Vancouver, BC – The BC forest sector calls on the Government of Canada to bring the same urgency to the lumber file as it has to steel, aluminum, and energy. Our industry is facing an unprecedented period of challenge. On top of the existing 35% softwood lumber duties, the United States has now imposed an additional 10% tariff—wrongly claiming that Canadian lumber and forest products represent a national security threat. These unwarranted and unjustified trade actions are having devastating impacts and the lack of tangible progress for forest sector workers and communities is deeply concerning. …We cannot continue to manage the decline of this foundational industry. We must focus on rebuilding competitiveness, driving innovation, and strengthening the entire value chain. Forestry remains a cornerstone of the provincial and national economy—a major project that can deliver tangible results now, if given the necessary attention and support.
PRINCE GEORGE – Prime Minister Mark Carney met with President Donald Trump to discuss the connection between energy cooperation and support for Canada’s steel and aluminum industries. However, this meeting raised some eyebrows among forestry industry leaders, who wondered why softwood was left out of the conversation. Brink Forest Products owner John Brink believes that the omission of softwood tariffs in discussions with the president is yet another setback for an already struggling sector. MLA Kiel Giddens also voiced his disappointment that softwood lumber was left off the agenda, especially since forestry ranks among Canada’s leading employers. Brink notes that wood manufacturing plants are still shutting down across the province, and he believes the West must unite to send a strong message to Ottawa. 
Plans to institute an “extended maintenance shutdown” of the Interfor lumber mill in Grand Forks is not a permanent shutdown, according to the company. On Sept. 4 Interfor Corporation announced plans to reduce its lumber production by approximately 145 million board feet at all operations between September and December of 2025, representing approximately 12 per cent of its normal output. The temporary curtailments will be through a combination of reduced operating hours, prolonged holiday breaks, reconfigured shifting schedules and extended maintenance shut-downs. The curtailments are expected to impact all of Interfor’s operating regions, with both the Canadian and U.S. operations expected to reduce their production levels by approximately 12 per cent each. “The curtailments are in response to persistently weak market conditions and ongoing economic uncertainty,” read a statement from the company.
Construction plastics are a major source of plastic waste in the province, and they urgently need to be measured, tracked and upcycled, says a B.C. organization that promotes sustainable built environments. Canada’s Federal Plastics Registry is expanding in 2026 to include construction plastics, but industry efforts are already underway to gather data and pilot new ways of reducing and reusing them, said Vancouver-based 
At the Kelsey Bay log sort near the town of Sayward, B.C., pulverized cedar bark [is] evidence of the millions of trees that departed from here, never to return. “We’ve seen our territories decimated,” Wei Wai Kum Chief Christopher Roberts explains. Behind him, five freshly cut, old-growth cedars line the warming pavement. These trees, Roberts says, help explain why the nation is here today. …nations are claiming sizable stakes in an industry that has long excluded them. Wei Wai Kum is one of four First Nations to purchase a $36-million stake in La-kwa sa mukw Forestry Partnership, a joint operation with logging company Western Forest Products Ltd. Their partnership came after companies agreed to leave canoe-carving trees in their communities. A sign, for Roberts, that the industry was willing to change. …Now … First Nations’ tenure opportunities have exploded as B.C.’s biggest forest companies sell off major parts of their long-held licences. 
KAMLOOPS, BC — The impacts of climate change on wildland fires, cultural burning practices and inter-government cooperation are areas of research and interest among experts gathered by the newly-formed Wildfire Resilience Consortium of Canada. The national consortium was announced in July and received $11.7 million in funding over four years from Natural Resources Canada through the Wildfire Resilient Futures Initiative. Delegates from across Canada met for the first time on Thompson Rivers University’s campus last week for a three-day conference, which aimed to facilitate discussion, networking, and to pool knowledge. Rapid-fire presentations saw recipients of NRCan’s Building and Mobilize Foundational Wildland Fire Knowledge program speak about their projects and research studies. …Many of the presenters spoke of the increasing severity of wildfires, highlighting recent record-breaking fire seasons. University of Northern B.C. professor Che Elkin said climate change is having an impact on forest ecosystems, affecting individual tree growth and mortality.
Wildfire is part of the natural lifecycle of a forest; but as Manitoba continues to battle the embers of its most devastating fire season in more than 30 years, its leaders are starting to consider a more active role in managing this critical resource to stave off the flames. In early October, as more than 70 wildland fires still smouldered across the province, Premier Wab Kinew and a handful of cabinet ministers released Manitoba’s first all-encompassing plan to slash carbon emissions in the next 25 years. Among the promised initiatives was a 
Last week, the Wildwood Ecoforest, located in Yellow Point just north of Ladysmith, got considerably closer to its original size. A successful campaign to raise $850,000 has allowed the 
NANAIMO, B.C. – Mosaic Forest Management addressed community concerns about alternative road access following an incident on October 5th that halted safety work at the Bamfield Main Road worksite. The Ministry of Transportation and Transit has assumed control of the Bamfield Main Road repairs under Section 8 of the Transportation Act, with Mosaic providing technical support. The project is targeted for completion by month’s end. The Brenner Main/Museum Main corridor … remains restricted to limited Mosaic crews and one industrial user with pre-existing access. …“We understand people are frustrated seeing what appears to be a drivable road,” said D’Arcy Henderson, Senior Vice President, Timberlands and Chief Operating Officer. “But we’ve identified dangerous trees and boulders that could fall at any time. Making the Brenner corridor safe for public use would require the same weeks of intensive work currently underway on Bamfield Main. We cannot split our resources and double the timeline.”
CASTLEGAR, BC — A BC Timber Sales manager for the Kootenay-Boundary admits they may have a hard time selling wood in the coming months as local mills cope with additional U.S. tariffs. George Edney told Castlegar city council this week that his organization, which manages and auctions 20% of the timber on Crown land, will have sales opening next week in the Boundary. …Interfor has curtailed its Grand Forks operations indefinitely due to “persistently weak market conditions.” …Edney said if the wood they offer in the Boundary doesn’t sell at the upset price, they can drop the price and try again, or they can withdraw it altogether, although typically they want the wood in the market. …Edney said they sold 581,000 cubic meters that BC Timber Sales in the Kootenays in 2024-25. Their target volume for 2025-26 is 715,000 cubic metres.
Anderson Creek Timber is currently hauling logs from its property located just south of Nelson above the Rail Trail at Mountain Station. The work will continue for another three-to-four weeks, said Doug Thorburn, a forester with Monticola Forest Ltd. that manages Anderson Creek’s forest properties. … The 600-hectare Anderson Creek Timber property is private land and is therefore governed by B.C.’s Private Managed Forest Land Act, which provides much less regulation than the Forest Act in areas such as biodiversity, watershed protection, wildlife protection and harvest guidelines. …Anderson Creek Timber and Kalesnikoff, which has a public Crown land tenure over much of the Anderson Creek watershed, are working on a watershed assessment for the area… The reason the company has not done public information sessions about its logging plans … is that on privately owned land, compared with public land, there is less obligation to do so.
The Forest Enhancement Society of BC (FESBC) is accepting expressions of interest (EOI) for projects to assist the Province of British Columbia in advancing the environmental and resource stewardship of British Columbia’s forests. These projects must occur on provincial crown land and support one or more of the core purposes of the Society, which include:
ʼNa̱mǥis First Nation and the Province are one step closer to a joint decision-making agreement that will support predictable harvesting, job creation and sustainable forestry operations on the north Island. “The best way to move fibre is by working together and that is what we are accomplishing with the ʼNa̱mǥis First Nation,” said Ravi Parmar, Minister of Forests. “I am optimistic that this draft agreement will create good-paying jobs and help us in our efforts to provide stability and certainty for our coastal forestry sector, as we deal with Donald Trump’s attack on our forestry sector.” ʼNa̱mǥis First Nation and the Province have developed a first-of-its-kind draft Section 7 joint decision-making agreement for the forestry sector under the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (Declaration Act) and Forest Range and Practices Act. 
The Chemainus River reveals its secrets in strange and unexpected ways. For years, I have wandered the forests near my North Cowichan home in search of the last few ancient trees, finding a few nice specimens here and there. In the heavily logged, 5,000-hectare Municipal Forest Reserve — popularly known as the Six Mountains, an hour north of Victoria — they are as elusive as the last rhinos of Sumatra. With a bit of luck, I hope my persistence may yet pay off. I don’t know it at the time, but my quest will launch me on a journey from the river’s headwaters to its mouth in pursuit of questions fundamental to the Chemainus and its future. How have human activities like industrial logging shaped the river, its watershed, and its salmon? …In my search for answers, I will discover modern challenges that bedevil other B.C. coastal rivers.
…the carcasses of 11 cattle were found on a logging road near Quesnel earlier this week… The owner of the animals, who holds tenure for an area of Crown land in B.C.’s Cariboo region, discovered the cows had ingested a nitrate-based fertilizer used in forestry to encourage tree growth, said Kevin Boon, of the B.C. Cattlemen’s Association. “They licked it, thinking it was salt, and died of nitrate poisoning,” he said. …Boon said the rancher … fears more may have been poisoned… The fertilizer is usually applied in the winter or early spring, while cows aren’t grazing in B.C.’s forests. It appears to have been done earlier this year, due to a “lack of understanding,” said Boon, emphasizing that it doesn’t appear to be deliberate. “When you have multiple tenure-holders on the land, there needs to be communication with the stakeholders,” he said. …B.C. Forests Ministry is aware of the situation and is investigating…
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