The Lac Seul Upland, straddling Ontario and Manitoba, lies within the heart of Canada's boreal region. Within the Lac Seul Upland is Ecoregion 3S, (located just north of Red Lake), a largely unbroken band of forests, wetlands, lakes and rivers that extends from the Manitoba border in the west to Wabakimi Provincial Park in the east.

It comprises part of the largest intact boreal region in Canada and overlaps with a site to be recognized by UNESCO World Cultural Heritage and World Natural Heritage designations.

We've recently released a geographical portrait of Ecoregion 3S, created as an inventory of many of the ecological and cultural values of Ontario's northern boreal forest. It includes maps that reveal the location of a range of features, from intact forests and watersheds to road corridors and potential hydro transmission corridors. The portrait aims to convey the ecological importance of the region, the values at stake should development proceed, and the unique characteristics of this landscape.

 To download the portrait, click the cover. (pdf file 19.4MB)

High-resolution print copies can be purchased for $50.00 (discount available for First Nations) by contacting our office.

Until recently, this region has been largely off limits to industrial developments. This is about to change. Development plans are now underway that could threaten the ecological integrity of this region. CPAWS Wildlands League and its partners believe that, before we step over the province's "cutline" into the intact forests of Ontario, we must act responsibly to understand our decisions, and find approaches that will ensure the ecosystems and First Nations of this globally important area have a sustainable future.

This area offers one of our best (and last) opportunities to develop new appraches to land use that will conserve the unique natural and cultural diversity of one of the planet's last wild forests.

This project was made possible by the generous support of World Wildlife Fund's Conservation Science and Solutions Fund, Wildlife Conservation Society Canada, the Ontario Trillium Foundation and the Canadian Boreal Initiative. We gratefully acknowledge ESRI for supporting our map production through their Conservation Grant program.

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