The effects that these types of operations have on the park are numerous (The Wildlands League (a), 2000). My claim is that logging operations and related activities should be prohibited in Algonquin Provincial Park. The reason for this claim is that the natural environment possesses intrinsic value thus giving it the right to be preserved. In the following report, the reasons for this arguement will be proven both philosophically and scientifically. The recreational use of the park will be demonstrated to be more acceptable than the logging activities that currently take place, as a potential compromise in solving the problem. .
Logging in the park began in the 1830's to provide wood for the English Navy. The park's biggest pines were cut and taken across the Atlantic and within 70 years, the big pines which seemed to be inexhaustible, had been almost entirely logged out (The Wildlands League (b), 2000). In 1893, Algonquin was named a wildlife sanctuary and agricultural development was prohibited on the land in order to protect the headwaters of the rivers that flow from the park (The Friends of Algonquin Park, 2001). In naming it a wildlife sanctuary, the goal of the Ontario government was to provide " a public park, and forest reservation, fish and game preserve, health resort and pleasure ground for the benefit, advantage and enjoyment of the people of the Province"(The Wildlands League (b), 2000). .
Algonquin Park is located on the southern edge of the Canadian Shield. It lies in a transition zone between deciduous forests found mainly in areas to the south of the park and coniferous forests typical of areas to the north (The Friends of Algonquin Park, 2001). The west and east sides are separated by highlands, allowing for the development of microclimates. These diverse climates allow for many different species of trees to be found throughout the park such as sugar maple and hemlock in the east and jack pine, white birch and poplar in the west.
