Why Herbicides Are Used in Forestry
Herbicides are used in forestry to control what grows back after clearcut logging. The goal is to kill hardwood trees and shrubs so that commercially valuable softwood trees (conifer plantations) grow without competition.
For decades, people across Canada have opposed herbicide spraying in forestry. Indigenous Nations, scientists, and communities have challenged this practice because it contaminates public forests, harms biodiversity, and puts waterways, wildlife, wild foods, and human health at risk.
This practice began about 70 years ago with older chemicals such as 2,4-D and 2,4,5-T, both associated with the components of Agent Orange, and shifted to glyphosate in the 1980s. Triclopyr is now also being used. At no point has this practice had public consent.
The case for continuing this spraying is collapsing. A highly influential 2000 glyphosate “safety” paper was retracted Dec 2025, and the March 2026 Seattle Statement added to the growing scientific warning that glyphosate-based herbicides pose serious risks to human health. At the same time, Canada already has proof that forestry can operate without herbicide spraying.
Québec showed another way.
Québec ended routine forest herbicide spraying in 2001 after years of Indigenous leadership and public pressure.
No consent means no legitimacy.
Indigenous Nations have opposed forest herbicide spraying for decades. Section 35 recognizes and affirms Aboriginal and treaty rights, and Canada has committed to free, prior, and informed consent under UNDRIP. Yet spraying continues over lands and waters people depend on. In Ontario, Municipalities are now passing resolutions against forestry herbicide spraying. At the same time, worsening wildfire seasons make this practice even harder to defend. Converting forests into dense conifer plantations can increase flammability, putting ecosystems, carbon, and communities at greater risk. Smoke emergencies are becoming more frequent and more dangerous.
Why this must end
- It puts industrial convenience ahead of ecological and public health.
- It ignores Indigenous opposition and public concern.
- It relies on claims of safety that are no longer valid.
- It ignores non-chemical alternatives already proven elsewhere.
What we are calling for
- An end to all ground and aerial herbicide spraying in forestry; including alternatives to glyphosate, like triclopyr
- A shift to non-chemical forestry alternatives
- Real accountability for protecting forests, water, wildlife, and public health
Take action in your province
Choose your provincial action page below and put your opposition on the record.
