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Business & Politics

Workers strike at LKSM Forestry LP on Vancouver Island

By Adam Chan
Chek News
June 10, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

About 100 unionized workers on Vancouver Island have started a strike against their employer, La-kwa sa muqw Forestry Limited Partnership (LKSM Forestry). The union representing the workers, United Steelworkers union (USW) Local 1-1937, says the workers went on strike on Friday, June 6, because of “significant concessions” being demanded by the company. One of the main concessions that the company is asking for is the ability to bring in non-union contractor workers to perform work currently handled by USW members, according to the union. The union says the strike comes after 93 per cent of unionized workers voted in favour of strike action in late March. …La-kwa sa muqw Forestry Limited Partnership is owned partly by four local First Nations, the Tlowitsis, We Wai Kai, Wei Wai Kum and K’ómoks First Nations, which are all members of the Nanwakolas Council, and Western Forest Products.

Related release by the United Steelworkers: Strike commences at LKSM Forestry LP on Vancouver Island

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Powell River mayor proposes upping foresty’s allowable cut

By Paul Galinski
Powell River Peak
May 27, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Ron Woznow

City of Powell River Council voted to defer a Union of British Columbia Municipalities (UBCM) resolution proposed by mayor Ron Woznow until more research can be done. At the May 22 council meeting, Woznow read his resolution that recommended UBCM call upon the ministry of forests to take immediate steps to secure at least 45 million cubic metres of economically viable fibre for the 2025 calendar year, and that the ministry continue to increase access to economically viable fibre by five million cubic metres each year until achieving the annual allowable cut totals set by the chief forester. Woznow said the economic benefits of forestry in British Columbia are well known. …Councillor Cindy Elliott said on April 24, she went to Western Forest Products’ public advisory group meeting and lots of good information came out. She said she believes Woznow was trying to address the current undercut in the province.

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B.C. First Nations, cities unite to oppose infrastructure bill

By Graeme Wood
Business in Vancouver
May 22, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Robert Phillips

Leaders from local governments and First Nations held a joint press conference Thursday to voice their collective opposition to the B.C. government’s Bill 15, which aims to expedite infrastructure products. …“If passed into law, Bill 15 would give greater powers to cabinet to expedite the approval of projects it deems to be ‘provincially significant.’ First Nations and local governments have expressed concern with the lack of consultation prior to the legislation being drafted,” the two entities stated in a joint statement issued via the UBCM. …The FNLC said the bill may override the Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act, while local governments said they are concerned about local planning being disrupted. …Premier David Eby said the legislation would benefit both Indigenous communities and municipalities. …Robert Phillips, political executive member of the First Nations Summit, called the bill an “unfortunate and avoidable” process.

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In crisis, is there opportunity for BC softwood lumber?

By Stuart Culbertson, former deputy minister in the B.C. government
Vancouver Sun
May 23, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Canada has challenged both duties in our free trade arrangements with the US and at the WTO — often successfully but to no avail. …Clearly, putting an end to 40 years of a softwood lumber trade war should be a top priority for Canada in its list of fixes it seeks in any CUSMA renegotiation. …Nevertheless, a looming trade crisis may present some interesting opportunities in the confluence of at least three policy priorities of the new federal and BC governments. …In the recent election, Carney promised to double the number of homes built in Canada annually to 500,000, entrusting the implementation of this plan to a new Build Canada Homes (BCH) agency that will act as a developer overseeing the construction of affordable housing. …Hence, BC lumber displaced from the US market can be redirected at home to drive down the cost of a significantly increased inventory of new homes throughout Canada.

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Industry group questions ‘vague scope’ of new B.C. forestry council

By Andrew Kurjata
CBC News
May 16, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

Kim Haakstad

The B.C. Council of Forest Industries (COFI) says it isn’t sure why the province has created a new forestry council with a “vague scope and mandate” when there are already multiple working groups focused on the troubled resource sector. On Thursday, the province announced the formation of the Provincial Forest Advisory Council, which it says is expected to “provide recommendations to support forest ecosystems at the same time as helping the forestry sector.” …However, COFI says the province already has multiple working groups, reports, reviews and initiatives that have yet to be fully implemented. “We are not totally sure what the overall objective and need for it [the new council] is, COFI president Kim Haakstad said in an interview with CBC News. …Green Party House leader Rob Botterell says forestry has always been a key part of the provincial economy, but its future depends on sustainable and long-term ecological stewardship.

Additional coverage in CFJC Today Kamloops, by Michael Reeve: MLA Stamer looking for more diversity on provincial forest advisory council

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Regional District of Central Kootenay gives conditional approval to Spearhead re-zoning

By Bill Metcalfe
Nelson Star
May 15, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

The Regional District of Central Kootenay has tentatively voted in favour of a planned expansion for wood products manufacturer Spearhead on the North Shore, but held off on a final decision until a pair of conditions are met. …After several months of information-gathering and three public hearings, the RDCK board decided at its May 15 meeting that it needs two further pieces of information in order to finally decide on the zoning….First, the RDCK requires approval of the Ministry of Transportation and Infrastructure regarding the details of highway access to the proposed facility. Second, the board has asked that a covenant be prepared and placed on the title of the property that would require Spearhead to comply with the recommendations of a professional environmental consultant before a building permit is issued.

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‘We reject your bill:’ First Nations heads urge Quebec to scrap forestry reform bill

By Morgan Lowrie
Canadian Press
June 3, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada East

QUÉBEC – Representatives of the Assembly of First Nations Quebec-Labrador urged a provincial legislature committee on Tuesday to abandon a forestry reform bill that would reserve large swaths of the province’s forests for logging.  AFNQL Chief Francis Verreault-Paul and three other leaders called on the government to work with them to develop a new bill from scratch because they say Bill 97 does not respect First Nations’ ancestral rights. The proposed legislation would divide the province’s public forest land into three zones: conservation zones, multi-purpose zones and forest development zones where the forestry industry is prioritized. …The bill tabled this spring by Natural Resources Minister Maïté Blanchette Vézina specifies that activities that “restrict the carrying out of forest development activities” would be prohibited in the development zones, as would the implementation of conservation measures.

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Wood, Paper & Green Building

UBC innovators unveil novel wood leather soccer ball at Expo 2025

By Poppy Philbrook
Capital Current
June 10, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: Canada, Canada West

OSAKA, Japan – The buzz surrounding Vancouver’s role as one of 16 host cities for the 2026 FIFA World Cup was at the centre of British Columbia Week in recent days at the Expo 2025 Canada Pavilion. …While preparations for the world-class sporting event accelerate, designers from the University of British Columbia’s Bioproducts Institute are concerned with the sustainability of soccer itself, unveiling a first-of-its-kind wood leather ball to an attentive crowd in the heart of the pavilion on June 4. …Created in the official size for junior soccer games, the wood leather ball not only closely aligns with Expo 2025’s overarching theme of “Designing Future Society for Our Lives,” but also highlights the value of one of BC’s largest and growing exports: wood products. …Although the ball is yet to be tested in play, Takagi considers the wood leather material far more durable than its bio-based counterparts.

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Vancouver Island mass timber home shows potential of green building tech

By Marc Kitteringham
Oak Bay News
June 3, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: Canada, Canada West

Tom Grimmer

Just over a month ago, the spot where Tom Grimmer is standing was little more than an empty lot. Construction crews had cleared the land, built the foundation and laid the groundwork for what was to come, but for the most part, it was empty; he explained this as he went up the stairs onto the second floor. …The house, since there is indeed most of a house there now, was dropped off in six containers in late April and has been subsequently assembled into what it is now. “The first panels landed a month ago,” he said. “It’ll be done pretty soon.” …This, according to Grimmer, is the only mass timber passive house on Vancouver Island. Grimmer isn’t new to passive homes. …While there are mass timber facilities in Canada and B.C., they are more geared towards institutional and commercial buildings.

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Forestry

Logging, pruning and anxiety in Banff ahead of first summer since Jasper wildfire

By Matthew Scace
Canadian Press in Coast Reporter
May 19, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada

BANFF — Looking out over a budding meadow with blackened tree stumps on the edge of Banff National Park, Cliff White points to a dark thicket of trees where the empty plot ends. “The next fire in here is going to be incredible,” says the former Parks Canada fire management co-ordinator, standing in the expansive Carrot Creek fire break. …The Rockies are facing another year of drought conditions. …In the race to mitigate the damage from future fires, stewards of Alberta’s parks have turned to loggers to create fire guards like Carrot Creek. The areas are designed to starve a fire of fuel and create enough empty land for embers to fizzle out on the ground. …Each fire break represents the start of a new ecosystem that Parks Canada will need to maintain.

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B.C. First Nations return to traditional practices to reduce wildfire risk

By Ben Miljure
CTV News
June 5, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

As wildfire seasons seem to grow longer and more intense year after year, many B.C. First Nations are looking to the past for solutions to make their communities more fire resilient. In the northwest corner of the province, the Cheslatta First Nation has come under threat multiple times in recent years. “Almost half of Cheslatta’s territory has been burnt since 2010,” said Cheslatta forestry manager Logan Wilson. …Many First Nations utilizing cultural burns are working in collaboration with researchers at UBC’s Faculty of Forestry, who received a USD$780,000 grant from the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation to study Indigenous practices of wildfire management and forest restoration. …The BCWS said it participated in 48 prescribed burns in 2024, altering more than 3,400 hectares of land, an area more than eight times the size of Vancouver’s Stanley Park. Twenty-three of those burns were conducted in collaboration with First Nations.

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Okanagan Indian Band, Tolko Industries still cleaning up after White Rock Lake wildfire

By Darren Handschuh
Castanet
June 7, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The Okanagan Indian Band is continuing efforts to clean up after the 2021 White Rock Lake wildfire. The OKIB is currently working with Tolko Industries on salvage harvesting operations in the Bradley Creek area, which was heavily impacted by the fire. The White Rock Lake fire destroyed thousands of hectares of land and numerous structures as it raged through the region. According to the OKIB June online newsletter, the “salvage work focuses on removing dead standing (fire-killed) timber to support ecological recovery and reduce wildfire risks, while protecting Syilx values and environmental standards.” …This salvage harvesting is part of OKIB’s long-term recovery plan for fire-affected areas. Removing fire-killed trees and replanting the area will help stabilize soils and reduce erosion, support water quality and wildlife habitat recovery and contribute to a healthier, more resilient forest ecosystem.

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How BC Wildfire Service is fighting misinformation with compassion

By Matt Simmons
Bowen Island Undercurrent
May 23, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Rumours spread like wildfire — and rumours about wildfire are no exception. In Canada’s westernmost province, the BC Wildfire Service is taking to its social media channels to tackle misinformation with an unlikely tool: kindness. Take the term “human caused.” Wildfire agencies use it to describe all wildfires that aren’t started by lightning, but many people have incorrectly conflated that with arson and the idea has taken hold. …This year, you’ll see the government account responding to those comments with a playful, gentle tone and a wealth of facts. Jean Strong, a digital communications officer with the government agency, says her team is trying a new tack this year, after successfully experimenting with the approach during the 2024 wildfire season. …The end goal is to increase public understanding about both the basics and complexities of wildfire science and response, she says.

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Plant partnership: fungi help spruce trees fight off budworm attacks

By Bev Betkowski
University of Alberta – Folio
May 23, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Nadir Erbilgin

University of Alberta research is showing how trees and fungi team up to survive and stay healthy against insect attacks — an alliance that could lead to more resilient forests. Endophytes — tiny micro-organisms made up of bacteria and fungi living harmlessly in the tissues of white spruce — help the tree defend itself by producing toxic compounds that repel or kill eastern spruce budworm, the new study showed. The discovery provides a “clear, detailed explanation” of how the fungi help protect the tree against the defoliating insect, says forest entomologist Nadir Erbilgin, a professor in the Faculty of Agricultural, Life & Environmental Sciences who supervised the study. …Knowing specific endophytes can boost tree defences or repel budworms also offers possibilities for selecting, breeding or inoculating trees with beneficial fungal partners, he notes.

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A collaborative approach to forest management

East Kootenay News Online Weekly
May 24, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Kari Stuart-Smith

Kari Stuart-Smith, a wildlife ecologist and Manager of Biodiversity & Wildlife at Canfor, has dedicated over 30 years to advancing sustainable forest management in the East Kootenay. …One of her notable initiatives is the development of a new Old Growth Management Plan for Canfor’s Tree Farm License (TFL) 14 southwest of Golden. This project involved a collaborative group from Canfor, the Province of BC, First Nations, and Wildsight, with technical guidance from Forsite. Using LiDAR data to assess forest stand structure, the team identified high-quality old growth areas, leading to a plan with higher ecological values than previous models. …Stuart-Smith also played a key role in identifying and developing management strategies for High Conservation Value Areas (HCVAs) in the East Kootenay, a requirement for Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) certification.

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Vancouver’s new urban forest strategy faces challenges, academic says

By Lauren Vanderdeen
CBC News
May 25, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Vancouver councillors have approved an updated plan for growing the city’s urban forest, but a forestry professor says there are challenges ahead. The city’s goal is to increase its canopy cover – how much of the city is covered by leaves and branches when seen from above – from about 25 per cent of the city to 30 per cent by 2050, according to the updated urban forest strategy. …Stephen Sheppard, a professor emeritus at the University of B.C.’s forestry faculty, said Vancouver’s 30 per cent canopy cover target is very achievable – but he noted there is cause for concern. In the wake of the B.C. government pushing hard for cities to increase housing density, Sheppard advised councillors to minimize the loss of existing urban trees when approving rezoning proposals. …Multiple councillors pointed out the stark divide in canopy cover between neighbourhoods.

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It could all go up in flames: Why Banff and Bow Valley face mounting wildfire peril

By Bill Kaufmann
Calgary Herald
May 21, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Cliff White

The agony of last summer’s Jasper wildfire casts a long shadow across the Bow Valley. The blaze left a smouldering $1.23 billion in devastating costs to the Jasper area, while also leaving experts predicting — and residents worrying — that other pristine mountain communities such as Banff and Canmore could be next. …“It’s just so primed to burn, you can’t stop it — I don’t think Banff has time,” Cliff White, a former Parks Canada forestry scientist said last summer. …With the lack of follow-up on tending to prescribed burn areas and other breaks “we are doing about one-fifth of what needs to be done just for maintenance, and given the backlog of biomass accumulated, we are at about one-tenth of what should be done for the next two to three decades,” said the Cliff White.

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BC Timber Sales pauses logging in threatened caribou habitat

By Stefan Labbé
Business in Vancouver
May 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

The B.C. government-run corporation responsible for administering a fifth of the province’s annual logging quota says it will pause new operations that overlap with habitat of a threatened caribou herd north of Revelstoke. The pause is expected to last until planning has restarted or government gives BCTS direction, a BCTS planning forester wrote. “We are not operating within caribou core areas,” the email reads. …A statement from the Ministry of Forests said the logging pause was part of a collaboration with First Nations, industry, as well as local and federal governments. …Eddie Petryshen, a conservation specialist with Wildsight, said about 112,000 hectares of BCTS tenure overlap in some way with critical habitat of the Columbia North caribou herd. …Logging has combined with oil and gas exploration to carve up forests across B.C., opening up paths for predators to hunt mountain caribou.

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Osoyoos Indian Band revitalizing traditional harvesting practices

By Alexander Vaz
Comox Valley Record
May 14, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Non-timber forest products (NTFP) provide a wealth of natural resources for the Osoyoos Indian Band (OIB). …OIB wants to build a path forward for the sustainable use and commercialization of NTFP through a project supported by the BC Indigenous Forest Bioeconomy Program. The project started as a feasibility study into the commercial potential of NTFP and turned into an initiative once community members wanted to grow their connection with the land and traditional practices, according to Vincent Dufour, a registered professional forester with Silviculture and Private Managed Forest, and Siya Forestry. …One of the main goals of the project is to develop a full inventory of NTFP across the OIB traditional territory in the South Okanagan to the West Kootenays and surrounding regions. …Dufour works alongside local community members and experts in mapping the abundance and availability of species such as mushrooms, soapberries, blackcap raspberries, wild mint, juniper and wild roses.

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“Fire is not inherently bad” says Fire Archeologist

By Lauren Ella Burke
CBC News
May 23, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada East

Joanne Miles

Chief Joanne Miles of the Flat Bay Band says people in her community have practiced low-intensity controlled burning for as long as she can remember. When done correctly, she says this can prevent devastating wildfires. The knowledge of how this is done has been passed down through generations. …Several factors are considered before starting a low-intensity controlled burn, Miles said. Elders in her area have learned the seasonal patterns, the moisture levels of the ground and plants, and how to recognize wind changes. Miles said this practice is the reason the Flat Bay area has hardly seen any major forest fires. …Some tribal nations have retained knowledge of the burning connection they had with the Earth, Renick said. The knowledge of others was decimated through colonization, she said.

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Indigenous groups send eviction notice to Quebec forestry companies

Canadian Press in Citynews Montreal
May 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada East

Two Indigenous organizations have issued eviction notices to a number of Quebec forestry companies in the province’s Saguenay–Lac-Saint-Jean, Mauricie and Côte-Nord regions. The Mamo alliance and the Association des Gardiens du territoire Nehirowisiw Aski sent the notices to 11 companies. The notices ordered the companies to immediately remove their workers and equipment from unceded Indigenous territory. The letters are a response to the Quebec government’s proposed forestry reform, which has drawn opposition from environmentalists and First Nations. The reform would include creating so-called “priority forest management zones” set aside for the logging industry.

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Wildfire response training should be made available to more civilians, experts say

By Britnei Bilhete
CBC News
May 18, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada East

As wildfire season begins in Ontario, some experts say more civilians in northern and remote regions should be given training and opportunities to become wildfires response volunteers, despite liability concerns. The province saw over 475 fires last year that scorched 90,000 hectares, according to the Ministry of Natural Resources. …Fighting wildfires is usually done by firefighters hired or contracted by Ontario or other provincial governments — and in worse cases the Canadian Armed Forces help out. But giving residents the capacity to respond as well is something that could reduce the impact of wildfires, says Jason Thistlethwaite, an associate professor at the University of Waterloo’s school of environment. …The problem is that responders and municipalities have issued advice against it because of the liability concerns, he said.

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US Forest Service chief asks wildfire employees who took voluntary resignation to ‘come back’

By Ryan Spencer
Summit Daily News
June 9, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States

Tom Schultz

Just months after the Trump Administration gave federal employees the option to voluntarily resign, the U.S. Forest Service is asking those who resigned to return to work for the wildfire season. Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz said in a video posted to the Department of Agriculture website on Thursday that employees who took the Trump Administration’s deferred resignation offer should be encouraged to “come back” for the wildfire season. …Nationwide, more than 4,000 Forest Service employees accepted the federal government’s resignation offer, according to POLITICO. The Trump Administration also fired an estimated 3,400 Forest Service employees in February. …The Forest Service did not return a request for comment Monday that included questions about how many employees who accepted the deferred resignation option were “red card” holders qualified to work on wildfires. …Even before the layoffs and voluntary resignations, Colorado mountain towns had concerns that Forest Service staffing was lacking.

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Trump plans to merge wildland firefighting efforts into one agency, but ex-officials warn of chaos

By Matthew Brown
Associated Press in Atlanta Journal-Constitution
May 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States

BILLINGS, Mont. — President Donald Trump’s administration is trying to merge the government’s wildland firefighting efforts into a single agency, a move some former federal officials warn could increase the risk of catastrophic blazes and ultimately cost billions of dollars. …Budget documents do not disclose how much the change could cost or save. …The Trump administration in its first months temporarily cut off money for wildfire mitigation work and sharply reduced the ranks of federal government firefighters through layoffs and retirement. …But organizations representing firefighters and former Forest Service officials say it would be costly to restructure firefighting efforts and cause major disruptions in the midst of fire season. …“You will not suppress your way to success in dealing with catastrophic fires. ….” said Steve Ellis, the chairman of the forest service retirees group and a former wildfire incident commander.

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Feds ask court to dismiss timber industry lawsuit that aims to increase Tongass old-growth logging

By Alix Soliman
KTOO
June 6, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

The largest timber companies operating in Southeast Alaska want the Tongass National Forest to sell them more old-growth timber, and they’re suing the federal government to get it. … The Alaska Forest Association along with two of their members, Viking Lumber and Alcan Timber, filed the lawsuit in March, alleging that the U.S. Department of Agriculture failed to fulfill a promise to supply the companies with enough timber to meet market demand. But the government filed a motion to dismiss the case, writing that it didn’t make such a promise. …Frank Garrison is an attorney with Pacific Legal Foundation representing the timber industry. He said the industry has faced a 30-year decline, and that Viking and Alcan are struggling. …The Forest Service has not met its annual target for timber sales in Alaska since 2014, according to a U.S. Government Accountability Office report published last year.

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Conservation groups, Forest Service, argue merits and harms of Big Belts logging operation

By Micah Drew
Daily Montanan
June 3, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

Conservation groups argued in federal court that a forest management project comprising 1,241 acres of timber harvest east of Helena may violate several federal statutes, but the government lawyers said rules were followed and the timber sale has economic and public interest benefits. …A portion of the temporary roads will be constructed in elk wintering grounds, according to the project plan, which the plaintiffs argue will decrease elk habitat effectiveness. …The plaintiffs also challenged the logging project on the basis of affecting grizzly bear habitat connectivity. …But Assistant U.S. Attorney Abby Nordhagen Cziok, said the plaintiffs were mischaracterizing their arguments as a “false choice between logging, and elk and grizzly bears.” …Judge Christensen said he would work to deliver an expedient ruling due to the impending restart of Sun Mountain’s operations, but again took issue with the plaintiff’s last-minute actions in the case.

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Court denies request to halt logging activity in Elwha Watershed

By Emma Maple
Peninsula Daily News
May 27, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

PORT ANGELES – The Clallam County Superior Court denied environmentalists’ request for an administrative stay on two local Department of Natural Resources parcels, although it granted a motion to compel information from the state agency. If the stay had been granted, it would have barred logging-related activities for 90 days on the parcels named Parched and Tree Well. The motion to compel will require the Department of Natural Resources (DNR) to file administrative records relevant to the case by June 18 – a five-month delay from the original required date of Jan. 2. The logging rights for these two forests were bought by Oregon-based Murphy Company in December. …These organizations have lawsuits filed on several other sales in Clallam and Jefferson Counties, as well. …In addition to the motions, activists have blocked access to the parcel titled “Parched” since May 7 by engaging in a tree sit.

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Conservation coalition joins lawsuit protecting northern spotted owl

By Robert Schaulis
Eureka Times Standard
May 23, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

A coalition of conservation groups announced it has intervened in a lawsuit that seeks to remove almost 3.5 million acres of land in California, Oregon and Washington from protected status. …“This is a tired story: the timber industry attempting to game the legal system in order to expand logging on our public lands,” said Tom Wheeler, executive director of Arcata-based Environmental Protection Information Center, in a joint press release issued by the coalition. “Unfortunately for them, they have to come through us first. We have stood up for the northern spotted owls and science for decades, and we aren’t backing down.” …The lawsuit, filed by timber industry representatives from the American Forest Resource Council — along with a coalition of counties in Washington, Oregon and California and the Association of O&C Counties — contends that a November 2021 rule change by the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service is illegal.

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Logging will increase by 10% in Pennsylvania’s only national forest this year under Trump directive

By Abigail Hakas
SpotlightPA
June 4, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US East

Pennsylvania …The move has sparked fierce debate between environmentalists and pro-logging groups who disagree on cutting trees to reduce wildfire risks or improve forest health — two reasons cited in new federal guidance. In the coming fiscal year, the state’s only national forest is set to sell 45 million board feet, an over 12% increase from this fiscal year, said Alisen Downs, public affairs specialist for the Allegheny National Forest. The federal government’s fiscal year begins Oct. 1. …While next year’s logging will be an increase from the over 39 million board feet sold for harvest in 2023-24 and the 40 million planned for this year, it’s not an historic high. In 2020-21, almost 50 million board feet were harvested. …But under a recent emergency designation affecting almost 60% of national forest land, some federally mandated regulations and processes aren’t required, including some put in place to protect endangered species or allow challenges to logging proposals.

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Protecting Maine’s forests from spruce budworm takes all of us

By Allison Kanoti, Maine state entomologist & Patty Cormier, Maine state forester
Bangor Daily News
May 23, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US East

…Today, populations of spruce budworm are once again building, slowly but surely, on hundreds of thousands of acres in northern Maine. The good news is, we’re not starting from scratch, and we’re not waiting to intervene. This spring, a coalition of forestry stakeholders, including landowners, scientists, industry partners, and state and federal government agencies, is taking a science-based approach to spruce budworm management through the Early Intervention Strategy. Approximately 240,000 acres of budding budworm populations will be treated with narrowly targeted insecticides in late May and early June. …This year’s treatment blocks were selected months in advance and supported by research, monitoring, ownership and forest composition data. …We also invite landowners to take advantage of the vast number of resources on sprucebudwormmaine.org.

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New president and vice president at chartered foresters

By Elizabeth Birt
Institute of Chartered Foresters
June 6, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: International

Andrew Sowerby & Gary Kerr

Edinburgh — A new president and vice president have been appointed at the Institute of Chartered Foresters. Andrew Sowerby, a fellow of the institute, has taken on the role of president, succeeding Geraint Richards. Dr Gary Kerr has been appointed vice president. Mr Sowerby, who recently joined Bronwin & Abbey Ltd as a director, said: “It’s a real honour to be elected as president of the Institute of Chartered Foresters. “The institute for me is more than an organisation, it’s a home, and has been a constant across my career spanning the public, private and third sectors. “I’m very much stepping into this role embracing the diversity and experience that defines our profession.” The appointment follows the institute’s annual general meeting on June 4.

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Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy

Province investing more than $11M in forestry projects

Sudbury.com
May 23, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: Canada, Canada East

The province is doling out more than $11 million to support projects that innovate and modernize forestry operations in northeastern Ontario. On May 21, the province announced $11.3 million for five projects through its Forest Biomass Program, which it says will create jobs, increase productivity, and identify new revenue streams. Hornepayne Power Inc. will receive the largest chunk, $7.5 million, which will be used to upgrade power generation equipment at its plant and support research into on-site green hydrogen production. GreenFirst Forest Products Inc., is receiving nearly $3 million to upgrade its biomass cogeneration plant, and an additional $130,000, which will be used to research the use of mill byproducts for torrefied pellets. Circular Carbon Canada Inc. is receiving $500,000 to study northeast sawmills as potential sites for pyrolysis plants, which use forest biomass to produce biochar, which is a substance used in power generation, soil amendment and water filtration.

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Forest Fires

Squamish wildfire grows to 14.4 hectares

By Alanna Kelly
The Squamish Chief
June 10, 2025
Category: Forest Fires
Region: Canada, Canada West

The District of Squamish has declared a state of emergency as the Dryden Creek wildfire continues to burn out of control, prompting expanded evacuation alerts and a full campfire ban. The Squamish wildfire has reached 14.4 hectares. It still remains out of control. The District says that the increase in size reflects growth away from the community along a west-facing cliff. Tonight, there are 28 firefighters on the scene who are “working towards containment on the west and south flanks of the fire to prevent further spread, with good success.” Air tankers and helicopters continue to attack the blaze. The helicopters are going back and forth to Alice Lake to bucket water to the fire.

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Evacuation orders issued as winds fan flames of wildfire near B.C.-Alberta border

By Akshay Kulkarni
CBC News
June 3, 2025
Category: Forest Fires
Region: Canada, Canada West

New evacuation orders have been issued due to the Kiskatinaw River wildfire near the B.C.-Alberta border in northeastern B.C. on Tuesday, in addition to previous orders for 55 properties issued late last week. As of Tuesday afternoon, the fire covered an area of just under 40 square kilometres, and is one of B.C.’s two “wildfires of note” — those that are particularly visible or pose a threat to public safety — the other being the Summit Lake wildfire in the far north. Highway 52 East remains closed in the area due to the blaze, which is burning close to the Pembina Steeprock gas processing facility. The B.C. Wildfire Service (BCWS) says that the wildfire is set to experience “significant growth in the coming days”, with winds up to 60 km/h pushing the fire north, south and east towards Kelly Lake and the B.C.-Alta. border by Friday.

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About 15,000 have fled Saskatchewan wildfires and more coming: Premier Moe

Canadian Press in Global News
June 3, 2025
Category: Forest Fires
Region: Canada, Canada West

PRINCE ALBERT – As Manitoba grapples with wildfires that have forced more than 17,000 people from their homes, the premier of Saskatchewan said Tuesday the situation is becoming just as dire in his province. Scott Moe said upwards of 15,000 people have had to leave their communities and more are likely in the coming days. “We didn’t have a very good day yesterday,” he told reporters in Prince Albert, Sask. …Moe said the biggest destruction has been in places like the northern village of Denare Beach, near the Manitoba boundary, where some family homes have been lost. There will likely be challenging days ahead due to a lack of rain in the forecast, the premier added. …Marlo Pritchard from the Saskatchewan Public Safety Agency said about 400 structures have been lost. Many firefighters had to stand down in some areas Monday due to “extreme fire behaviour,” he said.

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Northern Alberta community begins welcoming wildfire evacuees

CBC News
May 27, 2025
Category: Forest Fires
Region: Canada, Canada West

Fire crews are facing a challenging day as a wildfire encroaches on the town of Swan Hills in northern Alberta. An evacuation order was issued shortly after 6 p.m. Monday as the flames of the Edith Lake wildfire drew closer to the town of more than 1,300 people. A wildfire detected Sunday is now burning out of control seven kilometres from the edge of town, which is nestled in the boreal forest about 220 kilometres northwest of Edmonton. The blaze, fanned by powerful and unpredictable winds, has burned close to 2,300 hectares since it was first spotted. A provincial fire weather forecast is predicting gusty and shifting winds and rising temperatures on Tuesday and the national fire danger is listed as extreme across much of the province. As of noon Tuesday, there were seven out-of-control wildfires in Alberta.

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BC Wildfire Service working on new wildfire started near Arrastra Creek west of Princeton

By Casey Richardson
Castanet
May 24, 2025
Category: Forest Fires
Region: Canada, Canada West

BC Wildfire Service are handling a new wildfire discovered on Saturday afternoon west of Princeton. Fire Information Officer Shae Stearns said they have one initial attack crew and a response officer on site, along with one helicopter assisting with water tanking. The fire is near Arrastra Creek and behind Black Mine Road. The fire is estimated at just over one hectare in size and is classified at out of control. The fire is believed to be human-caused, but further details on how the fire started are not known. …As of Friday, May 16, category 3 open fires were ordered prohibited across the Kamloops Fire Centre.

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More than 1,400 evacuated by military as fires rip through northern Ontario

By Isaac Callan
Global News
June 10, 2025
Category: Forest Fires
Region: Canada, Canada East

More than 1,400 people have been evacuated from a remote community in northern Ontario using massive military transport planes as out-of-control wildfires spread across the province. On Sunday, Ontario asked the federal government to dispatch military personnel to help evacuate the community of Sandy Lake after a nearby fire expanded, doubling in size toward the edge of town in a few hours. Defence personnel said they had evacuated more than 1,400 people by 2 p.m. Tuesday afternoon. The evacuations mark the latest twist in an already busy fire season in the province, one critics argue the Ontario government failed to prepare for. Data from the Canadian Interagency Forest Fire Centre shows that the area of Ontario burned so far this year is already 38 times higher than it was last year.

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Northwest Region Wildfire Update: 12 Active Fires, Hazard Remains Extreme as Crews Battle New Starts

News Net Ledger
May 28, 2025
Category: Forest Fires
Region: Canada East

Thunder Bay – The Northwest Fire Region continues to face escalating wildfire activity, with 12 active fires currently being managed across the region. According to Aviation, Forest Fire and Emergency Services, 4 of the fires are not under control, 3 are being held, and 5 are under control. As of Tuesday evening, five new wildland fires were confirmed: THUNDER BAY 13: Located at the south end of Dog Lake in Silver Falls Provincial Park, this 0.1-hectare fire is not under control. NIPIGON 3: Located 2 km west of Longlac, along the north end of Long Lake, this 0.1-hectare fire remains uncontrolled. RED LAKE 9: Found on the east side of Pikangikum First Nation beside Pikangikum Lake, this 0.1-hectare fire is now out. …The wildland fire hazard is high to extreme across most of the Northwest Region, driven by persistent dry conditions and strong winds.

Related coverage in Kenora Online: Poor air quality expected in Fort Frances, Kenora areas due to forest fires

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3 wildfires continue raging in northeastern Minnesota; 20K acres burnt so far

By Stephen Swanson, David Shuman & Jason Rantala
CBS News
May 13, 2025
Category: Forest Fires
Region: United States, US East

Crews continue to battle three wildfires on Tuesday in northeastern Minnesota, all with zero containment. St. Louis County Sheriff Gordon Ramsay says the Minnesota Department of Natural Resources and the U.S. Forest Service expect Tuesday to be another “heavy fire day” with more “dangerous conditions.” Leanne Langeberg with the Minnesota Interagency Fire Center said since Sunday, crews have responded to about 80 wildfires across the state amid “uncommonly dry fuels and warm temperatures” from a multi-day stretch of red flag conditions. On Monday, Gov. Tim Walz activated the Minnesota National Guard, which will use its Chinook and Black Hawk helicopters to aid in the fire fight. …The governor says the state typically sees just more than 1,100 wildfires a year on more than 37,000 acres, but 970 have already happened in 2025 — with 40 each on Sunday and Monday.

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