The Federation of Northern Ontario Municipalities says environmentalists ignore that climate change is a threat to the caribou. Instead FONOM and the Northwestern Ontario Municipal Association say these groups keep blaming the forest sector for the caribou drop. However both lobby groups say the caribou population has actually been rising thanks to sound practices. FONOM says instead of criticizing forestry, environmentalists should consider a research paper that says changes in winter temperatures could reduce caribou numbers by 2050.