Region Archives: Canada East

The Province’s agreements with Port Hawkesbury Paper have been updated to support sustainable ecological forestry practices and management of public lands. “The forestry sector is important to the economy of Nova Scotia. It can be sustainably managed and align with our environmental goals,” said Tory Rushton, Minister of Natural Resources and Renewables. “We’ve refreshed these agreements to continue working with Port Hawkesbury Paper as an important employer, as part of the forestry sector and as a corporate taxpayer.” The Province has two agreements, first signed in 2012, with Port Hawkesbury Paper. The company’s forest utilization licence agreement is a long-term agreement that guarantees an annual volume of timber from certain parcels of Crown land and sets out terms and conditions.

Additional coverage in The Hawk 101.5, by Blake Priddle: Port Hawkesbury Paper Extends Agreements with the Province

The forestry industry is seeking a boost in funding provided for the maintenance of forest access roads. Ian Dunn, President of the Ontario Forest Industries Association, presented their case during a pre-budget meeting this week in Timmins. Dunns says the current allocation of $54 million is no longer adequate “Using inflation calculators, the program needs to be increased to $64 million annually to keep pace with inflation,” says Dunn. Dunn adds forest companies estimate an additional need of $20 million in unfunded forest road liabilities. He says this would include annual road maintenance, the replacement of aging bridges and water crossings, and the replacement of certain roads at the end of their lifespan.

The forestry industry is seeing a large portion of its workforce retire without the ability to replace them, says a new study. According to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, the sector is experiencing a labour force and skill shortage that is preventing it from realizing its full economic potential. If left unchecked, this shortage could negatively impact the socioeconomic standing of hundreds of communities across Ontario for years to come. To address this issue, Forests Ontario – the province’s leading charity dedicated to the creation, preservation, and maintenance of forest and grassland habitats – and the Ontario Forest Industries Association (OFIA), with support from an advisory committee, collaborated on Bridging the Gap Between Ontario’s Youth & the Provincial Forest Sector, an Employment Ontario research project (known simply as Bridging the Gap) funded in part by the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario.

BARRIE, ON – Industries across Canada are seeing a large portion of their workforce retire without the ability to replace them, and the forestry sector is no exception. According to the Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry, the forestry sector is experiencing a labour force and skill shortage that is preventing the sector from realizing its full economic potential. If left unchecked, this shortage could negatively impact the socio-economic standing of hundreds of communities across the province of Ontario for years to come. To address this issue, Forests Ontario and the Ontario Forest Industries Association (OFIA), with support from an advisory committee, collaborated on Bridging the Gap Between Ontario’s Youth & the Provincial Forest Sector, an Employment Ontario research project (known simply as Bridging the Gap) funded in part by the Government of Canada and the Government of Ontario.

Four First Nations in northwestern Ontario have formed a coalition against resource extraction in their traditional land use territories. Grassy Narrows, Big Trout Lake (Kitchenuhmaykoosib Inninuwug), Wapekeka, and Neskantaga were part of a signing ceremony on Tuesday. The four First Nations were joined by Sol Mamakwa, NDP MPP for Kiiwetinoong and Official Opposition Critic for Indigenous Affairs. They are concerned about mounting encroachment from mining and forestry companies. The Protecting Our Lands Conference was held on the Grassy Narrows First Nation as part of the signing ceremony.

GRASSY NARROWS, Ontario —  An alliance has been formed between four northern First Nations to create a united front on land protection issues. …The four First Nations are “forming an alliance to protect their lands and waters in the face of mounting concerns about mining exploration companies who have been enabled by the Ford Government’s pro-industry stance,” according to the alliance. …“In 2002, Grassy Narrows people… succeeded in removing the world’s largest newsprint company and in preventing all logging since 2008. It added that since 2018 the number of mining claims on Grassy Narrows land has “exploded to around 4,000 mining claims.” Grassy Narrows has called on Ontario to respect Grassy Narrows’ 7,000 sq km Indigenous Protected Area and to withdraw the area from mining and logging activity. “But the Ford government continues to allow “free entry” staking and is proposing to open up part of it to renewed clearcut logging,” the alliance stated.

Following recommendations from FPInnovations, a recent change in allowable gross vehicle weight (AGVW) through a pilot program for two log truck configurations in Newfoundland and Labrador is underway. The pilot program configurations include an 8-axle B-train trailers going to an AGVW of 65 500 kg (from 62 500 kg) and a tandem drive tractor with a quad axle semi-trailer going to an AGVW of 57 500 kg (from 55 500 kg). The results of these changes in configurations provide 4% lower GHG emissions and 6% fewer log truck trips required to haul a given volume, The reduction in GHG emissions equates to the removal of more than 135 passenger vehicles from the road per year. Once fully implemented, the change in allowable gross vehicle weight (AGVW) for the two truck configurations are expected to improve forest sector efficiency while reducing impacts on public road infrastructure and lowering GHG emissions. 

A new forestry commission will help review the Island’s forest policy and legislation. “As we work to implement all the recommendations of the emergency forestry task force in the wake of Hurricane Fiona, our new forestry commission will help us with long term planning to increase the resiliency of our forests. Healthy forests are important for a healthy Island and our government is committed to managing our forests using the best available science and with the advice of local experts,” said Environment, Energy and Climate Action Minister Steven Myers. PEI’s Forestry Commission will have 12 members plus Jean-Paul Arsenault as chair. Membership will include woodlot owners, forest management practitioners who use both traditional and eco-based approaches, a public policy expert, a research scientist, a climate change researcher, an Indigenous representative, members of the watershed community, and members of the forestry profession.

TORONTO, ON – The Government of Canada launched the greatest nature conservation campaign in Canada’s history, with a goal of protecting thirty percent of Canada’s lands and waters by 2030. The Honourable Steven Guilbeault, Minister of Environment and Climate Change and Minister responsible for Parks Canada, announced over $8 million to protect and enhance three critical natural spaces in Ontario. These include: the Cootes to Escarpment EcoPark System. This developing greenspace stretches from the Western edge of Lake Ontario to the Niagara Escarpment; The Meadoway to Rouge National Urban Park; Rice Lake Plains; and the Algonquin to Adirondacks Collaborative.

QUEBEC CITY – Our forests play a critical role in our environment and our economy. That’s why Canada is working with our partners to plant two billion trees by 2031… Today, the Honourable Jonathan Wilkinson, Minister of Natural Resources, is pleased to announce $300,000 for the Association Forestière des Deux Rives for its regional capacity-building project. The contribution comes from the 2 Billion Trees (2BT) program. In collaboration with the Conseil régional de l’environnement région de la Capitale-Nationale, Agiro and 30 organizations in the National Capital and Chaudière-Appalaches regions, the project will prepare for an increase in tree-planting efforts in urban and suburban areas through training, pooling of resources and collaboration between organizations. 

HALIFAX: Crown land in Antigonish and Guysborough counties has been set aside in zones promoting what the provincial government is calling ecological forestry. …the Department of Natural Resources and Renewables (DNRR) announced that it dedicated a “high production forest zone,” which will complete its “triad model of ecological forestry.” They noted that this will ensure that 90 per cent of Crown land is “managed with biodiversity as the top priority.” …The province said 10 per cent of Crown land, about 185,000 hectares, will be allocated for the high production forest zone where clear-cutting is allowed. …Once forestry licensees have harvested an area in this zone, they are expected to prepare and add nutrients to the soil, plant high-quality, fast-growing seedlings, and manage the crop for decades, said the province. …The department estimates that each year for the next 35 years, licensees will establish about 5,000 hectares of Crown land in the zone. 

Jon Sweeney

CALEDONIA, N.S. — Scientists and researchers are working to protect Nova Scotia hemlocks from a destructive insect that has been wreaking havoc here for more than five years. Hemlock woolly adelgid (HWA)… can kill trees in two to 10 years after infestation. …Scientists, researchers, foresters and other stakeholders met for the Atlantic Canada Forest Health Workshop Jan. 17-19 in Liverpool and took a trip to Kejimkujik National Park. They shared what has happened already regarding HWA and plans for the future. …Jon Sweeney, a research scientist with the Canadian Forest Services, Natural Resources Canada, based in Fredericton, N.B., is keeping an eye on the insects spread. While it has not been detected in New Brunswick, it is in Maine and Nova Scotia. “You’re not going to lose a forest — other trees will take over — but you’re going to lose that unique hemlock, cool, old-growth forest,” he said.

The phone hasn’t stopped ringing for forestry contractor Matt Hughes as woodlot owners across P.E.I. try to salvage what they can in the wake of post-tropical storm Fiona. …”It’s unfortunate for land owners that have lost a lot of value of timber.” Hughes was part of the province’s Emergency Forestry Task Force that made eleven recommendations, including salvage incentives, based on the amount of damage, ranging from $250 to $850 a hectare. …One of the biggest challenges has been getting into the woodlots to clear out the downed wood, said Hughes. …Hughes says forestry contracters are about to face the third lumber price decrease since Dec. 1. …There have been some additional challenges, said Hughes, including the weather, the high cost of diesel and plummeting lumber prices.

Tom MacFarlane

A report on the state of the province’s forests that was first promised almost seven years ago should finally be public before April 1, a committee of the legislature was told Wednesday. Tom MacFarlane, the deputy minister, acknowledged that his department has missed several deadlines. He made the new commitment after Green Leader David Coon hammered the department. “Delay after delay after delay after delay,” Coon said. Earlier in the morning, Coon also forced MacFarlane to admit that the department had not published an annual plan listing its objectives — a plan required under provincial law to be posted on the department’s website. “I’m not aware as to why we haven’t published an annual plan,” MacFarlane said. He said the department has been using a mandate letter from Premier Blaine Higgs as a guide.

Mark Stevens & Brandon Brock

TEMAGAMI – The Temagami Forest Management Corporation (TFMC) recently awarded its first scholarship. Brandon Brock of Sturgeon Falls was the recipient of a $2,500 scholarship to support his studies in the Environmental Technology Diploma program at Canadore College in North Bay. Brock has worked for the past two summers with Daki Menan Lands and Resources in the Temagami forest, planting trees and thinning young forests, TFMC general manager Mark Stevens stated in a press release. The TFMC scholarship program was initiated in the fall of 2022 and will continue with applications being accepted in the spring of each year going forward, Stevens outlined.