Revisions to the Forest Manuals regulated under the Crown Forest Sustainability Act

The Forest Management Planning Manual and the Forest Information Manual are regulated manuals under the Crown Forest Sustainability Act (CFSA). They are the key documents that provide:

• direction for preparing, implementing and reporting on forest management plans ​
• requirements for information and how it is shared between the ministry and forest industry 

In Ontario, forest management planning, operations and licensing are administered through 39 management units ranging in size from 300,000 to 3.6 million hectares.

Under the current manuals:

• a forest management plan must be prepared for each management unit
• a plan is for a single management unit only

We are proposing to revise these manuals so forest managers can:

• prepare one forest management plan for multiple management units

The flexibility to include a larger geographic area would help reduce the cost and time that industry spends preparing and implementing forest management plans.

The Scaling Manual is also a regulated manual. It sets out the standards for:

• wood measurement, movement and record keeping as well as standards for training and licensing/certifying scalers and scaling auditors

Currently, the ministry issues a harvest approval so industry can begin harvesting in areas that are already approved in a forest management plan.

We are proposing changes to the Scaling Manual to:

• add requirements for the ministry to assign a unique harvest area number(s) to forest resource licensees or permittees

This would:

• support tracking of harvested wood (including measurement and invoicing for Crown timber charges) 

For the revisions to the forest manuals to take effect sections 26.1, 26.2, and 28 of Ontario Regulation 167/95 under the CFSA would be amended. See the background section for more about the manuals and forest management plans.

More about the proposed changes to the Forest Management Planning Manual and Forest Information Manual

The option to prepare a plan for multiple management units would be added through a basic addendum to the Forest Management Planning Manual and a revision to the Forest Information Manual. 

To develop a plan for multiple management units, the addendum to the Forest Management Planning Manual would require forest managers (sustainable forest license holders) to:

• ensure the management units are adjacent
• submit a proposal to the ministry’s regional director that includes:
  • the management unit names, the new proposed planning schedule, and how existing schedules will be harmonized
  • the rationale and benefits of preparing one forest management plan
  • the plan author
  • how the management direction would be developed (for example, forest classification, modeling inputs and management objectives)
  • how landscape guide indicators would be assessed
  • how the operational parts of the plan will be harmonized (for example, silvicultural ground rules, operational prescriptions, compliance plans, roads planning)
  • how forest management planning information will be handled (for example, planning inventory production)
  • any risks and contingencies (such as plan extensions or contingency plans)
• submit the proposal to the ministry’s regional director for review and approval

There are no proposed revisions to the overall planning process. When developing a plan for multiple management units, forest managers would continue to follow the same process as planning for a single management unit. 

This process is already established in the Forest Management Planning Manual and requires forest managers to:

• provide for forest sustainability (the long-term health of Ontario’s forests)
• consider social, economic and environmental values
• provide equal opportunities for First Nation and Metis community participation and consultation including:
  • participating on planning teams and Local Citizen Committees
  • developing customized consultation approaches with individual communities or groups of communities (allows each community the flexibility to have their own needs addressed
  • incorporating Traditional Ecological Knowledge in Background Information and Values Protection Reports
  • commenting on Annual Work Schedules, plan amendments, extensions and contingency plans
• balance perspectives and overlapping interests by working together as a planning team

Preparing a plan for multiple management units may also help:

• reduce duplication that communities experience when multiple plans are developed across their traditional area
• enhance consistency in representation of interests across management unit boundaries

More about the proposed changes to the Scaling Manual:

• The changes to the Scaling Manual would:
  • maintain the wood tracking function of harvest approvals under the Crown Forest Sustainability Act.  
  • replace the need to change the Crown Forest Sustainability Act General Regulation (O. Reg 167/95) as proposed in November 2025 through the Forest Permit Reform Initiative.

Background: purpose of forest manuals and forest management plans

The Forest Management Planning Manual, and the Forest Information Manual are regulated manuals under the Crown Forest Sustainability Act. The manuals direct how we prepare and implement forest management plans and share information with industry.

For example, the Forest Management Planning Manual requires:

• the person preparing a plan (called the plan author) to be a Registered Professional Forester in Ontario under the Professional Foresters Act
• each plan to establish forest management objectives relating to things like wood supply for mills, biodiversity, forest structure and composition
• consultation with First Nation and Métis communities and the public throughout the forest management planning process

Preparing a forest management plan takes about 4 years. The ministry approves a plan when satisfied that it provides for the sustainability of the forest. 

Each plan covers 10 years and outlines:

• the long-term objectives for the forest (management direction)
• areas proposed for harvest over 40 years (called the spatial harvest schedule)
• planned forest operations during the 10-year period (such as harvest and renewal)
• the planned harvest area, which is the maximum amount that we can sustainably harvest over the 10 years covered by the plan
• how the forest will be regenerated
• operational prescriptions and conditions to prevent, minimize or mitigate negative effects on values or important ecological features

The Scaling Manual is also a regulated manual under the Crown Forest Sustainability Act. The Scaling Manual provide instructions and standards for the measurement and movement of wood and sets out the requirements for conducting scaling audits.

Regulatory impact analysis

The anticipated environmental consequences of the proposal are neutral.

• There are no proposed revisions to the overall forest management planning process. The proposed changes to the manuals would continue to:
  • ensure forest management plans are sustainable
  • require the forest sector to operate under Ontario’s system of laws, regulations and policies, known as the forest policy framework, which includes rigorous processes and standards to:
    • protect the environment and biodiversity
    • responsibly harvest and renew the forest
    • consider how all users value the forest
    • involve First Nations and Métis communities, and the public
  • ensure the ministry tracks harvested wood (including measurement and invoicing for Crown timber charges)

The anticipated social consequences of the proposal are neutral. 

• The proposed changes to the manuals would create more efficient process for forest management planning. This:
  • supports Ontario’s forest sector, jobs and communities.
  • maintains opportunities for First Nation and Métis community involvement.
  • retains opportunities for stakeholders and the public to provide input into forest management plans and review forest operations

The anticipated economic consequences of the proposal are positive. 

• The proposed changes to the manual would:
  • reduce costs and time the industry spends preparing forest management plans
  • maximize the value of the investment that industry and the government make in developing plans
  • eliminate the harvest approval requirement and add requirements for the ministry to assign a unique harvest area number(s) to forest resource licensees or permittees.
    • the harvest approval requirement would be eliminated once provisions of Bill 56 Building a More Competitive Economy Act, 2025 are in effect

No new administrative costs are anticipated.