Forest Management

 

Located 400 km northeast of Thunder Bay, the Ogoki Forest has rugged uplands and lowlands, it’s home to woodland caribou, wolverine, marten, and hundreds of other wildlife species. It has many different types of trees like spruce, pine, fir and poplar. Community members from Aroland, Eabametoong and Marten Falls have inhabited these lands since time immemorial. Now the First Nations share a common vision of resource development where people, forests, species and businesses thrive. In March 2018, Agoke signed a ground-breaking forestry agreement with the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) to take on forest management of the Ogoki Forest. This process took many years to accomplish and many long days of meetings with government officials. Even though the Ogoki Forest is considered a crown-managed unit, this Is the first big step for the First Nations to prove a point to the government, forest industry and the region.

 

 

Today, Agoke has the First Nations in a position to be the landlord of the forest, as stewards of the land. The Agoke Board works with a team of foresters, planners, mappers and technicians. Agoke seeks out community input from land users, trappers, and community members to help Identify areas of concern, cultural values and other sensitive areas so it can be protected. Agoke is also involved in inspecting logging operations to make sure it is done properly. Each year, a document called an AWS (Annual Work Schedule) is created. The AWS shows all the areas in the forest where harvesting of trees will happen, how many trees will be planted and much more. If you have any questions about forest management, please contact an Agoke Board member or jrasevych@gmail.com