Forests have always been central to how people make a living--and a life--in the Canadian West. From the Aboriginal inhabitants of yesterday and today, to the increasingly urbanized populations expanding throughout our forested areas, to every citizen throughout the province, we all rely on the forest.

The public forest in Alberta covers nearly 60 per cent, or 38 million hectares of the province. Of the many communities and settlements within this area, about 32 rely on forestry as their major source of economic support, and almost a dozen of these have no source of economic support other than forestry. It is an industry that provides direct and indirect (trucking, catering, consulting, etc.) jobs for more than 48,000 people.

Many of these jobs are part of the lifeblood of communities large and small, often in more remote parts of the province. These jobs yield the taxes and human energy required for the educational, recreation and other social assets that today's residents expect in their communities.

The traveler enjoying a trip through Alberta's forest communities will see wild rivers, productive wildlife habitat, lush reforested areas that were recently harvested, areas in various stages or regrowth, and dense, mature forest. Within this vibrant and productive landscape, the traveler is just as likely to see well-maintained highways, modern airports and hospitals, busy schools and arenas, as well as comfortable municipal subdivisions and recreational properties.