Canada's $64M project protects 81,400 hectares of Ontario taiga and peatlands, locking in 30M tonnes of carbon

Canada has committed $64 million to protect over 81,400 hectares of taiga forest and peatlands in northern Ontario. The area stores more than 30 million tonnes of carbon, equivalent to the annual emissions of roughly 34 million passenger vehicles. The project, led by the Nature Conservancy of Canada, combines federal and provincial funding with private contributions to safeguard critical habitat for species at risk like the red-headed woodpecker and bobolink. This conservation effort also supports Canada's 30x30 target to protect 30% of its land and waters by 2030. The federal government has invested over $558 million in the Natural Heritage Conservation Program, matched by more than $1.1 billion from partners, helping conserve nearly 966,000 hectares of ecologically sensitive land. Protecting peatlands is especially important because they store carbon for millennia if left undisturbed, but release it rapidly when drained or developed.