PORT MELLON, BC — Domtar announced the indefinite idling of its affiliates’ operations at both the Howe Sound mill and Bayview Fibre chipping facility in Port Mellon, British Columbia. The decision will remove approximately 380,000 metric tons of northern bleached softwood kraft (NBSK) pulp from the market annually. The announcement will affect approximately 400 employees. “Despite capital investment of nearly CAD$500 million since the mill was purchased in 2010, and the construction of the Bayview Fibre facility, the business cannot overcome reduced demand from Asia, unprecedented and sustained poor pricing for pulp globally, and a decline in affordable domestic fiber,” said Luc Thériault, Domtar’s President – Canada and CEO, Pulp and Wood Products. …The business will monitor market conditions, domestic fiber availability and the overall business environment, and will evaluate future opportunities if conditions improve,” stated Thériault.
It’s one of the great paradoxes of B.C.’s declining forestry sector. Large forestry companies continue to divest from B.C. and shutter sawmills and pulp mills, largely due to a lack of access to affordable fibre. Meanwhile, in Coastal B.C., there seems to be plenty of timber available, mostly in the form of second growth. In 2025, only half of the 15 million cubic metres of the coastal available cut was harvested, according to the Truck Loggers Association. Nearly a third of that timber is owned or controlled by Coastal First Nations – about 4.6 million cubic metres. 
A light at the end of the tunnel is beginning to appear with both Prime Minister Carney and US President Trump signalling a trade deal is in the works. …It is unclear at this stage whether the terms will alleviate the layers of duties and tariffs facing BC’s softwood lumber sector. Some of these levies were introduced by Trump and are known as Section 232 tariffs, referring to the section of the U.S. Trade Expansion Act relied on to impose them. Others are duties that predate Trump’s election and are part of a long-standing market fairness dispute between the countries. “Although the pause is a positive step, the implications for Canada’s forest sector are not yet clear,” said Kim Haakstad, on behalf of the BC Council of Forest Industries and the BC Lumber Trade Council. “Key issues, including the Section 232 tariff on lumber and the softwood lumber dispute, remain central to these discussions.”
Prince George city council voted in favour of sending a letter to provincial Labour Minister Jennifer Whiteside at its Monday, Aug. 17 meeting to reinstate a program helping workers near retirement in the wake of the impending closure of the Northwood Pulp Mill. At the Monday, Aug. 10 meeting of the city’s Standing Committee, members discussed the imminent closure of the mill. During that committee meeting, the city’s manager of economic development, Deklan Corstanje, said that the last time a mill closed, workers were able to access a provincial program called Bridging to Retirement. Before the program stopped accepting applications on Feb. 26, 2025, it provided forestry worked aged 55 and older with funding to help facilitate an early retirement. …The committee ultimately passed a motion recommending that council approve Mayor Simon Yu sending a letter to Whiteside asking for the program’s restoration.
It was recently reported that Interfor Corp., a B.C.-founded forest products company and one of North America’s largest lumber producers, is planning to relocate its head office operations from Metro Vancouver to Georgia. A couple of weeks earlier, Canfor Corp. announced the permanent closure of its Northwood Pulp Mill in Prince George. These are only the latest in a long list of forestry operations that have closed or left British Columbia. According to the Council of Forest Industries (COFI), 23 mills have permanently closed since 2023. The latest reports suggest the count may now be approaching 30. Premier David Eby’s government has been quick to blame the shrinking B.C. forest industry on U.S. President Donald Trump’s tariffs. …But the deeper causes of the crisis in B.C. forestry lie closer to home. B.C. lumber production has been in steep decline for a decade or more. …That conclusion is reinforced by the Canadian Forest Sector Transformation Task Force…
Premier David Eby’s statement after speaking in Penticton with evacuees, local leaders and emergency personnel responding to wildfires: Today, I met with people whose lives have been turned upside down by these wildfires. I listened to families forced to leave their homes with little warning. I heard from people waiting anxiously for news about whether they have anything left to return to. And I spoke with business owners worried about their employees and their future. I also met with local mayors, First Nations leadership, firefighters, emergency personnel and community organizations helping people through an incredibly difficult time. The message I heard was clear: These have been devastating days, but people are facing them with strength, determination and a deep commitment to supporting their neighbours. To everyone who has been evacuated, who is under alert, who has lost property or who is living with uncertainty right now: know that you are not facing this alone. 
The U.S. Lumber Coalition repeatedly accuses Canada of subsidizing softwood-lumber production, preserving excess capacity and distorting trade. That argument deserves scrutiny — but it must be applied consistently. The U.S. is hardly subsidy-free. Federal and state governments support forestry and wood manufacturing through grants, tax provisions and public programs. U.S. dairy producers also receive extensive government support. The question is not whether governments support important industries. Both countries do. The questions are which measures are acceptable, who benefits, and who pays. The coalition is not formally proposing Canadian-style supply management. …The coalition wants Canada to reduce production, limit lumber entering the United States and accept a smaller American market share. …Free trade cannot mean open markets for American exports and managed scarcity for American imports. A principle applied in only one direction is not a principle. It is protectionism — a policy that shelters inefficient U.S. companies from healthy competition while steadily eroding affordability, suppressing innovation, restricting opportunity and, ultimately, destroying jobs. [A subscription to the Vancouver Sun may be required for full access]
VANCOUVER, BC — Conifex Timber reported results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2026. EBITDA was negative $6.3 million for the quarter compared to EBITDA of negative $7.7 million in the first quarter of 2026 and negative EBITDA of $3.2 million in the second quarter of 2025. Net loss was $9.5 million or the quarter versus a net loss of $9.4 million in the previous quarter and a net loss of $8.3 million in the second quarter of 2025. …Revenues from lumber products were $19.0 million in the second quarter of 2026, representing an increase of 27% from the previous quarter and a decrease of 31% from the second quarter of 2025. … Electricity production contributed revenues of $2.8 million in the second quarter of 2026, $5.2 million in the previous quarter, and $3.6 million in the second quarter of 2025.
VANCOUVER, BC — Western Forest Products reported their second quarter, 2026 result. Q2, 2026 revenue was $239.6 million, compared to $201.5 million in Q1, 2026, and $289.1 million in the second quarter of 2025. …Adjusted EBITDA of $0.4 million in the second quarter of 2026, as compared to $0.5 million in the same period last year. Adjusted EBITDA in the second quarter of 2026 included a $2.3 million expense related to share-based compensation due to a 20% increase in the Company’s share price, compared to a $0.3 million expense in the same period last year. Net income was $10.5 million in the second quarter of 2026, as compared to a net loss of $17.4 million for the same period last year. Results in the second quarter of 2026 included a $31.3 million property insurance recovery from our Columbia Vista sawmill. …Both the North American Japanese lumber markets are expected to be relatively stable through most of the third quarter of 2026.
The Hive at 2150 Keith Drive in Vancouver is one of the most seismically advanced mass timber projects in North America. The building features nine levels of mass timber construction, sitting atop a concrete base, with a honeycomb structure of diagonally oriented braces arranged in a cellular pattern. The building’s design uses a perimeter-braced structural system that creates a striking exterior expression and eliminates the need for conventional cast-in-place concrete cores. A mass timber structure for all floors above Level 2; a series of timber shear walls in the interior and a series of structural braces at the exterior resist the wind and seismic load. Exposed wood is a major feature of the building’s interior design. The use of mass timber is complemented by a palette of earth-toned materials, including composite metal panels, wood soffits and abundant glazing. A perfect pairing for the views of the North Shore mountains and downtown Vancouver skyline.
Are you looking to enhance your skills in the lumber and sawmill sector? Onboarding new employees that would benefit from formal education in the field? Are you seeking to provide your employees with essential business skills for professional development? BCIT is currently offering two Associate Certificates to help you: 
SFU researchers say the amount of money BC has spent fighting wildfires in recent years is almost the same as what the province has collected in natural gas royalties. They say it demonstrates how BC households are already paying for the costs of climate change. The researchers said the average cost of fighting wildfires in BC over the past 10 years was more than twice as much as the decade prior. …“Royalties from the gas sector are virtually the same as what it costs to manage and mitigate wildfires in BC,” said co-author Andy Hira, a professor of political science. …BC’s natural gas industry only represents “a fraction of global emissions,” Lisa Baiton, CEO of Canadian Association of Petroleum Producers, said. Dan McTeague, a former Liberal MP said the energy sector’s much-bigger economic footprint gets lost when the debate narrows to royalties alone.
The province has rejected a leasing application by a private wilderness survival school operator to set up camp within East Sooke Regional Park. Vitaliy Svetlichnyy, owner of One With Nature outdoor survival school, had applied two years ago to lease a 71-hectare parcel of Crown land inside the borders of East Sooke Park to build and operate his school. The proposal included an intensive-use area of about five hectares for several permanent structures … and a dock on the waterfront and storage buildings. Svetlichnyy was asking for a lease of 10 to 30 years on the land and foreshore, but his proposals caused a widespread outcry from local government and the public who said private operators should not be allowed in parks. In his decision, Peter Warbuton, senior licensed authorizations officer for the province, said the proposed long-term commercial use, infrastructure development and exclusive occupation were incompatible with the existing conservation, recreation and stewardship objectives of the area.
Canada has released the first ever biological control agent to tackle invasive common tansy (Tanacetum vulgare), an invasive plant that negatively impacts the country and wider region’s livestock, rangeland, and native biodiversity. The release of the agent – a stem-mining weevil called Microplontus millefolii – marks a major milestone in efforts to manage this invasive plant across North America, reducing its ecological and economic impacts. In partnership with the British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada (AAFC) conducted the first releases of 1,200 adult weevils in May. AAFC conducted a further release of 400 weevils in Alberta in June. …These releases target areas experiencing significant, negative impacts on agriculture and biodiversity. …The common tansy has diminished the health of lands used for livestock foraging, as well as displaced native vegetation, and has hindered forest regeneration following logging. …Over 10,000ha of common tansy has been recorded in BC across all climate zones said BC’s Janine Brooke.
The BC Wildfire Service has outlined its policies regarding responses to house and structure fires following a fire that destroyed Ric and Shirley Martin’s Balsam Road home outside Houston on Aug. 5, 2026. An initial BCWS attack crew did respond, but that was to assess and address any risk of the fire spreading into surrounding forested areas, the service said. “Wildland firefighters are trained to respond to wildfires and other incidents involving vegetation and organic fuels. They are not trained or equipped to respond to fires involving structures or other non-organic materials,” the service stated. “Structural firefighters are trained and equipped to respond to structure fires and to protect and defend properties and infrastructure in the wildland urban interface.” …“In the case of the Balsam Road fire, BC Wildfire Service personnel were present to monitor and address any wildfire risk associated with the incident, while structural fire suppression responsibilities remained with the appropriate local fire response agencies.”
As fires continue to bear down on B.C., officials are developing an “all-of-society” approach to build community resilience, bringing together FireSmart programs, risk reduction work and the forest sector, according to Forests Minister Ravi Parmar. “I’ve asked my ministry to take a lot of the different pots of money that we have and develop an all-of-society approach,” Parmar said during a Tuesday press conference. He said the approach would include building a “working forest” with resilience as a core part of that work, along with broader efforts to help communities FireSmart their properties and neighbourhoods. Parmar said the province will provide more details later this week. He said that approach is already well rooted in the Okanagan and that he plans to continue conversations with the West Kelowna fire chief and mayor when he travels to the valley next week.
Smoke continues to linger over much of Southern B.C. Sunday. Environment Canada’s air quality warnings remain in place for a large portion of the region, including the Thompson-Okanagan. While most of the area is under a “yellow” warning, the South Okanagan and Fraser Canyon regions are under the more severe “orange” warning. Multiple wildfires are actively burning in and around B.C.’s Southern Interior and putting up plenty of smoke, including the Bald Range fire in Summerland and the Ainslie Creek fire in the Fraser Canyon, along with several fires south of the border. Environment Canada warns that the elderly and very young, people with lung or heart conditions, and people who are pregnant should reduce their time spent outdoors during smoky conditions. No air quality warnings are in place for the Metro Vancouver area or the East Kootenays. Smoky conditions are forecast to persist through Monday.
Thousands of pounds of fruit are going to waste in Summerland as farms on the frontlines of a firefight sit empty just as the window for harvest opens, offering a devastating blow in what has already been a difficult year. Adrian Arts, executive director of the BC Fruit Growers’ Association, said that growers have been hit by heat, drought and now wildfire this year alone. Peaches that were to be harvested last week will likely rot on the tree and the remaining fruits that aren’t quite ready for harvest will likely be ruined by ash, Arts said. “I’m guessing a lot of that crop is going to be abandoned along with the peaches, plums, and other fruit ripening this week,” he said. Arts said the repeated crises are exposing weaknesses in existing government support programs that are no longer meeting their needs.
BC’s government is contemplating carving the province into three zones to “provide greater clarity” to the timber industry, and discussions have so far left out First Nations. The zoning plan is outlined in an email sent in early July to public servants in the Ministry of Forests and the Ministry of Water, Land and Resource Stewardship. “The concept will consider three zones: commercial forestry, multiple-use and conservation and protection,” the leaked email reads, adding the zones will “provide greater clarity to achieve both investment stability and community economic benefits, and biodiversity and ecosystem stewardship goals for the land base.” The email provides no detail on how much forest might ultimately be placed in each of the zones, leaving open questions about just what impact the proposed plan would have on everything from at-risk species to rural and First Nations communities, and a logging industry that has been on a sharp downward spiral for years.
Salmon Arm Deputy Fire Chief Carmen Guidos was called in by council to help extinguish concern wildfire fuel mitigation work done at the Park Hill trail system has exacerbated the fire risk. On the agenda for city council’s May 10 meeting was a letter from resident Stig Keskinen regarding the timing of the city’s ongoing wildfire fuel mitigation program that saw work done along the Park Hill trails in May and June. In the letter, Keskinen posits this is not the time of year to do such work. One reason for this are the resulting “dozens of piles” of forest debris now drying throughout the trail system. …Keskinen wanted to know when they would be dealt with ….Guidos confirmed that is the plan, to burn in the fall – similar to what was done with the wildfire mitigation work at Little Mountain.
As an advocate for protecting the Peachland watershed water supply, Taryn Skalbania is used to publicly challenging the provincial government’s policies and guidelines governing logging in the forestry sector. But another challenge confronted her with the rapid growth of the Bald Range wildfire, as she faced an evacuation order at 3 a.m. on Saturday, Aug. 8, from her Princeton Avenue hobby farm just inside the eastern municipal boundary of Peachland. …Skalbania also picked up on comments from Penticton Indian Band chief Greg Gabriel at a press conference in Penticton last Wednesday that included Premier David Eby, calling for the need to examine the forestry sector and logging practices as culprits of drought and massive forest fires. Regarding the recent preponderance of wildfires on the west side of Okanagan Lake, she cited logging was one of several factors playing a role in that occurrence.
The public is invited to give feedback on the timber supply review for the Williams Lake timber supply area (TSA). People can share their thoughts on the Williams Lake TSA discussion paper by submitting comments before Oct. 5, 2026. The discussion paper provides the results of a timber supply analysis and describes the current legal requirements, geography, natural resources and forest management practices. The information will be used by B.C.’s chief forester to determine how much timber can be harvested in the TSA annually, which is known as the allowable annual cut (AAC). Before setting the new AAC, the chief forester will consider input from First Nations, industry and community members. Public feedback is a part of every AAC decision and is an opportunity for communities to provide input, which will be considered during the AAC determination.
The District of 100 Mile House received a candid look at the current and projected timber supply for the 100 Mile House Timber Supply Area last week. On Tuesday, Aug. 11, Kane Copley, a strategic land manager for the Ministry of Forests, attended council’s regular meeting to deliver and explain the results of the 100 Mile House Timber Supply Area Timber Supply Analysis Discussion Paper. Copley said the review was conducted this year and based on information gathered from January to May. In his presentation, Copley outlined that the Ministry of Forests regularly reviews the timber supply for all areas and tree farm licenses throughout the province. These reviews are done to examine the impacts of current legal requirements and forest management practices on the timber supply, environment, economy and social conditions of the local area.
I am tired of the misdirection surrounding B.C.’s wildfire crisis. …We are constantly told this is strictly a global warming issue—a convenient excuse used to tax regular people for fuel consumption and agricultural methane. But the public needs to realize the truth: local industrial forestry has its foot on the gas pedal, directly creating the explosive conditions for these fires by destroying our natural ecosystem. For decades, the logging industry has used chemical spraying—specifically glyphosate—to systematically wipe out native deciduous trees… In the eyes of timber corporations, these plants are just “weeds” competing with commercial conifer lumber. …We are living in an upside-down system where regular citizens are told to fix global emissions, while multibillion-dollar timber giants are legally allowed to spray chemicals that strip the earth of its natural ability to clean the air, process organic waste, and create oxygen and water for us.
New documents show that more than 300,000 acres of land could be transferred to Vancouver Island First Nations, which are currently finalizing treaties. Approximately 30 parcels of Crown land would be given to five First Nations, which are located from Parksville to Victoria. The list includes Hatley Castle, Royal Roads University, waterfront in Victoria, property next to the legislature, Discovery Island Provincial Park and Sooke Mountain Provincial Park. “This is a betrayal of our core democracy here in British Columbia,” Conservative leader Kerry-Lynne Findlay said. …Lawyer Geoffrey Moyse spent decades advising the province on Aboriginal law. “There was no requirement to renegotiate the Douglas Treaties, so I think this was a political decision,” he said. Some concerns state that transferred lands would essentially become private property with no legal requirement to preserve public access or adhere to existing zoning.
TORONTO – The Steelworkers Humanity Fund (SHF) is donating $30,000 to support individuals, families and communities evacuated by recent wildfires in British Columbia. Hot and dry conditions across much of British Columbia have contributed to another difficult wildfire season, forcing thousands of people from their homes and creating uncertainty for many communities. The United Steelworkers union (USW) has documented impacts in several communities and in workplaces represented by the union across the province. These include evacuations and evacuation alerts, union members serving on local emergency response teams who are helping to protect their communities and fight fires, members trapped in their homes and some who lost their homes to the flames. The SHF is providing $30,000 to the Canadian Red Cross British Columbia Wildfire Appeal to assist those impacted by the wildfires. 
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Three BC ministries — Health, Emergency Management and Climate Readiness, and Forests — provided an update on on wildfire and smoke conditions in British Columbia. This is the first wildfire season update that has included Provincial Health Officer Dr Bonnie Henry. … Effects of wildfire smoke can be felt even at a distance from the fires, said Dr Bonnie Henry in her opening remarks. Children are more affected because their lung are small relative to their body weight. Smoky air can result in throat irritation, headaches, cough and runny eyes which Dr Henry called “short term effects”. But she says she has “concerns” about long term effects, including how very small PM2.5 particles of from smoke and soot get deep into the lungs and infiltrate to other parts of the body. …She highlighted an announcement that N95 masks are being provided free in BC wildfire zones, through the Canadian Red Cross with federal funding.
After more than a week of stress and anxiety, most residents of Summerland, B.C., can return to their homes. “It’s the news we’ve all been waiting for for the last week,” Mayor Doug Holmes told CBC’s Daybreak South. The community of more than 12,000 was forced to flee after the Bald Range wildfire broke out on Aug. 7 and grew explosively, claiming the life of an 80-year-old woman. Holmes said an evacuation order was lifted for 3,380 properties at 7 a.m. PT Tuesday, what he called “the majority of Summerland.” …Geotechnical and power work are being done, said Graham Statt, chief administrative officer of the District of Summerland. …As of Tuesday, 530 properties remain under an evacuation order in the Garnet Valley, Prairie Valley and Meadow Valley. All other Summerland residents remain under evacuation alert and must still be ready to leave at a moment’s notice.
