inven-tory figures. Having reached maturity,some of the Green River thinning plotswere harvested in 2008, and informa-tion was collected on harvesting costs,wood properties, pulp properties, andthe impact of root and butt rots fromthe various treatments. These resultsfurther our knowledge of the silvicul-tural benefits of thinning young foreststands.

The growing of a forest takes manydecades, and long-term research initia-tives such as the Green River Project areinvaluable in unravelling the mysteriesof forest management. The federal roleof forestry in the province of NewBrunswick is 100 years and counting.Long-term research initiatives such asthe Green River Project, the ForestInsect and Disease Survey, and the Aca-dia Research Forest are cornerstonesthat continue to provide researchopportunities and contribute to theknowledge of forest science.

Federal forestry in New Brunswickhas had a profound impact on forestmanagement in the region and abroad.Entomology was the foundation andremains to this day a critical componentof the research at the Atlantic ForestryCentre. However, the scope of forestmanagement has expanded andevolved, and many other aspects offorestry research are now beingexplored. The federal forestry presencein New Brunswick is up to the challengeand will undoubtedly produce pioneersin yet unforeseen areas of forestresearch in the next 100 years.

Bernard DaigleKnowledge Transfer Specialist/

Spécialiste en transfert de connaissances

Natural Resources Canada /Ressources naturelles Canada

Fredericton

ReferenceSimpson, C.M., compiler. 1999. Our his-tory…selected musings on events, people,and places. NRCan, CFS-AFC, Fredericton,NB.

To the Editor

CONFOR West 2012he 3rd Annual CONFOR West gradu-ate student conference in forestry and

environmental sciences was held Febru-ary 2nd – 5th in Canmore, Alberta. Sixty-eight student researchers from fourteenacademic institutions across NorthAmerica shared their research andengaged in inter-disciplinary discussionof contemporary resource managementissues in western North America. Therewas a diversity of topics ranging fromsoil biogeochemistry and weed manage-ment in poplar plantations in Alberta tosocio-ecological resilience theory andeconomic valuation of non-timber forestproducts in northern British Columbia.

The comfortable atmosphere pro-vided by the all-student forum allowedopen discussion and presentation ofresearch ideas and findings without theconcern of perhaps having to impressprofessors and potential employers. Stu-

dents networked with their peers, learntabout research outside their disciplineand participated in engaging discus-sions about the challenges of contempo-rary resource management. Oral pre-sentations followed the increasinglypopular ignite format in four sessionsover two days, with each presenter allot-ted five minutes and twenty slides topresent their research goals, findingsand implications. This format, firstdeveloped in Seattle, Washington in2006, is meant to “ignite” the audienceon a particular subject. A few minutesfor questions at the end prompted inter-esting discussions that were followed upin breakout sessions. Day one includedsessions on reclamation and urban agri-culture, and policy, ecotourism andcommunity economy. The next day’stopics were on forestry, and ecosystembiodiversity and wildlife management.The ignite format received excellentreviews from all students. It allowedpresenters to communicate the most

important messages of their researchwithout overwhelming the audiencewith details that can be hard to compre-hend in an interdisciplinary context.

Seventeen poster presentations cov-ered a variety of topics, including inva-sive species management, habitat selec-tion by elk and assessment of REDD(Reducing Emissions from Deforesta-tion and Forest Degradation) programsin Cameroon. The award for the mostinteresting poster went to DennisAubrey of Evergreen State College,Washington for a Sustainable PrisonsProject. His project focussed on linkingincarceration with restoration whereinmates were being trained to rearendangered butterflies and frogs in cap-tivity as part of a larger restoration pro-gram. He spoke with passion about theproject and the ecological as well associal benefits generated from thismulti-goal approach.

Following presentations studentsparticipated in a variety of outdoor

LETTERS LETTRES

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