Did you know that Canada is home to 10 per cent of the world’s forests? Or that 68 per cent of Canada’s forests are coniferous?

As we celebrate the second annual International Day of Forests and how important trees are, here are five fun facts about Canada’s forests:

• As of April 2012, Canada has more than 34 million maple trees. Our country also has 10 different species of maple trees.
• To offset one person’s carbon emissions for a year, 35 trees would need to be planted.
• The average rural Canadian tree absorbs 0.58 tons of carbon over an 80-year lifespan.
• Most of Canada’s native tree species migrated here 10,000 to 20,000 years after the Pleistocene ice sheets melted.
• The tree with the highest legal protection is in Kitchener, Ont. Planted by William Lyon Mackenzie King’s father, this tulip tree still grows in Woodside National Historic Site.

Want to read more facts? Visit the Classroom Energy Diet Challenge Blog.