Alberta forest loss worst in foothills, not oilsands area: satellite imagery

EDMONTON – Information gleaned from satellite images shows that forests on the slopes of Alberta’s Rocky Mountains have taken the brunt of industrial development.

A report from Global Forest Watch shows that the eastern slopes, not the oilsands area, have suffered the highest rate of forest loss over the last 12 years.

Almost seven per cent of those forests disappeared between 2000 and 2013 — more than double the average rate of forest loss across Canada.

Report author Peter Lee says energy and forestry development are taking place on land Albertans have come to see as their outdoor playground.

The Alberta government is preparing to auction off to industry another block of land on the eastern slopes that is some of the last remaining habitat for two endangered caribou herds.