During the colonization of Québec, logging companies used the log drive to transport trees from harvesting sites to sawmills or to ports for export. In other words, the floating logs were guided along the waterways by raftsmen.

It is estimated that at the time, 15 per cent of these logs were lost to the bottom of lakes and rivers.

For a doctoral student in paleoecology and historical ecology like Julie-Pascale Labrecque-Foy, these remains represent an invaluable opportunity to be able to reconstruct the history of pre-industrial forests in Québec.

As part of her research at Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT), she uses dendrochronology, the study of the formation of tree rings.

“The passage of a fire leaves scars on surviving trees. It is possible to date these scars by dendrochronology and to reconstruct the natural fire regime in the pre-industrial era,” she writes in the latest article in La Conversation Canada’s boreal forest series.

The log drive contains incredible treasures that allow us to study the forests of the past, with a vision to better develop those of the future.

Also today: 

All the best,

Mélissa Khadra

Cheffe de section en science, santé et environnement
In North America, log driving is thought to have stopped by the end of the 20th century, with the exception of British Columbia, where it is still practised on a small scale. (Shutterstock)

What log driving can teach us about forests, past and present

Julie-Pascale Labrecque-Foy, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT); Miguel Montoro Girona, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)

Logging over the past two centuries has had a major impact on Québec’s forests. The traces it has left will guide the adoption of sustainable forest management techniques.
The Bald Mountain Wildfire in the Grande Prairie area in Alberta in May 2023. Much of B.C. and Alberta is already experiencing higher-than-usual wildfire risk. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Government of Alberta Fire Service

As we fight the Alberta and B.C. wildfires, we must also plan for future disasters

Jonathan Eaton, University of British Columbia; Sara Shneiderman, University of British Columbia

High-risk, high-uncertainty events like earthquakes tend to fall out of view when we are occupied with more predictable seasonal events like wildfires, which have very visible effects on our lives.
Members of the Air Line Pilots Association demonstrate amid contract negotiations outside the WestJet headquarters in Calgary on March 31, 2023. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

Looming WestJet strike illustrates the lasting impact deregulation has had on the aviation industry

Geraint Harvey, Western University

While the pandemic undoubtedly impacted the aviation industry, its problems were already present prior to COVID-19. The pandemic simply intensified these issues.
There is debate about whether a health-care worker can ethically participate in both palliative care and the MAID program. (Shutterstock)

MAID’s evolving ethical tensions: Does it make dying with dignity easier than living with dignity?

Alessandro Manduca-Barone, University of Lethbridge; Julia Brassolotto, University of Lethbridge; Monique Sedgwick, University of Lethbridge

Bill C-7 has created ethical tensions between MAID providers and palliative care, between transparency and patient privacy, and between offering a dignified death rather than a dignified life.
Canadian sport is in crisis. Only significant change and oversight can end the cycle of scandals and controversies. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Jeff McIntosh

To mend the shredded fabric of Canadian sport, Canada needs an independent standards commission

Ann Pegoraro, University of Guelph; Milena M. Parent, L’Université d’Ottawa/University of Ottawa

The recent measures announced by the sport minister are a step in the right direction. But Canada needs an independent commission to monitor and prevent abuse in sport.
Snoop Dogg shouted out Canada’s First Nations in his ongoing social media campaign to promote his bid to buy the NHL’s Ottawa Senators. Snoop posted a video to Instagram in a recording studio and wearing an Ottawa Senators jersey. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout: Instagram @snoopdogg

The Ottawa Senators bidding war is about a lot more than ticket sales and star power

Liam Cole Young, Carleton University

The Ottawa Senators’ bidding war has important lessons about speculation and financialization in pro sports.

La Conversation Canada
En Amérique du Nord, la drave aurait pris fin avant la fin du 20e siècle, à l’exception de la Colombie-Britannique, où la drave est encore utilisée à petite échelle. (Shutterstock)

Ce que la drave nous apprend sur les forêts d’hier et de demain

Julie-Pascale Labrecque-Foy, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT); Miguel Montoro Girona, Université du Québec en Abitibi-Témiscamingue (UQAT)

L’exploitation forestière des deux derniers siècles a eu un impact majeur sur les forêts québécoises, mais les traces qu’elle a laissées guideront dans l’adoption d’un aménagement forestier durable.

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