Green Horizons: our forest revitalization

We're dedicated to transforming woodlots across Atlantic Canada into healthier, thriving forests, and sharing what we learn along the way.

Offered Services

Forest investment management services

Specializing in tailored, forest-first services that enhance ecological function, climate resilience, and carbon storage. As Atlantic Canada's foremost full-service forest management group, we handle everything from planning to implementation — growing the value of your asset.

What we do

Strategic Management Planning

Long-term management planning and financial projection, led by Registered Professional Foresters and Certified Forest Technicians.

Long-term management planning and financial projection
Five-year scheduling of merchantable and non-merchantable treatments
Insight drawn from LiDAR, satellite imagery, forest inventory, and stand modelling
Infrastructure assessment

Operational Planning & Oversight

We weigh environmental, economic, and logistic opportunities and constraints to ensure successful interventions, then oversee implementation end to end.

Annual operational plans with supporting documents and maps
Permitting managed, including watercourse and wet-area alterations
Expert contractors secured and guided to optimal results
Productivity and financial reporting every two weeks

Specialised Forest Treatment Fleet

Purpose-built, low-impact machinery that greatly reduces soil disturbance and rutting, operated by seasoned crews.

Low-impact equipment reduces soil disturbance and rutting
Manoeuvrable machines protect advanced regeneration and retention trees
Seasoned operators make optimal decisions in complex conditions
Modern sensors provide near real-time product tracking

Forestry

Forest revitalization projects

Stand improvement, selective harvesting, and ecological restoration across Atlantic Canada.

Stand Improvement · Started 2012

Scotch Settlement

Beginning in 2012, we embarked on a journey to rejuvenate an 80-year-old forest whose dense canopy stifled its own growth. By selectively harvesting 30% of trees (primarily short-lived species), we opened up light and sparked regeneration.

In our second harvest in winter 2023, we reduced canopy density by removing 35% of basal area, focusing on high-quality timber that doubled the landowner's revenue. Advanced machinery minimized forest floor impact, and a thriving understory of diverse seedlings now tells the rest of the story.

Increased growth in remaining trees favouring shade-tolerant varieties: spruce, hemlock, and yellow birch
Landowner revenue doubled in the 2023 harvest
Thriving understory with diverse seedlings established

Commercial Thinning · Sainte-Marie-de-Kent

Sainte-Marie-de-Kent

Three neighbouring properties at different development stages gave us a rare opportunity to show, side-by-side, what restorative treatment does over time.

Our cut-to-length (CTL) method, a two-person, two-machine operation using a harvester and a forwarder, minimized damage while maximizing efficiency. We retained a minimum of 5 snags or large-diameter trees per hectare for wildlife habitat, and maintained coarse woody debris throughout.

Pre-commercial thinning spaced trees ~6 feet apart, producing taller, larger, and more varied composition
Second-stage commercial thin further increased volume growth and shifted species to include red spruce and yellow birch
Wildlife habitat maintained throughout with retained snags and debris

ACFOR experimental forest — regeneration and understory diversity

Experimental Land · Ongoing

ACFOR's Experimental Forest

By acquiring and managing our own forest land, we demonstrate the effectiveness of restorative forestry first-hand. Our focus is on tolerant mixedwood stands (the type most commonly subjected to clearcutting), where we show that selective treatment produces superior ecological and economic outcomes.

Over 200 hours have been invested in employee training here, focusing on workflow efficiency and sustainable practices. The land also serves as a recreational space, experimental treatment site, and home to forested wetland conservation areas including cedar swamps.

Regeneration with shade-tolerant species establishing strong understory diversity
Brush matting prevented rutting; strategic thinning improved species resilience
Income from the land funds internal improvements, training, and consulting

Clean Energy

Renewable biomass energy

Closing the loop: what the forest gives up becomes clean fuel for the community.

Forest byproducts that society considers waste (the tops, branches, and low-grade wood removed during stand improvement) become net-zero fuel for communities. Paired with ACFOR's clean heating solutions, this creates a complete ecological and economic cycle.

When we improve a forest, the material we remove doesn't go to a landfill. It heats homes and businesses in New Brunswick, reducing dependence on fossil fuels while funding the next cycle of forest restoration.

What can ACFOR do for you?

Explore ACFOR's bespoke ecological solutions, where sustainability meets efficiency.

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