The Scientific Foundation
It is a scientific fact that healthy ecosystems represent the ONLY means known to science to remove CO2, the principle greenhouse gas, from the atmosphere. Worldwide, over 60% of ecosystems services, including climate regulation, are degraded (Millennium Ecosystem Assessment, Ecosystems and Human Well-Being, 2005). There are manifold opportunities to restore degraded ecosystems in North America. This is particularly the case in Western Canada, where historical unsustainable land use practices and urban development have resulted in patchwork of non-functional and unproductive lands. These lands may be severely impaired in their climate regulation capacities, and are often invaded by exotic species "squeezing out" native plants and animal species.