Region Archives: Canada West

Special Feature

Commemorating 20 Years of Service to Industry

BC Forest Safety Council
November 29, 2024
Category: Special Feature
Region: Canada, Canada West

2024 has been an interesting year on a number of fronts. More importantly, it marked BCFSC commemorating 20 years of service to the industry, where a number of Forest Safety News stories were shared over the course of the year through the lens of industry and staff reflecting on the forest industry’s journey to improving safety. The first theme shared in these stories related to acknowledging the history of the unacceptable number of injuries and work-related deaths. The second theme that emerged highlighted the efforts of industry pulling together to make dynamic and positive change.

These stories also highlighted that there were no easy solutions for improving industry’s safety performance. It came from leadership, the front lines and everywhere in between. It came from each one of you, starting with good safety management systems, good culture — trust, open communication, participative management — right through to training and supervision, supporting work practices and empowerment of workers and contractors. It required a commitment every day, on every block, with the felling of each tree to each load to every production and manufacturing process. 

As we look forward to the next 20 years, it’s important that we reflect on our journey and not forget why and how we got here and celebrate what we’ve collectively accomplished. Every person in our industry has a role to play in achieving our collective mission and together, we are making a tangible difference in the lives of forestry workers across British Columbia.

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Business & Politics

Tolko announces temporary layoffs for 2 Williams Lake mills

By Monica Lamb-Yorski
Black Press Media
November 29, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

WILLIAMS LAKE, BC — Employees working for Tolko Industries learned this week there will be temporary layoffs at both mills in Williams Lake. Lakeview sawmill will stop production after Friday, Dec. 13 and resume operations on Monday, Jan. 6, 2025. Soda Creek sawmill will stop production after Friday, Dec. 20 and start up again on Monday, Jan. 20, 2025. During this time, the planer mills at both sites will continue operating as required and Tolko will continue to operate its shipping departments to meet customers’ needs. Tolko managers were giving the employees the news in-person during shifts on Thursday and Friday, Tolko communications advisor Chris Downey confirmed. “This temporary downtime is due to high fibre costs, poor weather conditions during the fall harvesting season, and weak North American lumber and plywood markets,” Downey noted in an emailed response.

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B.C. Premier David Eby vows to seek out new export opportunities in wake of Trump tariff threats

By Justine Hunter
The Globe and Mail
December 2, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

David Eby

B.C. Premier David Eby is promising to seek new export opportunities for the province after U.S. president-elect Donald Trump threatened to impose a 25-per-cent tariff on Canadian goods. British Columbia exports billions of dollars’ worth of commodities and products every month, with just over half bound for the United States. …B.C. has less exposure [than Canada as a whole] to [a focus on US markets] thanks to a long-running policy… of maintaining a diversified trade portfolio. …In 1987, Mike Harcourt, then the NDP opposition leader, endorsed the Social Credit government’s early trade missions. …David Emerson helped steer Canada toward trade diversification. As deputy finance minister under then-Premier Bill Bennett and deputy minister to Premier Bill Vander Zalm, he crafted B.C.’s Asian Pacific trade strategy …Mr. Eby said, he’ll renew his government’s commitment to diversification. “This was definitely the right direction, obviously, in hindsight, and we do have to redouble those efforts, given the instability south of the border.” [A Globe and Mail subscription is required to access this full story]

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Western Forest Products and United Steelworkers Reach Tentative Collective Agreement

By Western Forest Products Inc.
Globe Newswire
November 28, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

VANCOUVER — Western Forest Products announced that the Company and the United Steelworkers Local 1-1937 (USW) have agreed to the terms of a tentative collective agreement. The USW represents approximately 1,000 Western employees. The tentative agreement is subject to a ratification vote by USW membership, which is expected to occur before the end of the year. The USW bargaining committee has advised that they will be recommending that its members accept this agreement. …Steven Hofer, President and CEO of Western Forest Products said, “A new collective agreement will provide critical business certainty to the Company as we look to accelerate the transition to higher value products through reinvestment in our operations. I want to thank the bargaining team members for their work to deliver a fair and balanced agreement.”

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New Forests Minister “gets to work”

By Cheryl Jahn
CKPG Today
November 28, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

PRINCE GEORGE – Ravi Parmar is the new Minister of Forests. “As a new Minister Of Forests, you do not have a guy who wants to spend the next six months developing the next flashy vision roadmap framework, you name it. I want to get to work.” And he didn’t waste time “getting to work” meeting with civic officials and others in this region, days after taking the job. And the minister says he has a trio of priorities as he gets settled into the role. “One is restoring confidence in B.C. forestry sector. The second is standing up and fighting for workers and every decision we make. And the third is honouring all the commitments that we’ve made as a government over the course of the last number of years… And so it’s now upon me as Minister to take those three pillars and start taking action.”

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BC Premier Eby says US tariffs would be ‘devastating’ for forest industry

By Brenna Owen
The Canadian Press in Business in Vancouver
November 27, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

VICTORIA — A 25-per-cent U.S. tariff on Canadian goods would be “devastating” for the province’s lumber and forestry industries, BC Premier David Eby said Wednesday ahead of a meeting with fellow premiers and the prime minister. …Eby said the lumber and forestry sectors are already strained by a recent increase in duties amid the ongoing U.S.-Canada dispute over softwood lumber. The tariffs are “unjustified,” and they would hurt Americans as much as they would Canadians, Eby said. …The premier said he believes B.C. has a strong case to make for the tariff being “badly placed” if Trump’s priority is to reduce costs for Americans. The tariffs would be paid by U.S. importers of Canadian products, potentially driving down demand. …The premier also said B.C. has to “redouble” its efforts to diversity its trading partners and recalled a trade mission to the Asia Pacific region in 2023.

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San Group’s Port Alberni mills running intermittently due to log shortage

By Carla Wilson
The Times Colonist
November 16, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

The San Group’s mills and remanufacturing plant in Port Alberni are running only intermittently after a curtailment began in October due to a log shortage. Kevin Somerville, VP of operations, said that San Group’s large-log mill is back up and running, but supplies are inconsistent. …San Group announced in mid-October that it was temporarily shutting down its large-log mill and remanufacturing plant in Port Alberni. At that time, it had some supply to run through its small-log mill. The move affected about 75 workers. Supply is off-and-on for the small-log mill and it, too, will be up and down, Somerville said. …The remanufacturing plant was initially out of operation for two weeks but has been running at “half throttle” since, Somerville said. …The province put liens on the San Group’s Port Alberni sawmill lands earlier this year, saying it was owed $22 million in stumpage fees.

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BC Premier Eby says Canada must negotiate from position of strength on US tariff

By Dirk Meissner and Nono Shen
The Canadian Press in Business in Vancouver
November 26, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West, United States

David Eby

BC Premier Eby said Canada must approach Trump’s plan to impose a 25% U.S. tariff on Canadian goods from a position of strength, as business, trade and community organizations called for quick action on the trade threat. Eby said premiers and Prime Minister Trudeau would meet this week to discuss “our strategic approach”. …Canada and the U.S. have long been top trading partners, on imports as well as exports, and the strength of this relationship put Canada in a solid position when it came to Trump’s tariff threat, Eby said. …Eby acknowledged improvements could be made on Canada’s border, especially when it came to policing contraband and illegal drugs. …The B.C. Lumber Trade Council said the proposed tariff would hurt U.S. consumers and homebuyers by driving up the cost of building materials from Canada. …But some economists and policy analysts warned against falling for familiar Trump negotiation tactics.

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Trump’s tariffs threat not good for Canada

By Cheryl Jahn
CKPG News Prince George
November 26, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West, United States

PRINCE GEORGE – It couldn’t be in plainer language, laid out on social media. …“I think if we learned anything from the first Trump presidency, it’s that he’s very unpredictable and we should expect more of that in in the future,” says Dr. Gary Wilson, Political Scientist at UNBC. …Eighty per cent of BC’s softwood lumber is shipped to the United States. There is already a tariff of 17% on softwood. But Kurt Niquidet says American lumber consumers will be hit just as hard. “With these tariffs push up the costs and the prices in the US. So it hurts the consumer in the US for softwood lumber that’s been impacting the consumers of lumber. The home builders and so forth, and eroding housing affordability. And then in back in Canada, it negatively impacts our production and has impacts on businesses and workers and communities.” 

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Doman Building Materials Group Ltd. Announces Response to the Recently Proposed U.S. Tariffs

By Doman Building Materials Group Ltd.
Globe Newswire
November 27, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Doman Building Materials Group Ltd. announced its response to President elect Trump’s proposed 25% tariffs on goods entering the United States from Canada. Although no material details were announced in respect of the Proposed US Tariffs, the Company’s businesses in each country generally operate independently. Accordingly, other than any business already subject to Softwood Lumber duties, the Company does not currently expect to be impacted materially by the Proposed US Tariffs on goods imported to the United States from Canada. “Given the magnitude of President elect Trump’s proposed tariffs and given our growing presence in Canada and even more so in the US, we want to ensure that all of our stakeholders are well informed that based on expectations today, our business would not be impacted in a material way,” commented Amar S. Doman, Chairman and CEO. 

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Trump’s tariffs a hot topic at B.C. energy and resource forum

By Nelson Bennett
Business in Vancouver
November 26, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Lisa Baiton

Most Americans, like most Canadians, probably have no idea how important Canada is to American energy security and its comparatively cheap gasoline. But they may soon find out. Should Donald Trump’s threats of 25 per cent tariffs across the board on Canadian imports include oil and natural gas, there would be a crude awakening. Trump’s threat of across-the-board tariffs on Canadian and Mexican imports is sending “shockwaves” through the Canadian business community, said Bridgitte Anderson, president of the Greater Vancouver Board of Trade at an energy and resources forum Tuesday in Vancouver. …B.C. lumber exports to the U.S. are already subject to duties of about 15 per cent. Presumably, blanket tariffs on Canadian goods would add another 10 per cent. …While it’s not yet clear whether the threatened tariffs would include energy exports — oil, natural gas and electricity — Trump did make a point of upper-casing his threat to suggest they would apply to everything.

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MLA for Kamloops-North Thompson Ward Stamer excited for forestry role

By Hettie Buck
The North Thompson Star/Journal
November 25, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Ward Stamer

Ward Stamer, the newly elected MLA for Kamloops – North Thompson is confident his years of experience in forestry as a logging contractor can be useful in his role as forestry critic in the shadow cabinet alongside the NDP’s Minister of Forests, Ravi Parmar. Stamer, the former mayor of Barriere, was recently appointed to this high-profile position. “I’m hoping to work well together with Minister Parmar,” Stamer said. “…There is so much to be done with regards to wildfire mitigation, fibre supply and the softwood lumber crisis. I certainly hope the NDP will be receptive to constructive input as we work together. …Our softwood lumber agreement hasn’t been ratified since 2015 and we are paying the largest stumpage fees in North America through taxes on our products. These are critical issues to address and I’m ready to do the work as I’ve spent much of my career in the forest industry in B.C.”

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Statement Addressing Challenges in B.C.’s Forestry Sector

Business Council of British Columbia
November 22, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

The Business Council of British Columbia (BCBC) represents the province’s largest employers, including forestry. We are deeply concerned about the future of this vital sector …generating substantial revenues that support families and fund public services. The forestry sector has been significantly impacted by changes to policy and regulatory frameworks, a declining annual allowable cut, and external factors such as softwood lumber tariffs and volatile prices. Together, these challenges have created uncertainty, increased costs, and diminished opportunities, with serious consequences for communities across the province. …In the near term, we urge the government to pause any further policy changes that could significantly impact the sector. It’s critical to reflect, measure, and evaluate the cumulative impacts of recent decisions, ensuring predictable access to fiber in a working forest. This must be a key focus of government action, alongside fast-tracking innovation, improving the use of wood waste and biomass, and fostering partnerships with Indigenous communities. 

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Make forestry great again in BC, business council urges province

By Grant Warkentin
My Comox Valley Now
November 23, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

With the dust from the provincial election mostly settled, the BC Business Council is urging the province to help the struggling forestry sector. In a statement on Friday the council said it is deeply concerned about the future of BC’s second-largest export industry. They say provincial policy and regulation changes, a declining annual allowable cut, softwood tariffs, and volatile prices are eating away at the sector. That’s hurting communities around the province, they say, which are already struggling with affordability and the rising cost of living. A strong natural resources sector, including forestry, is fundamental to prosperity, the council says. They ask the province to hold off on any policy changes that could significantly impact the sector in the near future, and focus on bringing it back to health.

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Finance & Economics

Vanderhoof Chamber meeting explores mill closure and impact on local businesses

By Binny Paul
Vanderhoof Omineca Express
November 26, 2024
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Vanderhoof’s Chamber of Commerce organized a meeting earlier in November, to address the challenges and opportunities facing the community following Canfor’s announcement on September 4 that it would close its mills in Vanderhoof and Fort St. John. The closures are expected to result in the loss of 500 direct jobs and a reduction of 670 million board feet of annual production capacity by the end of the year in these communities. Shelley Funk, manager of the Vanderhoof Chamber of Commerce, said the meeting was attended by a large turnout of local business owner and highlighted several concerns, including the potential for people to leave the community in search of work, a depressed housing market, and the lack of major workforce opportunities. “We’re expecting a 15 per cent hit to our businesses,” Funk said.

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Atlas Engineered Products Reports Third Quarter 2024 Financial and Operating Results

Atlas Engineered Products
November 25, 2024
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Nanaimo, British Columbia — Atlas Engineered Products is pleased to announce its financial and operating results for the three and nine months ended September 30, 2024. All amounts are presented in Canadian dollars.

  • Revenue of $16.5M, representing an increase of 15% year-over-year
  • Wall Panel revenue increased by 120% year-over-year
  • Engineered Wood Products revenue increased by 48% year-over-year
  • Adjusted EBITDA of $3.05M, representing an increase of 3% year-over-year, despite costs of $0.2M associated with automation and expansion of the sales team
  • Sales team has expanded by 63% year-to-date and expect to see significant contributions to revenue growth and profitability in 2025

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Wood, Paper & Green Building

Mayor sees modular housing as a big part of Prince George’s future

By Colin Slark
Prince George Citizen
November 27, 2024
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: Canada, Canada West

The mayor of Prince George is one of five municipal leaders to join a new task force aimed at streamlining the development and approval of modular homes as part of the effort to boost BC’s affordable housing supply. Modular BC, a non-profit advocacy group, announced the task force in Kelowna on Friday, Nov. 22. Modular homes are built in a factory-like setting rather than constructed on-site. The separate components, or modules, are then transported to the home’s site and assembled. “Municipalities across British Columbia are increasingly being called upon to deliver critical housing supply at prices people can afford,” said Modular BC spokesperson Paul Binotto in a release… According to Binotto, modular homes can be built in a couple of months instead of a year.

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Forestry

2024 November BC Community Forest Association Newsletter

The BC Community Forest Association
December 2, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

In this months newsletter, headlines include:

  • Thank you to Minister Ravi Parmar, the new Minister of Forests, for joining us in Victoria to meet our team and learn more about community forestry. We look forward to working together to support resilient communities and forests across BC.
  • The BCCFA Board & Staff gathered for our annual in-person meeting in Victoria in November. Sessions included meetings with staff from the Ministry of Forests Tenures Branch, Office of the Chief Forester, BC Wildfire Service, Timber Pricing Branch, Forest Landscape Planning Branch, and more.

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Report into destructive 2023 Okanagan wildfires details how fire spread

By Rafferty Baker
CBC News
November 29, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

A new report on the destructive and costly 2023 Central Okanagan wildfires is detailing how flames spread in communities and why some homes were more likely to catch fire while others were spared. The report, titled A wildland-urban post-fire case study: The Grouse Complex, focuses on measures residents can take to reduce the likelihood of their homes catching fire — measures promoted by FireSmart. …The Grouse Complex wildfires began in August 2023 after a period of drought… they burned 15,076 hectares, led to more than 30,000 people having to flee their homes and damaged or destroyed 303 structures. …The report found the homes that were damaged mainly featured coniferous trees like cedars and junipers within 10 metres of the structure, were located on steep slopes, had combustible siding and decks and plenty of easily ignitable material quite close to the home, like firewood, lumber and vehicles. The homes that weren’t damaged lacked those characteristics. 

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B.C.’s Christmas tree industry struggles to keep up with demand

By Adam Campbell
Business in Vancouver
November 29, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The live Christmas tree industry is experiencing a resurgence, but B.C. farmers are finding it hard to meet rising customer demand. In the last six years—more B.C. consumers have looked to purchase a live Christmas tree says BC Christmas Tree Association president Paul Huesken. The first reason is the experiential part of going out and cutting down a tree. …The second factor is consumers becoming more conscientious about their carbon footprints. …2024 has been one of the best growing seasons in the last decade due to summer rain. …Nevertheless, rising demand and a decline in farms due to land costs and succession challenges has created a significant shortage of trees in B.C. …Two of the most significant challenges facing businesses are the cost of land and the six to 10 years of intensive labour required to grow a Christmas tree … forcing BC to source roughly 400,000 trees annually from outside the province.

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Big turnout for Wildsight meeting on impact of logging in St. Marys Valley

By Paul Rodgers
The Nelson Star
November 29, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

NELSON, BC — More than 100 Kimberley residents attended a meeting hosted by Wildsight to learn about the impact of current and planned logging on wildlife and the ecosystem in the St. Mary’s River Valley. According to Wildsight, 15 square kilometres of privately owned, valley bottom forests have been clearcut in the area over the past 10 years. This includes a 2.3-square-kilometre section in the valley done by Canfor, with more anticipated. BC Timber Sales also has proposed cut blocks in this area. …“Logging at that scale would significantly impact all who use this landscape—people and wildlife alike. …Canfor and BCTS are both expected to release proposals for public comment. Wildsight encourages concerned residents to contact Premier David Eby to encourage legislation changes to protect this area.

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The Woodlot Almanac – Fall Edition

Woodlots BC
November 29, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Executive Director’s Message: October was a significant month for Woodlots BC, marked by key accomplishments in strategic planning, conference organization, and internal organizational changes. Now that the restructuring has settled down the Board of Directors for Woodlots BC have started to meet on a quarterly basis. Most of the changes and restructuring have been completed. Strategic Plan: The organization started a Strategic Review of the Woodlots BC by meeting for two days before the Conference in Quesnel. This process was facilitated by Tom Lewis. We are currently creating 4 objectives that we will focus on over the next while in order to advocate for the Woodlot Licence program. Click the Read More below to see the full newsletter with Conference Coverage, Minister’s Award Recipient, Executive Director’s Report, Commercial Thinning and Moose, Woodlots BC Bursary Recipient, New Board Members, Four Steps to Burning, and CBST Guidelines.

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Forest Enhancement Society Newsletter

By Jason Fisher, Executive Director
The Forest Enhancement Society of B.C.
November 29, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Jason Fisher

Since starting at the Forest Enhancement Society of BC (FESBC) this past September, I’ve continued to be impressed by our employees, board of directors, government funders, and most importantly, the folks whose projects leverage FESBC’s investments across our province of British Columbia. …we would like to recognize Minister Ravi Parmar for the important role he has been entrusted with as the Minister of Forests. We look forward to working in collaboration with him, his cabinet colleagues to continue to invest in B.C.’s forests. …Based on the recent provincial election campaign, one of the patches of common ground for British Columbians is the desire to invest in the long-term health and resilience of our forests. …former Premier John Horgan was a man who could find common ground with almost anyone. Through humour, humility, vulnerability, Star Trek quotes, but mostly humour, he connected with people across the province and across party lines.

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Northwest B.C. First Nation proposes Indigenous Protected Area to block pipeline project

By Harvin Bhathal
Comox Valley Record
November 28, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

A northwestern B.C. First Nation wants to create a protected area to block a natural gas pipeline from crossing its territory. The proposal by the Gitanyow Nation comes after the Prince Rupert Gas Transmission (PRGT) pipeline’s environment assessment certificate expired on Nov. 25. On Nov. 19, the proponents, a partnership of the Ksi Lisims government and Western LNG, applied to have the project designated “substantially started,” which would extend the certificate permanently. …The pipeline environmental certificate was extended for five years in 2019. The Gitanyow Hereditary Chiefs, the Kispiox Band and environmental groups such as the Skeena Watershed Conservation Coalition characterize the original assessment as outdated and inaccurate. The Gitanyow were among the First Nations signatories to financial benefits payments when the pipeline was first approved in 2014, but they now cite accelerating climate change and Indigenous reconciliation as conditions that have changed dramatically since the original environmental assessment was conducted.

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How Harvesting Small Trees Could Create a Future for BC Forestry

By Zoe Yunker
The Tyee
November 28, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The problem isn’t a lack of trees — B.C. has billions of them. The problem is that many of B.C.’s forests are too young and feeble to log. Over 80 per cent of the province’s replanted trees are less than 40 years old — and most require around 80 to 120 years to be considered mature. They’ve also grown back even-aged and dense, often creating dark, dead zones for animals and other plants… Cutting down some trees now creates an immediate wood supply for a struggling forest industry, and it can reduce competition among the trees that remain, helping them grow bigger, more valuable wood for later… Thinning often requires weighing trade-offs, and a region-specific knowledge of how forests might react.

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‘Terminate’ Canadian forestry giant’s green certificates, says credentials body founder

By Stefan Labbe
Business in Vancouver
November 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West, International

A founding member of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) has called on the green credentials body to “immediately terminate” sustainability certificates for Canada’s largest forestry company. The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) called on the FSC to “rigorously apply” its policy for association after a recent filing with the European Commission indicated Paper Excellence would fall under the same ownership as the Sino-Indonesian conglomerate Asia Pulp & Paper (APP). …The Company took a hit to its brand in 2007 when the FSC disassociated from APP over concerns of deforestation, human rights violations and illegal logging. …An FSC statement said it was evaluating the implications of Wijaya’s consolidated ownership and what it means for its policy of association. “A rigorous legal review of relevant company connections will be initiated,” the group said. On Nov. 20, Domtar’s Jennifer Johnson said the company is “engaging with FSC” to ensure Wijaya’s ownership of APP doesn’t impact the company’s certification.​

Related coverage by CBC News: Minister notes ‘concerning’ reports about pulp and paper giant’s behaviour, vows to monitor situation

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Regional District of Central Kootenay: Support for forestry

By Rachael Lesosky
Pentiction Herald
November 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The RDCK will send a letter to the Ministry of Forests in support of the Forestry Works for BC Campaign, and of value-added and community-focused forestry. Ken Kalesnikoff, president and CEO of Kalesnikoff Lumber, made a presentation to the board in August regarding the Forestry Works for BC initiative, which seeks to raise awareness about forestry’s role in the well-being of rural and urban communities. Dr. Rachel Holt, an independent ecologist, sent a letter to the board, dated October 15. It asked the board to write a letter in support of a more diversified future. The board discussed her letter and settled on including her points on value-added and community-focused forestry. End of Story

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Domtar and APP: A Closer Look

By Graeme Rodden
Paper Advance
November 26, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West, International

Graeme Rodden

The announcement that Jackson Wijaya, founder of Paper Excellence (now Domtar) will assume full control of Asia Pulp & Paper (APP) has reignited the controversy over the connections between the two. …Jennifer Johnson said the move was simply part of the elder Wijaya’s normal course succession planning. She stressed that Jackson has no intention of taking his father’s position overseeing APP. “Importantly, APP and Domtar will continue to operate as they always have: as distinct entities.” …In its latest release, the company did not pull any punches. “…. Jackson’s inheriting APP shares has no impact whatsoever on Domtar and any suggestion to the contrary is ill-informed and patently false.” It seems there is little the Canadian government can do, even if it wanted to. As it is a separate legal entity from Domtar and headquartered in China and Indonesia, any change in APP’s ownership is not subject to the Investment Canada Act.

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Parks foundation secures land to protect North Saanich old-growth forest

By Harry Corro
Victoria News
November 26, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The largest remaining tract of old-growth and mature Douglas-fir forest on the Saanich Peninsula is in the beautiful LAU,WELNEW/John Dean Provincial Park in North Saanich. It sits next to six hectares of land which is now designated as a protected extension of the park. On Nov. 26, BC Parks Foundation announced the purchase of three parcels of land that run along the park’s edge which will now protect one of the last stands of old-growth Douglas fir and Garry oak on the Saanich Peninsula. The property was listed for sale in November 2023. … “Thankfully the foundation was able to raise money to buy the land before anybody else did,” said Maureen Dale, president of the Friends of John Dean Park Society. …Aside from its rich biodiversity, the area also holds significant cultural importance to local First Nations, having played a central role in their people’s stories.

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BC Parks Foundation Donors Protect Old Growth Adjacent to ȽÁU,WELNEW / John Dean Park

By BC Parks Foundation
BC Parks Foundation
November 26, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

A 6 hectare parcel of land containing old-growth forest directly adjacent to ȽÁU,WELNEW / John Dean Park has been permanently protected by BC Parks Foundation. This safeguards one of the last remaining stands of old-growth Douglas fir and Garry oak on the Saanich Peninsula… In 1895, John Dean, a passionate naturalist, former mayor of Rossland, and dedicated civic activist, purchased 100 acres on ȽÁU,WELNEW. Inspired by the W̱SÁNEĆ Peoples’ stewardship, he donated 80 acres to the Province in 1921 to be used as parkland, leaving a legacy for all to enjoy… The foundation will work with First Nations, BC Parks and Friends of John Dean Park Society to discuss future management of the newly protected area. In the meantime, it will remain closed.

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Study finds Indigenous people in B.C. cultivated hazelnuts 7,000 years ago, challenging modern assumptions

By Jon Azpiri
CBC News
November 26, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Darren Bolton

The hazelnut tree has long been a part of the landscape in parts of British Columbia. A 19th-century settler gave the village of Hazelton in northern B.C.’s Skeena region its name because of the abundance of hazelnuts in the area.  A new study indicates Indigenous peoples in B.C. had been cultivating the beaked hazelnut for thousands of years, which researchers say challenges the notion that pre-colonial Indigenous people in northwestern B.C. were only hunter-gatherers.  The findings indicate hazelnuts had been transplanted and cultivated for at least 7,000 years by Gitxsan, Tsimshian, and Nisga’a peoples. The research emphasizes Indigenous peoples’ contributions to the creation and maintenance of the region’s ecosystems and “cuts through assumptions of B.C. and the Northwest Coast being wild and completely untouched.”

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Helicopter logging in Stanley Park

By TheBreaker staff
TheBreaker
November 25, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The latest phase of the $18 million Stanley Park logging operation lifted-off Nov. 19. Two helicopters from Black Tusk Helicopter Inc. are using the Prospect Point Picnic Area as a temporary landing and refuelling site. Their job is to pick-up logs felled on the cliffs above the Stanley Park Seawall, between Third Beach and Prospect Point… The Park Board said the logging is necessary due to the Hemlock looper moth infestation and wildfire fears. Contractor B.A. Blackwell and Associates estimated the pest affected 160,000 trees in the park. In the Stanley Park Preservation Society’s unsuccessful court bid to halt the logging, a lawyer for city hall said another 30 hectares will be logged this fall and winter. Watch a YouTube video here

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Deal with BC First Nation comes back to haunt premier Eby

By Vaughn Palmer
The Vancouver Sun
November 25, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Judy Desjarlais & David Eby

VICTORIA — Premier David Eby earned accolades two years ago when he concluded a $350 million deal to settle litigation over treaty rights with the Blueberry River First Nations in northeastern BC. …Plus, there were restrictions on future development, a joint approval process, commitments to wildlife co-management, and opportunities for Blueberry River to secure a share of future timber and natural gas revenues …“History-making” was the watch word of the day. Industry, business and community leaders all praised the agreement as a turn-the-page moment in Crown-Indigenous relations. …Unfortunately, the province’s relationship with Blueberry River has since unravelled, spawning another round of litigation. …The first signs of trouble emerged in the fall of 2023. Two other Treaty 8 nations challenged the agreement, saying it infringed on their rights and… some Blueberry River members challenged the plan in court. Then in September, Gauthier and three other councillors combined to oust Desjarlais as chief.

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BC Institute of Technology alumnus recovers cultural knowledge through work in forestry

By Alexa Landon
British Columbia Institute of Technology
November 25, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Jordon Gabriel is an expert in forest management and a community-focused Forestry Technician with Líl̓wat Forestry Ventures Ltd. (LFV). But those are not his only titles; he is a member of Líl̓wat Nation, a residential school Survivor, a father, a grandfather, and a British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) alumnus. When Jordon started working in forestry, he worked on a team responsible for block and road layouts for forestry companies. “In those days, things were different—the Nation wasn’t consulted,” Jordon says. “We were told we were going to do our work without having a say.” As a result, the forestry work was done in areas where the Líl̓wat Nation gathered herbs, collected mushrooms, and other cultural activities. …Throughout his career, Jordon has been seeking to blend his technical forestry expertise with the rich cultural knowledge of the Líl̓wat Nation. His dedication to promoting the Líl̓wat Nation culture is reflected throughout his work.

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Understanding Softwood Lumber Agreement complexities

By Jim Hilton
Black Press Media
November 24, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

In order to understand what has led up to the inevitable duties that will probably be coming from the United States I suggest… Ben Parfitt provides critical information that helps under this rather complex agreement. In the fall of 2006, the Canadian and U.S. governments ended a prolonged trade dispute by signing the Softwood Lumber Agreement (SLA), a deal they said would bring greater certainty to the cross-border lumber trade. …Under the new deal, $4 billion — 80 per cent — of the duties collected by the U.S. on Canadian lumber shipments were returned to Canada. The federal government then reimbursed individual Canadian forest companies based on the duties they had paid,” Parfitt wrote. …In conclusion the Parfitt described how the SLA has served to stimulate B.C. forest company investment in the U.S. at the expense of the province’s forest industry workers and rural resource communities.

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What If BC Has Got It Totally Wrong on Forest Management?

By Ben Parfitt
The Tyee
November 25, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

For nearly 80 years, British Columbians have been told that the province’s forests are managed for a multitude of values and that nature’s bounty will always be there. Logging and replanting, governments have said, will produce forests that work for industry and provide environmental diversity and opportunities for recreation. But people choosing to spend time in the province’s vast network of tree plantations say that’s not true. Much of B.C.’s once richly diverse natural forests has disappeared under the “multiple use” regime advanced by the timber industry and overseen by the Ministry of Forests, which together for decades have propagated the idea that logging one valley after the next will have negligible impacts on plant and animal life. …To not make the leap to such a new regime is to stay the course with a system that has for decades delivered not multiple uses, but multiple and still far from over abuses.

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CNC Research Forest Society is looking for eco-focused community projects to support through its legacy fund

College of New Caledonia
November 21, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Passionate about improving ecosystems and benefiting your local community? The CNC Research Forest Society (CNCRFS) is looking for environmentally focused projects to support through its legacy fund. The CNC Research Forest Society’s legacy grant funding comes from the society’s activities in its research forest. These funds are separate from CNC’s operating budget. The CNCRFS is increasing its grant funding for 2025 to make a greater impact in the region. There is now up to $100,000 available for ecosystem restoration projects and up to $60,000 for projects with a social and environmental benefit for communities. People or organizations with an existing project or a great project idea are encouraged to apply for the legacy fund grant. Projects must serve one or more of the following purposes:

  • ecosystem restoration
  • environmental rehabilitation
  • environmental impact reduction, renewable natural resource education and/or outreach programs
  • sustainable, low-impact recreation improvement
  • social and environmental commitment to local communities

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$375M Indigenous-led conservation deal just signed in the Northwest Territories

By Chloe Williams
The Narwal
November 21, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

On a wintry morning in Behchokǫ̀, a community roughly 100 kilometres northwest of Yellowknife on the shore of Great Slave Lake, leaders of more than 20 Indigenous governments and organizations from across the Northwest Territories gathered. They were joined by representatives of Crown governments, philanthropists and community members. …Alongside chiefs, government representatives and Indigenous leaders, community members of all ages celebrated the signing of the conservation agreement. The agreement, known as NWT: Our Land for the Future, provides $375 million to support Indigenous-led conservation and stewardship activities, including the establishment of new protected and conserved areas, Guardian programs, ecotourism, traditional economic activities and climate research, among others. The deal combines $300 million from the federal government with $75 million from private donors, using a funding model inspired by practices employed by bankers and Wall Street executives — as far from conservation efforts as they may seem.

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First recipients of Adam Yeadon Memorial Scholarship announced

By Connor Pitre
My True North Now
November 21, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Two Northwest Territories students have become the first recipients of a new memorial scholarship. The Adam Yeadon Memorial Scholarship is given out to students who are pursuing a greater education in the forestry industry, or in wildfire management. This Scholarship was first established in 2023 to commemorate the memory of Adam Yeadon, who lost his life while fighting against last year’s wildfires. The two recipients are Alfred “AJ” Lawrence, and Mackenzie McDonald. They will each be receiving $5,000 to support their studies in their chosen forestry fields. Lawrence was raised in Yellowknife and graduated from Sir John Franklin High School. He is currently studying forestry at Vancouver Island University. …McDonald is studying at the Northern Alberta Institute of Technology, and returns to the North every summer to help fight wildfires. 

See the government press release here.

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Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy

Carbon RX signs impactful deal with Manitoba First Nation

Caron RX
November 26, 2024
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: Canada, Canada West

Regina, SK  – Carbon RX Inc. is proud to announce a new partnership with the Pimicikamak Cree Nation to assist in forest management and preservation of First Nation lands in Manitoba. The project includes 3 million acres of traditional lands in the Canadian boreal forest, home to the Pimicikamak people. “We are the original keepers of the land,” said Chief David Monias, Chief of Pimicikamak. “As part of our inherent rights, we proudly hold historic environmental sovereignty over our traditional lands. We can use modern techniques like carbon crediting to protect and preserve these lands for the next generation. We encourage other Nations to do the same.” First Nation forests generate carbon credits by acting as Mother Earth’s solar panels and absorbing and storing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere through photosynthesis. When a forest is managed sustainably or restored, the additional carbon sequestered can be quantified and verified as carbon credits.

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