The Trust was established in 1994 under the authority of an amendment to the Crown Timber Act; that amendment was subsequently carried forward in Part V of the Crown Forest Sustainability Act (1994).

 

The Trust Fund is currently managed by  RBC Dexia Investor Services Trust; Trust funds are allocated to successful applicants under the direction of the Forestry Futures Trust Committee.  Members of the Committee, including the Chair are appointed by the Minister for up to  three years, and appointment may be renewed. The funds for the Trust are generated via charges on harvest volume paid by Sustainable Forest Licensees and other harvest licence holders.

Forestry Futures Trust

The Trust was established under the authority of an amendment to the Crown Timber Act on 1994; that amendment was subsequently carried forward in Part V of the Crown Forest Sustainability Act (1994).

 

Purpose of the Fund

The Forestry Futures Trust shall, according to Section 51 of the Crown Forest Sustainability Act, provide for the following matters on such terms and conditions as may be specified by the Minister:

1. The funding of silvicultural expenses in Crown forests where forest resources have been killed or damaged by fire or natural causes.
2. The funding of silvicultural expenses on land that is subject to a forest resource licence, if the Licensee becomes insolvent.
3. The funding of intensive stand management and pest control in respect of forest resources in Crown forests.
4. Such other purposes as may be specified by the Minister.

                                                                

Source: Crown Forest Sustainability Act, Section 51 (3)

Other purposes specified by the Minister for which Trust funds have been used include:

 

•     Independent Forest Audit Program
•     Forest Resource Inventory
•     Tenure Modernization: SFL Conversion, Local Forest Management Company (LFMC),
•     SFL Conversion to Cooperative Initiative
•     Far North Forestry Development Initiative
•     Enhanced Forest Productivity Science Program
  
   

Eligible Applicants

For all programs, with the exception of the former Far North Forestry Development Initiative and the Enhanced Forest Productivity Science Program, the Committee may only approve applications from eligible applicants namely:

"Sustainable Forest Licence Management Units - holders of a forest management unit account or sub-account in the Forest Renewal Trust, or in special circumstances as directed by the Minister."

The Committee cannot consider project applications submitted by a licensee, if the Minister advises the Chair that the licensee is delinquent in paying Crown charges related to the licensing or harvest of Crown timber.

With the former Far North Forestry Development Initiative there were 15 eligible First Nations or affiliated Tribal Council applicants in the defined Northern Boreal Initiative Area north of the Area of the Undertaking.  

The closed Enhanced Forest Productivity Science (EFPS) program was opened in January 2005 to all forest researchers (government, industry, academic and private) via a request for proposal. EFPS applicants were required to provide matching funding from other sources. Research conducted under EFPS was intended to benefit forest sustainability on Crown lands in Ontario and all resultswere to be in the public domain.