Day 073 - 13 Jan 95 - Page 39
1 kind of experimental forests where they are trying to
2 experiment with new forestry techniques. But, in the vast
3 bulk of Canada the old traditional, if you want to call
4 them traditional, the modern traditional techniques are
5 going on except for these small number of, the term I use
6 is "reference forest".
7
8 Q. So your conclusion on page 41 of your statement of
9 regarding paper products sourced from Canada, that follows
10 the same general -----
11 A. I stand by that conclusion.
12
13 Q. But that clear cutting is a particular problem, is it?
14 A. Clear cutting because of its scale in Canada (and much
15 larger than in the United States) is a particular problem.
16 Recently I was, in fact, in Northern Alberta, north of
17 where much of these photographs have been taken, in the
18 Aspen forest there which is actually a hardwood, in an area
19 which has been leased to the Japanese company, Diawasha
20 (but is a local firm, it is called Alpac, Alberta Pacific),
21 they are taking 1600 tonnes of Aspen out of the forest
22 every day, and the clear cuts there I saw on a recent trip,
23 I would say, were in excess of a square kilometre, 100
24 kilometres -- I mean, 100 hectares each time. There were
25 small islands of trees left between the clear cuts -- it
26 was much worse than even -----
27
28 MR. JUSTICE BELL: What is the name of that forest?
29 A. Athabasca is the region, A-T-H-A-B-A-S-C-A.
30
31 MR. MORRIS: I think I have largely finished. Is there
32 anything, Mr. Hopkins, you feel we have left out that is
33 important to add?
34 A. Just one minor thing on reference to these photographs
35 here that I can use as a general thing: A number of these
36 photographs refer to things which are called by the States
37 "National Parks" and logging is going on, quite disastrous
38 logging is going on in National Parks. Being called a
39 National Park is not necessarily any way of protecting, not
40 necessarily any way of protecting, a forest from logging.
41
42 Q. Is that just for the US and Canada or does that apply to
43 other countries?
44 A. In the US, National Parks are protected but State parks
45 are not. There is logging in State park.
46
47 MR. JUSTICE BELL: So when you were referring to National Parks
48 you were referring to Canada?
49 A. In this case National Parks in Canada are logged;
50 National Parks in US are not.
51
52 MR. MORRIS: What about, say, for example, Scandinavia and the
53 UK? Does National Park status prevent or protect
54 from -----
55 A. Absolutely not. It could take place like just up the
56 road from here, Exmoor National Park. Exmoor National Park
57 is, in fact, a working, farming forestry area. Felling
58 goes on all the time. If you go up to the Cairngorms in
59 Scotland's near Mar Lodge, some of the most important
60 remains of the Caledonian pin wood forest, there is felling
