Region Archives: Canada West

Froggy Foibles

‘An unremarkable place’: One-star reviews of Vancouver’s iconic Stanley Park

By Brendan Kergin
Vancouver is Awesome
January 30, 2025
Category: Froggy Foibles
Region: Canada, Canada West

Vancouver has plenty of highlights for locals and visitors to enjoy, but if you search for “the Jewel of Vancouver” online, there’s one clear result: Stanley Park. At the same time, you’ll find many people unimpressed by Vancouver’s awesome park. The vast majority of reviews are five- and four-star, but there are always going to be folks who disagree and drop one-star reviews on this not-so-hidden gem. So we went and read them on platforms like TripAdvisor, Yelp, and Google. Perhaps the most surprising (and to some, hilarious) reviews of the park were the ones who seemed to just not like it.

  • “Fairly boring if you’re looking for an outdoors experience,”
  • “All I can see it seems is more trees”
  • “Nothing spectacular to see, yeah, lots of trees but I didn’t get to see any wildlife except 1 squirrel,”

Another person on TripAdvisor (who has posted over 5,000 reviews) titled their review “Too many trees.”

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Business & Politics

B.C. businesses working on ways to combat potential U.S. tariffs: ‘There’s opportunity in it’

By Gordon Hoekstra
Vancouver Sun
February 3, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

[Companies] in B.C. and across Canada, were given a last-minute, one-month reprieve Monday afternoon after Prime Minister Justin Trudeau spoke with U.S. President Donald Trump… The wood products sector sends $5.7 billion of products to the U.S., and another $962 million in pulp-and-paper products. On Monday, Interfor said it has been closely monitoring the U.S. tariff issue for some time, and as a diversified North American producer, comes into this new environment in as good a position as anyone in the industry.  “Our leadership team has been hard at work identifying ways to insulate our company from tariff exposure where possible and put us in the best position to continue to thrive,” said Svetlana Kayumova, Interfor’s vice-president of corporate communications and government relations. “We know there is a housing shortage across North America, and the lumber products we produce are a vital part of the solution.” Interfor has mills on both sides of the border.

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Atco receives provincial perk to complete new production facility

By Timothy Schafer
Castanet
January 31, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

A local forest-sector manufacturer is receiving a boost from the province to help grow its product line. Atco Wood Products — located in Fruitvale, 67 kilometres southwest of Nelson — is considered one of the top producers of softwood veneers and related by-products in the region. Through the B.C. Manufacturing Jobs Fund (BCMJF), the Government of B.C. will hand Atco $50,000 to complete planning for a new veneer-production facility, and purchase and commission new equipment to improve fibre utilization and optimize production. The company — which also manufactures veneer, ties, posts, wood chips, mulch and biomass — has evolved from its sawmilling roots, into a cutting-edge manufacturer of specialized softwood veneer and other wood products. As part of new support for forest-sector manufacturers throughout the province will help create jobs and boost local economies while diversifying the range of fibre sources used to manufacture high-value, made-in-B.C. forest products.

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New cabinet committee will protect B.C.’s economy from tariff threat

By the Office of the Premier
Government of British Columbia
January 29, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Premier David Eby is tasking a new cabinet committee with co-ordinating the whole-of-government approach to protect B.C.’s workers, businesses and economy against ongoing tariff threats from the United States. Ravi Kahlon, Minister of Housing and Municipal Affairs, will chair the committee, which will act as a day-to-day war room, co-ordinating actions across government to fight back on behalf of British Columbians and grow the province’s economy. “The proposed U.S. tariffs are a direct attack on B.C.’s families,” Premier Eby said. “This threat isn’t going away anytime soon – not while this president is in power. …Minister Kahlon brings deep experience in government to the table and is uniquely positioned to co-ordinate this work across government ministries.” The B.C. government has stepped up with a three-point strategy to fight back and protect British Columbians …The new committee will ensure that B.C.’s response is fast, tough and fully focused on protecting British Columbians.

Related news: Unifor ready to defend against Trump tariff threat – press release

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Williams Lake sends out S.O.S. for biomass power plant

By Nelson Bennett
Business in Vancouver
January 27, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

The City of Williams Lake is fighting to save a biomass power plant there that is set to go dark in the coming weeks, partly due to a lack of affordable fibre, which has become an all-too-familiar refrain in B.C. for sawmills, pulp mills and other wood processing businesses. The Atlantic Power plant in Williams Lake burns wood waste to generate about 66 megawatts of electricity annually, enough to power about 50,000 homes. …But the company that owns the plant announced one year ago that will have to shut down, as it will no longer be economic to operate, due to fibre insecurity and insufficient electricity rates from BC Hydro. …The power plant is Williams Lake’s single largest industrial taxpayer, said Williams Lake Coun. Scott Nelson — providing $1.7 million in taxes to the city annually. …The council has urged BC Hydro to reopen its contract with the company to provide a more favourable rate.

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David Eby is Ready for a Trade War—a Q&A with BC’s Premier

By Katie Underwood
Maclean’s Magazine
January 27, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

David Eby

Back in January, with an inconveniently prorogued Parliament and the US president pressing with some very un-ally-like tariff threats, Canada’s premiers decided to defend themselves. …For David Eby, BC’s premier, however, it meant war. He adopted an economic eye-for-an-eye approach, and nothing was off the table—not export bans, not travel boycotts and certainly not retaliatory import tariffs, right down to Florida orange juice. …Just how much damage could tariffs cause your province? For us, it affects about half our exports. We’re also talking about a potential loss of 100,000 jobs. And there would be tariffs of almost 50 per cent on lumber headed for the US. I don’t expect them to last once everyday Americans realize that their electricity and gas cost more; that one in four sticks of lumber that they use come from Canada and that they’re suddenly 50% more expensive. And that American lumber outlets will match prices.

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Loss of San Group tax revenue could mean reduced services, tax hikes in Port Alberni

By Carla Wilson Carla Wilson
Victoria Times Colonist
January 25, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Port Alberni may have to cut ­services and raise property taxes to help make up for lost revenue in the wake of forestry company San Group going into creditor protection, says the city’s mayor. San Group already owed almost $1 million in property taxes from last year. “We are in the process right now of reviewing possible ­service cuts, so we are looking at that as an option,” Mayor Sharie Minions said Friday. “Because there’s last year’s unpaid [tax] that has to be accounted for and then the budget impact for this year as well.” The final budget amount or property tax impact are not yet known, because council is still working on the draft budget, expected to be approved by March 10. …Many of the unsecured ­creditors are based in Port Alberni, a community with a population of just under 28,000 in 2022, according to Statistics Canada. Minions said the impact on the city is “huge.”

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Finance & Economics

B.C. resource company stocks jolted by tariff news

By Nelson Bennett
Business in Vancouver
February 3, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Stocks in B.C.’s three major publicly traded forestry companies were predictably down this morning (February 3), when stock markets opened after this weekend’s declaration of a trade war between the U.S., Canada and Mexico. U.S. stock markets were jolted, too, Monday morning, as was the S&P TSX composite Index. The Canadian dollar fell to $0.68 to the American dollar following Saturday’s confirmation that Trump will hit Canadian imports with 25 per cent tariffs, and 10 per cent tariffs on Canadian energy imports, beginning Tuesday. North American stocks fell sharply in early morning trading before recovering somewhat. Canadian companies that are highly exposed to the U.S. were jolted, with companies like West Fraser Timber, Canfor Corp and Interfor Corp. experiencing early morning drops of four, five and six per cent respectively, before correcting somewhat later in the morning.

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‘A complete realm of uncertainty’: Alberta builders prepare for possible tariff impact

By Timm Bruch
CTV News
January 24, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Calgary’s construction industry is hoping the threat of American tariffs doesn’t slow its momentum in 2025. …Bill Black, the head of the Calgary Construction Association, says when it comes to certain building materials, the tariffs could cause unrepairable damage. “Lumber suppliers selling are obviously going to feel a really significant impact on their volume that goes into the U.S.,” Black said. “The overall viability of the lumber business is based on a blend of the two markets, and if one market becomes unfeasible because of tariffs, that then puts pressure on the operating businesses. “That could impact their ability to service the Canadian market as well.” …The city has seen consecutive years of a record number of housing starts, and those in the sector don’t want to lose vital momentum. …Alberta’s forest ministry reiterated the importance of cross-border trade Friday, saying there’s still optimism a tariff-stopping solution can be found.

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Wood, Paper & Green Building

B.C. projects honoured with 2024 Structural Engineering Excellence Awards

The REMI Network – Real Estate Management Industry Network
January 27, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: Canada, Canada West

Two B.C. projects were named winners at the 2024 Structural Engineering Excellence (SEE) Awards. Presented by the National Council of Structural Engineers Associations, the annual awards honour projects that showcase ingenuity, technical skill, and groundbreaking design in the field.

  • The Presentation Centre at Fraser Mills exemplifies innovative mass timber systems through its inventive structural engineering and community-focused design. Notably, the Centre is among the first in British Columbia to use cantilevered glulam columns for lateral support. 
  • The new Tall Timber Student Housing tower at the British Columbia Institute of Technology (BCIT) in Burnaby, British Columbia represents a shift forward in tall, hybrid, encapsulated mass timber construction. Utilizing the latest advances in engineered wood products, pre-fabrication, and encapsulation strategies, this project represents significant progress in the field of hybrid-mass timber buildings.

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Forestry

Dan Macmaster receives Alumni Builder Award

By the Faculty of Forestry
University of British Columbia
February 4, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Dan Macmaster

UBC Forestry wishes to congratulate Dan Macmaster, MSFM’13, on being named a recipient of the 2024-25 Alumni Builder Awards. An exceptionally dedicated volunteer with the Master of Sustainable Forest Management Program, Dan Macmaster has consistently gone above and beyond in advancing the education of future forest managers. His extensive contributions range from serving on the Master of Sustainable Forest Management Advisory Committee and guest lecturing to volunteering at field camps and organizing multi-day field activities for students.

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Council of Forest Industries Convention coming to Prince George

By Andrew Snook
Canadian Forest Industries
February 5, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

David Eby

Leaders from across the forest products sector will be descending on Prince George, B.C. from April 2 to 4 for the COFI 2025 Convention. Organized and operated by the BC Council of Forest Industries (COFI), the convention offers attendees a wide variety of panels and presentations over two days, as well as multiple networking opportunities with leaders of B.C.’s forestry sector and beyond. “The 2025 COFI Convention in Prince George comes at a time when the forest sector is facing transformation and turbulence. Looking at where we stand along themes such as competitiveness and sustainability, this event will explore market diversification, industry innovations, and solutions to critical challenges like wildfire and fibre access. It’s the must-attend gathering to shape the future of B.C. forestry,” says COFI’s director of communications Travis Joern. 

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CFI Podcast: Chris Duncan of MNP reviews 2024 and previews 2025

By Canadian Forest Industries Podcast
Soundcloud
December 10, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Chris Duncan

Chris Duncan, partner and national leader of forestry and forest products at MNP unpacks the forest industry’s biggest challenges and successes of 2024 and look ahead to 2025. Topics include shifting markets, labour shortages, the threat of U.S. tariffs, rising fibre costs, and the impacts of wildfires and storms. They also explore how AI, automation, and sustainability trends are shaping the future, alongside key takeaways from BC’s 2024 election and recent regulatory changes. This podcast offers a must-listen year-end review and outlook for Canada’s forest sector.

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BC Wildfire Service crews welcomed home from California

By the Ministry of Forests
Government of British Columbia
February 3, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) crews have returned to B.C. after two weeks supporting the California Department of Forestry and Fire Protection (CAL FIRE) with wildfire fighting efforts in Los Angeles. “In times of need, we will always be there for our friends; that’s who we are as British Columbians and as Canadians,” said Ravi Parmar, Minister of Forests. “Firefighters don’t ask questions, they run into fires. I want to express my deepest gratitude to each of the crew members who made the trip south.” On Jan. 11, 2025, the BCWS deployed a senior management team of 13 technical specialists to support CAL FIRE’s efforts to control the fast-moving Palisades wildfire. Working directly alongside the American incident management team, B.C.’s team supported in planning, logistics, operations, aviation, fire weather and information roles.

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B.C.’s smallest First Nation has big plans for a ‘stewardship’ economy

By Rochelle Baker
The National Observer
February 3, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The West Coast’s smallest First Nation is taking great strides toward the creation of an innovative stewardship economy that puts sustainability and conservation first. The Kwiakah First Nation, led by munmuntle, Chief Steven Dick, consists of 19 members mostly based on Vancouver Island. …The nation intends to revitalize its lands and waters — much of which were badly damaged by logging and other resource industries. …After years of hard work, the nation successfully established the M̓ac̓inuxʷ Special Forest Management Area last May that covers 7,865 hectares of forested land within the Great Bear Rainforest. The Kwiakah SFMA bans logging in favour of regenerative operations aimed at bringing the forest back to its pre-industrial state. The nation also intends to expand its protected forest area to 56,000 hectares by purchasing other logging licences in its traditional territory, Frank Voelker, the nation’s band manager added.

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BC extends old growth deferral in Fairy Creek

By Sidney Coles
The Capital Daily
February 4, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The BC government has approved a legal order to extend temporary protections in the Fairy Creek watershed until Sept. 30, 2026. It applies to the same forest lands that were deferred in June 2021. The deferral protects almost 1,200 hectares—all the Crown land in the Fairy Creek watershed. The watershed falls within the Pacheedaht and Dididaht First Nations’ territory. The extension feels like a small bit of clearing in a forest of uncertainty. … “The [added] time provides the Pacheedaht FN the opportunity to do the extremely important work of developing their resource management plan,” Forestry Minister Ravi Parmar told Capital Daily. …The forestry sector in BC has struggled in recent years with a reduction in access to fibre and the sawmills to process it. The slowdown has led to numerous mill closures and the loss of thousands of jobs across the province.

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Logging pause won’t affect parcels sold

by Emma Maple
Peninsula Daily News
January 31, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

PORT ANGELES — The recent pause on some older tree sales in state-managed forests will not affect parcels that already have been approved or auctioned, despite some environmentalists’ hopes. When Dave Upthegrove was sworn in as the state’s public lands commissioner on Jan. 15, he immediately enacted a pause on the approval for auction of state-managed “legacy forests,” a campaign promise. …Some environmental activists had hoped the pause also would apply to legacy forests that already had been approved for auction, or those that had been auctioned but not yet logged. …However, after reviewing his administrative options, Upthegrove said he “do[es] not see a successful path forward for me to unilaterally stop them.” “It’s always incredibly difficult to unwind an action after it’s been approved and implemented, and the legal and procedural challenges of administrative action here make it virtually impossible,” he said in a statement.

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Lil’wat Forestry offering six-week, fully funded wildfire course

By Luke Faulks
The Pique News Magazine
February 2, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Stillwater Consulting and Lil’wat Forestry Ventures (LFV) have partnered to deliver two fully funded, six-week training programs on wildfire and community resilience at the Ts̓zil Learning Centre in Mount Currie. Students will learn from LFV staff, Lil’wat elders and a dozen instructors brought in by Stillwater over six weeks of training in forestry and wildfire mitigation. Those hours will be split between class time and hands-on experience. “It’s set to get people ready to work in the field,” LFV general manager Klay Tindall told Pique. “It’s not to get them ready to work in an office, that’s for sure.” …The program also expands beyond core wildfire fighting skills with additional certifications involving working safely under power lines, bear safety, danger tree assessment, and natural resource field studies like silviculture and tree planting. Tindall said the broader approach is meant to ensure students are employable outside of the fire season. 

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The power of forests: North Okanagan climate advocate

Letter by Eli Pivnick, Shuswap Climate Action Society
Vernon Morning Star
February 3, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

One of the biggest policy changes needed in B.C. is to forestry policy. B.C. policy for the last 50 years has resulted in a rapid clear-cutting of a large part of our forests even as all the research indicates that: Within a 60-80 year time span, only 20-30 per cent of forests can be cut in any one area without harming the hydrological cycle. On this basis, most BC commercial forests have been severely over-cut making a mockery of the Annual Allowable Cut. …Clear-cutting results in increased risk of forest fires up to 30 years when replanted. …Re-planting is a form of green-washing giving companies cover for the forest damage they do. …Due to the increase in forest fires partially due to logging, BC forests have [become a] carbon source. …The Power of Forests: Protecting Communities and Nature with a New Forest Act effort was launched by the Boundary Forest Watershed Stewardship Society.

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Land Act sounds like ‘Land Back’ to wary B.C. voters

By Tom Fletcher
The Western Standard
February 1, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

It’s been almost a year since the B.C. NDP government moved to snuff out a growing political brush fire sparked by the latest and largest step in its bid to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous People across the province. Changes to the province’s little-known Land Act were abruptly withdrawn by the government in February 2024 after a series of opposition town hall meetings brought out big crowds demanding answers on the implications. Premier David Eby’s promise of more consultation before moving ahead with what it termed shared decision-making on Crown land meant that if it was successful in the election, the NDP would move ahead. …Indigenous rights initiatives tend to start in B.C. and extend across the country. …Enshrining the UN declaration started here, and Justin Trudeau’s government followed suit, with a yet-undefined law to implement it across the federal government as B.C. has begun to do. 

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Why the Douglas fir is disappearing from our forests

By James Steidle
Prince George Citizen
January 30, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Our new forest minister has been touring the North, trying to learn about forestry, and I hope, forests. I sure hope someone is telling him about the need to stop clearcutting Douglas fir forests… Douglas fir represent only two per cent of our forests in the Prince George Timber Supply Area. It’s a relatively fire-resistant conifer species with good biodiversity values we could use more of, not less… Douglas fir seedlings have a higher rate of failure compared to lodgepole pine. They are vulnerable to frost damage. During heatwaves the sun can cook them… This report identified another threat to Douglas fir regeneration: the elimination of our critical deciduous species. Douglas Fir, the report argues, are protected and enhanced by the deciduous “brush” that we currently eliminate from our regenerating stands, either with herbicides or with brush saws.

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Preserving the legacy of Cochrane’s Grandfather Tree

Cochrane Municipality Press Release
January 29, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

On January 30, the Parks and Open Spaces Department will begin safety work on the Grandfather Tree following its fall during the windstorm earlier this month. To ensure public safety, the Grandfather Tree trail will be temporarily closed to all bicycle and pedestrian traffic during this time. The Town of Cochrane kindly asks residents and visitors to respect posted signage and follow any guidance provided by staff working in the area… Propagation specialists have successfully collected seeds and meristem cuttings from the top of the tree. They are working closely with a grower to propagate the seed and are also exploring innovative tissue culture micropropagation techniques to create potential clones of the tree. These efforts aim to preserve the Grandfather Tree’s unique genetic legacy for future generations.

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Forest Enhancement Society of BC project updates from around the province.

Forest Enhancement Society of BC
January 31, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

This is the beginning of convention season and that means many opportunities to learn, connect, and hear from government officialsproject partners, and community organizations about problems, policies, and possibilities for the sector. The mood, thus far, is introspective, with reviews planned for BC Timber Sales and the forest sector in general. …At FESBC, we are reviewing applications for funding over the next two years. Demand for funding currently far exceeds supply. In this newsletter: A safety tip from the BC Forest Safety Council; Faces of Forestry features Erin McLeod; Information on FESBC’s 2025-27 second round of funding; Impact and benefits of the Pressy Lake Pilot Project; Nakusp & Area Community Forest’s wildfire risk reduction projects; and a podcast feature from the University of Northern British Columbia Forestry Club.

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BC extends Fairy Creek logging deferral amid tree spiking reports

By Marcy Nicholson
The Canadian Press in CTV News
January 29, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The BC government has approved a legal order to extend temporary protections to an old-growth forest on Vancouver Island even as the minister of forests acknowledged that the RCMP are investigating reports of tree spiking. Ravi Parmar called the news of such vandalism “incredibly alarming.” Spikes are typically metal and can injure or even kill a person who attempts to cut down or mill the tree. …The minister said spiking puts health and safety of forestry workers at risk, adding that the province immediately notified both the forestry licensee and the local First Nation. “It is outrageous that… they feel that causing serious injury to workers furthers their cause,” said Brian Butler, president of United Steelworkers Local 1-1937. The provincial government’s announcement… came at the request of the Pacheedaht First Nation, whose territories encompass the entire watershed. The protections allow for continued discussions about the long-term management of the watershed.

Related coverage:

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Big trees crucial to migrate B.C. forests under climate change, finds study

By Stefan Labbé
Business in Vancouver
January 30, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

…changes in climate are expected to drive wildlife seeking refuge up mountains and further north. But for trees… the changes in climate are often coming too fast to get out of the way, especially when combined with pressures from logging, said Suzanne Simard, a professor in the University of British Columbia’s Faculty of Forestry. …In a new study published in Global Change Biology, Simard and her UBC colleagues took three-year-old interior Douglas fir seedlings from locations in southern B.C. and planted them as far north as Fort St. James, the northern limit of the species’ range … to find out how the trees would handle the human-assisted migration, and if they would do better in a colder climate.  …As early as 2006, University of Alberta researcher Andreas Hamann published a study that concluded climate change could push the range of B.C.’s tree species north at a rate of 100 kilometres per decade.  

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Kaslo community forest ready for wildfire season after two-year risk mitigation

By Evert Lindquist
Revelstoke Review
January 28, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Ten hectares of community and Crown forest in Kaslo are ready to champion the next wildfire season, following a nearly $100,000 risk-reduction project. The Kaslo and District Community Forest Society (KDCFS) has wrapped up nearly two years of wildfire mitigation work on eight hectares of its land and two hectares of Crown land, which have a popular bike trail network and were deemed high-risk areas in Kaslo’s wildland-urban interface. Risk reduction efforts included fuel reduction by removing select trees and forest debris, with support and $96,900 in funding from the Forest Enhancement Society of BC. According to KDCFS manager Jeff Reyden, this was a “full-phase” project that started in spring of 2023 and included surveying wildfire assessment plots, consulting with the community, and creating a fuel-management prescription document with detailed instructions and objectives.

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BC Timber Sales operations on Haida Gwaii pass audit

BC Forest Practices Board
January 28, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

VICTORIA – The Forest Practices Board has completed its audit of BC Timber Sales (BCTS) and Timber Sale Licence (TSL) holders in the Haida Gwaii Natural Resource District. A compliance audit examined all forestry planning and activities carried out in the area between May 1, 2022, and May 31, 2024. The parties complied with most legislative requirements with two exceptions. Auditors found BCTS was not diligent in inspecting approximately 90 kilometres of its roads and structures in its Sewell Inlet operating area. …Following the audit, BCTS inspected these roads … and has committed to working with the Ministry of Forests and the Haida Nation to develop road deactivation plans as needed. …Auditors found all three TSL holders audited had abated fire hazards within the required period. However, two TSL holders did not complete the required number of fire-hazard assessments and did not conduct fuel-hazard assessments on time. This is considered an area requiring improvement…

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BC Community Forest Association January Newsletter

BC Community Forest Association
January 28, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

In this newsletter you’ll find these stories and more:

  • Become a Member: At the BCCFA, we are honoured to advocate for our members and community forestry in BC. Membership is open to all who are interested in supporting community forestry in BC.
  • Mandate Letter for the Minister of Forests states: “Work to secure a more sustainable future for First Nations and communities that depend on local forests for their economic strength by expanding the community forest program.”  
  • Join us in Nanaimo for our 2025 Conference & Annual General Meeting
  • BC Wildfire Service released their 2024 wildfire season summary

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Back after a two year hiatus — BC Forest Practices Board Newsletter

BC Forest Practices Board
January 27, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Keith Atkinson

Issue #28 – Winter 2024/25 includes these stories and more:

  • Message from board chair, Keith Atkinson
  • The Secret Life of Board Members, by Bruce Larson
  • Audit Program Update: In 2024, we released four audit reports
  • Complaint Investigation Program: In 2024, we received 7 complaints and dealt with 48 concerns from members of the public. 
  • New Special Projects: The Board has approved two new special investigations 
  • Appeals Program: The Board did not initiate or join an appeal in 2024. However, we are currently still participating in two appeals
  • Recommendations: The Board tracks the implementation of its recommendations and posts all responses to our recommendations with the relevant report on our website.
  • People: Since 2023, we have had staff members retire or transition to new roles outside of our organization, necessitating the need for new staff to assume these positions. 

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BC Court of Appeal upholds local zoning authority over forest lands despite provincial law updates

By Angelica Dino
Canadian Lawyer Magazine
January 28, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The Court of Appeal for British Columbia upheld zoning restrictions on privately managed forest lands on Galiano Island, affirming the local trust committee’s authority to prohibit residential development despite provincial legislative changes allowing limited residential use. The court’s ruling reaffirmed the Galiano Island Local Trust Committee’s authority to restrict residential development on forest lands. The dispute dates back to 2000 when the committee adopted bylaw no. 127, which prohibits residential use in the “Forest 1 Zone.” The appellants, owners of privately managed forest land, argued that the bylaw was invalid or inapplicable due to subsequent provincial legislation, including the 2004 Private Managed Forest Land Act.

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Extra forestry staff to help address issues like Dutch elm disease

By Jason G. Antonio
SaskToday
January 28, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

With Moose Jaw’s Dutch elm trees “struggling” because of disease, city hall is hoping that hiring two more forestry staff will enable crews to address symptomatic trees and remove dead wood promptly. During a recent 2025 budget meeting, city council voted unanimously to allocate $72,356 to the community service department’s operating budget to expand staffing in the forestry division. This funding will help the city provide a full-time, four-person crew for 30 weeks per year and a two-person crew for 22 weeks during the fall and winter, a budget report said. More staff — there is currently a two-person, year-round crew — would improve response times for service requests, shorten tree pruning cycles, enhance public safety, reduce property damage and promote the urban forest’s long-term health.

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Forestry job losses could reshape the West Kootenay’s future

By Samantha Holomay
Castanet
January 28, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

As the challenges facing the West Kootenay’s forestry sector deepen, many have expressed concern over the potential for significant job losses. Tom Thomson, executive director of the Nelson and District Chamber of Commerce (NDCC), highlighted the potential ripple effects of the proposed 25 per cent tariffs from the U.S. “Forestry jobs are the backbone of Nelson,” said Thomson. “ If those jobs disappear the ripple effects are felt everywhere…It trickles down.” “It’s a bit too early to say for sure,” he added. “It could lead to huge layoffs in the forestry and manufacturing areas.”.. The provincial government has stated through a preliminary assessment that they project to lose $69 billion in economic growth between 2025 and 2028. They also proposed that the province’s gross domestic product (GDP) could decline by 0.6 per cent each year, with an estimated 124,000 job losses by 2028.

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Men who planted Centennial Square sequoia speak out against its removal

By Andrew A. Duffy
Victoria Times Colonist
January 28, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Stu Montgomery, left, Tom Rose and Michael Leahy

You can add the names of the three men who planted it to the long list of people opposed to the City of Victoria removing a giant sequoia to make way for a re-imagined Centennial Square. Tom Rose, Mike Leahy and Stu Montgomery, the three-man city horticulture crew that planted the tree on a late-winter day in the early 1980s, say they just don’t understand why it has to come down. “It’s a waste,” said Montgomery, 67, who retired in 2012 from the city after 37 years tending boulevards, sports fields and a stint overseeing Centennial Square. “It doesn’t make any sense.” The tree and the fountain would both be removed in a proposed $11.2-million redesign of the 60-year-old civic landmark.

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UBC students team up with Lil’wat for Sea to Sky forestry research

By Luke Faulks
Pique Newsmagazine
January 27, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Twenty-one students with the University of British Columbia’s Master of Sustainable Forest Management (MSFM) program visited the Sea to Sky in January to learn from Lil’wat Forestry Ventures (LFV) about economic and traditional elements of forestry. Between Jan. 20 and 24, the students worked with LFV on how to develop a landscape-level forest management plan that respects key conservation, fire management and cultural values. They were led by Ken Byrne, a UBC lecturer and registered professional forester (RPF) and lecturer at UBC. Byrne has been organizing these expeditions for some time, usually working to arrange the MSFM in partnership with a community forest or smaller tenure nearby or owned by a First Nation. …“We’re thrilled to partner with UBC on another project,” LFV general manager Klay Tindall said. “Our collaboration has allowed us to combine traditional forest science with Lil’wat cultural knowledge and values, leading to more informed management decisions.”

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Kaslo Community Forest Completes Wildfire Risk Reduction Project with Support from FESBC

Forest Enhancement Society of BC
January 28, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Kaslo, B.C. – As wildfires continue to increase in frequency and severity, the Kaslo and District Community Forest Society (KDCFS) completed a wildfire risk reduction project, covering approximately 8 hectares of KDCFS’s tenure and 2 hectares of Crown land within the Wildland Urban Interface. With funding support from the Forest Enhancement Society of BC (FESBC), the fuel reduction work focused on selectively removing trees to reduce the high fuel content and excess forest debris within a high-use recreation area that has an extensive bike trail network. This fuel reduction treatment will help protect the community from wildfires and serve to enhance both wildlife habitat and recreational values. “As wildfire seasons grow longer and more intense, projects like this are critical for reducing fuels in forests near communities,” said Ravi Parmar, Minister of Forests. “My thanks go to the Kaslo and District Community Forest Society for taking on this important community-driven work…”

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Tree migration could help B.C. forests better prepare for climate change, University of BC study

By Mina Kerr-Lazenby
CTV News
January 26, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

A new University of British Columbia study has pinpointed strategies to help local forests adapt to climate change. …the eight-year study found ways forest ecosystems can be better prepared for the climate threat, with a focus on mitigating the loss of the Douglas fir tree. …professor and co-author of the study Suzanne Simard, said the project looked at the process of relocating Douglas firs that are already adapted to dry, hot weather, further north. …Opting for a two-pronged approach, researchers also explored how various routes of harvesting and regenerating forests would affect the migrated seedlings’ attempt to grow in the face of climate change. Researchers tried various avenues, from clear-cutting to retaining larger densities of the tallest Douglas fir trees, said Simard.

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Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy

Fraser Institute News Release: Ottawa’s “Net Zero” emission-reduction plan will cost Canadian workers $8,000 annually by 2050

By The Fraser Institute
Cision Newswire
January 30, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: Canada, Canada West

VANCOUVER, BC – The federal government’s plan to achieve “net zero” greenhouse gas emissions will result in 254,000 fewer jobs and cost workers $8,000 in lower wages by 2050, all while failing to meet the government’s own emission-reduction target, finds a new study published today by the Fraser Institute, an independent, non-partisan Canadian public policy think-tank. “Ottawa’s emission-reduction plan will significantly hurt Canada’s economy and cost workers money and jobs, but it won’t achieve the target they’ve set because it is infeasible,” said Ross McKitrick, senior fellow at the Fraser Institute and author of Canada’s Path to Net Zero by 2050: Darkness at the End of the Tunnel. The government’s Net Zero by 2050 emission-reduction plan includes: the federal carbon tax, clean fuel standards, and various other GHG-related regulations, such as energy efficiency requirements for buildings, fertilizer restrictions on farms, and electric vehicle mandates. By 2050, these policies will have imposed significant costs on the Canadian economy and on workers. 

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Transition to more biomass heating in Northwest Territories requires better supply chain, advocates say

By Jocelyn Shepel
CBC News
January 30, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: Canada, Canada West

Mark Heyck

A gathering of advocates, researchers and government officials in the N.W.T. this week is looking at biomass as a viable alternative to diesel in the territory. The Arctic Energy Alliance’s “Biomass Week” started Monday in Yellowknife and continues all week. Biomass is organic matter — for example, wood — that is used to generate energy. Statistics Canada data shows that diesel accounted for roughly half of the territory’s total energy demand in 2023. A significant portion of that diesel is used for space heating and power generation, according to the Canada Energy Regulator. The non-profit Arctic Energy Alliance wants to help steer the territory away from fossil fuels and toward cleaner energy sources. …If the territory is to move away from fossil fuels, Heyck believes biomass is a viable option. He says having more certified wood-stove installers and people who can service and install pellet stoves in the territory is helping.

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Arbios Biotech biomass to bio-oil facility is set to go

By Cheryl Jahn
CKPG Today
January 29, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: Canada, Canada West

PRINCE GEORGE – It was 2021 when Canfor announced a final investment decision on a project to produce biofuel. The plant will use hydrothermal liquefaction technology to convert forestry residues and wastes into high value into renewable biocrude, which can be further refined to produce low-carbon transportation fuels. “What we do is essentially, what nature does over millions of years we do in 25 to 30 minutes,” explains Rune Gjessing, CEO of Arbios Biotech. “We’re taking organic matter, manipulating it, and then producing oil.” In August 2022, a formal naming of the Arbios facility adjacent to the Canfor Intercon Pulp mill to Chuntoh Ghuna, meaning “the forest lives.” …The world’s largest hydrothermal liquefaction facility in the world, converting 25,000 dry tonnes of wood residuals into 50,000 barrels of biofuel annually. …The plant uses residuals from the forest sector. …The biofuel produced will be used for aircraft and marine purposes.

 

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Forest History & Archives

Reunion celebration for former Woodfibre residents: A nostalgic gathering awaits

By Jennifer Thuncher
The Squamish Chief
January 28, 2025
Category: Forest History & Archives
Region: Canada, Canada West

WOODFIBRE, BC — Calling all former Woodfibre residents and employees, a reunion is coming up. Wait, did you know there was a whole town at Woodfibre where the LNG export facility of the same name is now being built? It was a company town built around a pulp mill. …Back in 1911, the British Columbia Sulphite Fibre built a pulp mill at what became Woodfibre. (It was originally called Mill Creek.). In 1917, the mill was bought by Whalen Pulp and Paper Co. In 1925, it changed ownership to the British Columbia Pulp and Paper Company. The mill was bought by Alaska Pine and Cellulose in 1950, and in 1958, it was taken over by Rayonier Canada, who owned it until 1980. By the time Western Forest Products shut the mill for good in 2006, the township had moved on, but the memories live on today. …For more details about the reunion, keep a watch on the Town of Woodfibre Facebook page or email the organizers at woodfibrereunion@gmail.com.

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