Ray Ferris
Sean McLaren
VANCOUVER, BC – Hank Ketcham, Chairman of West Fraser’s Board of Directors announced today that Ray Ferris, our President and Chief Executive Officer, plans to retire on December 31, 2023. Ray has been with West Fraser for over 26 years in increasingly senior positions culminating in his appointment as President and Chief Operating Officer in 2018 and as President and Chief Executive Officer and a director of the Company in 2019. …Today, West Fraser is announcing the appointment of Sean McLaren, our current Chief Operating Officer, as our new President and Chief Executive Officer effective January 1, 2024. Sean has been with West Fraser and predecessor companies for 35 years. He is a proven leader who is committed to our operating philosophy of low cost production and a prudent balance sheet. …West Fraser has benefited immeasurably from Ray’s strong leadership and our Board looks forward to our continued growth under Sean McLaren’s leadership.
Paper and cardboard continue to be some of the most highly recycled materials in the United States. In 2022, the paper recycling rate was nearly 68% holding approximately stable to the 2021 rate, according to the American Forest & Paper Association (AF&PA). Cardboard boxes, also known as old corrugated containers (OCC), are the most-recycled packaging material in the U.S. In 2022, the recycling rate for cardboard boxes was more than 93%, an increase over last year’s rate. More than 2/3 of the paper used in the U.S. is recycled and used to make new sustainable paper products that people use every day.
Demand for US old corrugated containers (OCC) surpassed supplies in August, hiking up OCC prices for the fifth consecutive month, by a range of $5-10/ton at the FOB seller’s dock in the Northeast, Southeast, Los Angeles and San Francisco regions, according to Fastmarkets’ PPI Pulp & Paper Week Aug. 4 pricing survey and market report. The Southeast region was reported as the “strongest” for mill buying this month and a $10/ton rise put OCC’s price at $65-70/ton at the FOB seller’s dock in August. OCC’s premium in most regions is $25-35/ton, with the highest premiums and prices in the US Southeast. OCC pricing also moved up by $10/ton out of the two aforementioned West Coast regions in California, to $50-55/ton, and $40-45/ton, respectively, and by $5/ton out of the Northeast region, to $55-60/ton.
The U.S. exported 865,995.4 metric tons of wood pellets in June, up from both the 820,057.5 metric tons exported the previous month and the 832,092.2 metric tons exported in June 2022, according to data released by the USDA Foreign Agricultural Service on Aug. 8. The U.S. exported wood pellets to approximately 16 countries in June. The U.K. was the top destination for U.S. wood pellet exports at 494,421.4 metric tons, followed by Japan at 150,281.2 metric tons and Denmark at 102,771.8 metric tons. The value of U.S. wood pellet exports reached $171.43 million in June, up from $153.12 million in May and $141.32 million in June of last year.
North Carolina timber markets continue to be impacted by uncertainty in the economy by late July. Compared to a year ago, second quarter 2023 standing timber prices were down across all product classes except pine sawtimber. The most significant decline in timber prices from a year ago occurred with pulpwood, with pine and hardwood pulpwood prices declining 27% and 36% respectively. Pine sawtimber prices increased a modest 2%, while oak and mixed hardwood sawtimber prices declined by 16% and 9% respectively. Worsening market conditions in pulp and paper brought about several mill closures across United States, including the Pactive Evergreen paper mill in Canton. Even though North Carolina standing timber prices are generally down from a year ago, state-wide average standing timber prices are up for pine and hardwood sawtimber from the first to the second quarters in 2023.
EUREKA, Calif. — 
The Daily Herald again ruined my day with its recent coverage (“
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Scientists are wondering if global warming and El Nino have an accomplice in fueling this summer’s record-shattering heat. …Scientists agree that by far the biggest cause of the recent extreme warming is climate change from the burning of coal, oil and natural gas [and] El Nino, a temporary warming of parts of the Pacific. But some researchers say another factor must be present. …One surprising source of added warmth could be cleaner air resulting from new shipping rules. Another possible cause is 165 million tons of water spewed into the atmosphere by a volcano. Both ideas are under investigation….Florida State University climate scientist Michael Diamond says Maritime shipping has for decades used dirty fuel that gives off particles that reflect sunlight in a process that actually cools the climate. In 2020, international shipping rules took effect that cut as much as 80% of those cooling particles,” said Tianle Yuan of NASA.
CABAZON, California— Two firefighting helicopters collided while responding to a blaze in Southern California, sending one to the ground in a crash that killed all three people on board. The crash late Sunday afternoon in the desert about 85 miles east of Los Angeles involved a huge Sikorsky S-64E and a smaller Bell 407. The larger Sikorsky landed safely. …The Bell helicopter was being used for observation and coordination, Fulcher said. The Sikorsky can drop water or retardant on fires. Fulcher said he did not know whether it was loaded at the time of the crash. The victims were Cal Fire Assistant Chief Josh Bischof, 46, Cal Fire Capt. Tim Rodriguez, 44, and contract pilot Tony Sousa, 55, the firefighting agency said. …The Bell crew’s mission was to tell helicopters where to make drops, Cordova said. The crash is being investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board.
The grim numbers just keep getting grimmer. The death toll from the wildfires in Maui, Hawaii, has now reached 93, according to an August 12 update from the County of Maui. That makes these Maui wildfires the deadliest in modern American history. Yes, that’s right, the deadliest, topping the 85 lives that the ironically-named Camp Fire in Northern California claimed in 2018. And unfortunately, there’s no guarantee that this 93 number won’t keep rising over the next few days and weeks. …Deaths haven’t been the only “D” caused by the Maui wildfires. There’ve been lots of damage and destruction, too. The wildfires have already damaged or destroyed over 2,200 different structures. With close to $6 billion in estimated damages, this will likely be the largest natural disaster that Hawaii has ever experienced since it became a state in 1959, according to Hawaii Governor Josh Green.
