The ‘ecocide’ that is Canada’s shame
For a fortnight, four women have been combing through a 30-metre forest plot with infinite care. They have noted the age and height of every tree, measured every fallen branch and twig, identified every plant and assessed the depth and composition of the forest floor. The purpose of this backbreaking work is to understand the critical role played by old-growth forest in carbon storage. Unusually for a field experiment, the team includes a mother and her two daughters. Teenagers are not generally known for their willingness to spend weeks in the undergrowth, but then Suzanne Simard is not your average mother. She is the pioneering Canadian ecologist who has changed
