Blog Archives

Today’s Takeaway

The Tree Frogs are hopping off for Canada Day

Kelly McCloskey, Editor
Tree Frog Forestry News
June 30, 2025
Category: Today's Takeaway
Region: Canada, United States

In celebration of Canada Day, the Tree Frog News team is taking a short break on Monday. We’ll return to our lily pad bright and early Wednesday morning with your full dose of forestry news and insight.

Wishing all our readers a safe and happy Canada Day! And with July 4th just around the corner, we also send our best wishes to our American readers for a safe and festive Independence Day!

Kelly, Sandy, Heidi and Suzi

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Business & Politics

Local governments discuss the future in the forestry sector on Vancouver Island

By Justin Baumgardner
My Cowichan Valley Now
June 30, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

NORTH COWICHAN, BC — Dignitaries from the region gathered to discuss the key challenges around forestry and how the recent curtailments at the Chemainus Sawmill have impacted the region. North Cowichan mayor Rob Douglas says discussions were centered specifically on how to turn the challenges being faced in the forestry sector into opportunities in the future. “We discussed opportunities in the forestry sector, including mill curtailments, fibre access, updates to the Private Managed Forest land regulations, watershed health, and the success of the community fields,” he says. Western Forest Products started curtailments on Jun. 18 due to what Douglas says was an inability to find a viable supply of fibre, which affected 150 workers at the mill, and he says the community is uncertain about the future. “In North Cowichan, we remain deeply concerned about the future of the Crofton pulp mill and Western Forest Products facility,” he says.

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BC First Nations look to strengthen partnerships to expand forest economy

By Chris Bush
Nanaimo News Bulletin
June 24, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West

NANAIMO, BC — BC First Nations building their forest economies are facing foreign and domestic challenges that must be met for the resource to provide wealth and employment in the coming decades. During a keynote address and panel discussion Friday, June 20, at the Indigenous Resource Opportunities Conference in Nanaimo, Ravi Parmar, BC minister of forests, discussed those challenges with John Jack, chief councillor of the Huu-ay-aht First Nations, Kim Haakstad, president and CEO of the B.C. Council of Forest Industries, and panel moderator Dallas Smith, council president of the Nanwakolas First Nation. …The forests minister acknowledged “dark days ahead” for the industry, but also a time of “opportunity to move us away from the boom and bust, towards stability.” …Haakstad said collaboration with First Nations is important for the industry’s long-term success, but among the biggest problems hindering the industry is getting cut permits.

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International Paper Plans to Exit Molded Fiber Business, Close and Sell Other Facilities

By International Paper
PR Newswire
June 26, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States

MEMPHIS, Tennessee — International Paper announced a series of strategic changes to strengthen its North American operations. As part of this initiative, the company will: Exit the molded fiber business and convert the Reno, Nev. facility to support its packaging business; Close its packaging facility in Marion, Ohio; Close its recycling facility in Wichita, Kansas; and Sell its containerboard mill in Xalapa, Mexico and its recycling plants in Xalapa and Apodaca, Mexico to Acabados de Papeles Santinados y Absorbentes (APSA). In the U.S., these changes will impact approximately 110 hourly and 24 salaried employees. In Mexico, APSA intends to retain current onsite team members at each location. …These actions are intended to support International Paper’s ongoing transformation initiatives to become a more focused and agile provider of sustainable packaging solutions. 

In Related News: IP Completes Divestiture of Five European Corrugated Box Plants to Satisfy Regulatory Commitments from the Acquisition of DS Smith

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Western Forest Products Announces Fire Damages Columbia Vista Division Sawmill

Western Forest Products Inc.
June 30, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US West

VANCOUVER, British Columbia – Western Forest Products announced today that the sawmill at its Columbia Vista Division, located in Vancouver, Washington, sustained extensive damage in a fire, rendering the mill inoperable. “On behalf of Western, I want to extend my sincere gratitude to the firefighters and first responders who attended the fire at our site,” said Steven Hofer, Western’s President and CEO. “While we are shocked by the damage to the mill, we feel incredibly fortunate that no employees or emergency personnel were injured. We are focused on supporting our team members and completing an incident investigation and assessment.” The Columbia Vista Division produced approximately 53 million board feet of lumber in 2024, with production focused on Douglas Fir specialty products for Japan and U.S. markets.

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Hampton Lumber to build new sawmill in Fairfax, South Carolina

Hampton Lumber
June 24, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US West, US East

Hampton Lumber announced it selected Allendale County to establish the company’s first sawmill on the East Coast. The company’s $225 million investment will create at least 125 new jobs. Headquartered in Oregon, Hampton Lumber is a fourth-generation, family-owned producer, operating nine sawmills in Oregon, Washington and British Columbia. Hampton Lumber will construct a state-of-the-art, 375,000-square-foot lumber mill located at Highway 321 and Barker Mill Pond Road in Fairfax. The new operation will specialize in producing quality Southern Yellow Pine framing lumber. Operations are expected to be online in 2027. Individuals interested in joining the Hampton Lumber can learn more about employment opportunities on the company’s careers page. The Coordinating Council for Economic Development approved job development credits related to the project. “We are proud the company recognized South Carolina as the ideal home for its first East Coast mill,” said Governor Henry McMaster.

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Domtar receives Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation permit for anaerobic digester

By Allison Winters
The Times News
June 27, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US East

KINGSPORT, Tennessee — Domtar’s Kingsport mill received a long-awaited permit last week leading to the start of the anaerobic digester project. The Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation issued the 142-page permit Wednesday. …“Receiving this permit is an important milestone in our efforts to advance the anaerobic digester project at the Kingsport Mill,” Charlie Floyd, VP of strategic capital projects, said. “This investment underscores Domtar’s commitment to sustainable innovation and environmental stewardship, while supporting good jobs and economic vitality here in Kingsport.” …Start-up of the new wastewater treatment system is expected by the third or fourth quarter of 2026, according to Domtar’s latest timeline. Around 150 contractors are expected to be on site to build the digester and associated equipment, Floyd said. Domtar estimates a $12.8 million economic impact from the project — including labor, hotel and dining within the community.

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Indiana’s Hardwoods and Lumber Industry Plays Huge Role in State’s Economy

By C.J. Miller
Hoosier AG Today
June 26, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US East

When you think about Indiana’s ag industry, you might not think about hardwoods and lumber, which play a huge role in the state’s economy. Indiana’s hardwood industry has an annual economic impact of over $10 billion to the state’s economy. In fact, Indiana is the number one producer of wooden hardwood and office furniture in the US. Indiana’s hardwood sector also ranks: 2nd in wood kitchen cabinets and countertops, manufactured homes, 3rd in engineered wood products, 4th in pre-fabricated wood buildings, and 5th in upholstered household furniture. Much of the lumber that is harvested and used here in Indiana comes from private woodland owners. “There’s over 4.5 million acres of forest land in Indiana, and of that 85 percent of that is privately owned, so there are a lot of farmers and families who own forest land,” says Tyler Smith, Sales Manager of Cole Hardwood in Logansport.

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Canfor Announces Closure of Darlington and Estill Sawmills in South Carolina

Canfor Corporation
June 26, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, United States, US East

VANCOUVER, BC – Canfor announced today its decision to permanently close the Estill and Darlington sawmills in South Carolina, effective August 2025. These closures follow an extended period of persistently weak market conditions and sustained financial losses, which have made continued operations at these facilities no longer viable. “We understand the significant impact this difficult decision will have on our employees,” said Lee Goodloe, President, Canfor Southern Pine. “This outcome is in no way a reflection of the dedication and hard work of our teams. We are committed to supporting our employees through this transition, including providing severance payments and exploring opportunities for redeployment within our other operations where possible.” Approximately 290 employees will be affected by the closures, which will also reduce Canfor’s U.S. lumber production capacity by 350 million board feet annually.

Related coverage in ABC15 News Darlington: Lumber losses loom: Darlington sawmill closes, furthers threat to $23B industry

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Logs from overturned truck collide with train in northern Ontario

By Chelsea Papineau
CTV NewsBy
June 25, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, US East

ONTARIO — A northern Ontario forestry company says a train crossing Highway 560 collided Wednesday morning with logs that were spilled by an overturned contractor’s trailer. It happened at the railroad crossing near Interfor’s Gogama Division and resulted in the road being closed between highways 144 and 560A. “There are no injuries or derailment,” Ontario Provincial Police said in a social media post at 8:40 a.m. “A train stop order is in place.” Interfor also confirmed this. …“At Interfor, the safety of our people and the communities where we operate is our highest priority. We are focused on supporting those affected and are actively monitoring the situation.” There is no estimated time of reopening, said OPP Const. Michelle Simard. “The officers are still investigating,” Simard said.

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Domtar to clean up decades of PFAS contamination under Michigan settlement

By Fuad Shalhout
Michigan Live
June 25, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US East

Dana Nessel

PORT HURON – Michigan Attorney General Dana Nessel has finalized a settlement agreement with Domtar Industries to clean up PFAS-contaminated materials at the Techni-Comp composting site near Port Huron. The agreement follows a lawsuit filed by the attorney general against the paper manufacturer in December 2022. As part of the settlement, Domtar will remove compost piles containing PFAS-contaminated sludge from the site and dispose of the waste at a licensed landfill. The company will also investigate the presence of PFAS in sediment and surface water at the location. …The mill began using PFAS chemicals to make specialty paper in the 1980s. Domtar acquired E.B. Eddy and the Port Huron mill in 1998. …Nessel’s office said the waste was “fraudulently” declared inert… and that Domtar continued to maintain that representation until the mill closed a few years ago. Under the decree, Domtar will pay $300,000 to support further response efforts at the site. 

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US trade faces pressure in Middle Eastern markets amid recent Israel-Iran conflict and Trump tariffs

By Asher Redd
Fox Business News
June 25, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US East

SOUTH PITTSBURG, Tennessee – Recent missile attacks put global trade on alert as the Baltic and International Maritime Council warned the Strait of Hormuz and the Persian Gulf could face disruption. …Mike Cardin, Cardin Forest Products Chief Manager, said the conflict could hurt the American lumber industry as well. Cardin’s hardwood sawmill reported fewer orders coming out of the Middle East. Uncertainties about President Trump’s future tariff policies forced Cardin to change how his sawmill operates. Before Trump took office, Cardin said his sawmill shipped wood products across the globe. He said foreign buyers proactively stopped buying American wood because they expect Trump to slap new tariffs on timber imports by the end of the year. Most of Cardin’s sales now come from Mexico and within the U.S. …”Right now, no one knows what’s going to happen,” Jarrod Cardin, Cardin’s Controlling Member, said.

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SmartLam North America, in Dothan, featured in Business Alabama

By Debora Storey
Business Alabama
June 24, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US East

SmartLam makes wood construction products at two locations — Dothan and Columbia Falls, Montana. The company just invested $60 million in a new manufacturing facility in Dothan adjacent to the existing cross-laminated timber, or CLT, plant. The new facility spans 144,000 square feet and is designed to produce 84 million board feet of glulam beams and columns each year. …A total of 113 people work in manufacturing and another 10 in management. The Montana division employs roughly 100. SmartLam is the largest mass timber producer in North America. The company started in Montana in 2012. In 2019, they acquired IB X-Lam in Dothan, a CLT and glulam plant that had been operating since 2018. …The Dothan location works with mostly yellow pine but can process spruce and Douglas fir, too. The Montana operation gets about half of its wood from Montana and the remainder from Oregon, Washington and Canada.

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Finance & Economics

Deloitte Canada expects NAFTA 2.0 ‘carve-out’ in new US trade deal

By Jeff Lagerquist
Yahoo Finance
June 25, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada, United States

A new Canada-US trade deal will likely carry forward the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement tariff exemptions shielding most Canadian exports from American tariffs, says Deloitte Canada chief economist Dawn Desjardins. …US President Donald Trump has set July 9 as the deadline for countries to ink a trade deal in order to avoid his “Liberation Day” tariffs. For Canada, Prime Minister Mark Carney and Trump agreed on the sidelines of the recent G7 meeting in Alberta to strike a deal by July 21. “Our baseline view assumes that at a minimum, we continue to operate with our CUSMA carve-outs. “The sounds we’re hearing seem to be moving in the right direction. Obviously, I have no inside information. It’s just an assumption that we will not be severely hit by 25 per cent tariffs across the board.” …Deloitte Canada’s latest economic forecast, published on Wednesday, calls for a “modest recession” in the second and third quarters of the year. 

Related coverage in Bloomberg Economics: Trade clarity to help Canada’s economy rebound after modest recession: Deloitte

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Estimates of gross domestic product in wildfire-affected areas during the 2023 and 2024 wildfire seasons

By Matthew Brown
Statistics Canada
June 25, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada

Preliminary estimates suggest that the 2023 wildfire season caused approximately 232,000 people to evacuate their communities over 282 events, consequently causing disruption to economic activity for many businesses. This article discusses the amount of economic activity that was at risk of being affected, but not necessarily disrupted, by wildfires across Canada during the 2023 wildfire season. …The 2023 season was the largest ever recorded by land area affected, and the 2024 season was the second largest in the past two decades. The value of production in areas that were directly affected by wildfires in 2023 was assessed across Canada, and in the Jasper area in 2024. Although the wildfires affected large areas of land, their potential effects on overall GDP are relatively limited at a national scale (except for the Northwest Territories). However, for smaller places that were affected, these impacts are potentially quite large at the local scale, particularly for those that experienced longer evacuation periods.

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Is US Lumber Self-Reliance Possible?

By Jesse Wade
NAHB Eye on Housing
June 24, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada, United States

Lumber cost uncertainty has risen from the start of the year, driven in part by potential higher tariffs, particularly on Canadian softwood lumber. Despite the continued use and threat of tariffs, US sawmill and wood preservation firms have not increased production to a level that replaces imports. In fact, utilization rates continue to fall, meaning they have the capacity to produce more lumber but are simply not operating at that level. As these firms produce at lower levels, their employment has fallen over the past few quarters. At the same time, reduced foreign competition and artificially higher prices have lessened the incentive for firms to expand output, even as demand remains high. As a result, US mills remain unable to meet the nation’s full lumber consumption needs. …There is ample room to increase production, but… producers may see no benefit of increasing output, as it would push prices lower since demand has fallen from the start of the year. 

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Lumber Futures Eases Past $610

Trading Economics
June 23, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada, United States

Lumber futures traded below $610 per thousand board feet, easing from two-month highs of $626 seen June 13th, driven by improving supply while demand slowed. This pullback reflects a temporary surge in supply as sawmills and wholesalers restocked early-season safety stocks, while builders delayed purchases after earlier buying . The decline also stems from softer demand: high mortgage rates continue to suppress new house builds and remodeling activity, with treaters and end-users scaling back orders. Although longer-term forecasts expect a pickup in Q3, driven by renewed tariff pressure and projected housing recovery, the current correction is supply-led, driven by modest restocking, seasonal slowdown, and rate-constrained construction spending. [END]›

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Inflation holds steady at 1.7% in May as rent hikes cool

The Canadian Press in CP24 News
June 24, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada

The annual pace of inflation held steady at 1.7% in May as cooling shelter costs helped tame price pressures, Statistics Canada said. Shelter costs rose three per cent in May, StatCan said, marking a slowdown from 3.4% in April. The agency singled out Ontario as the major source of rent relief in the country. …Mortgage interest costs meanwhile decelerated for the 21st consecutive month amid lower interest rates from the Bank of Canada. Economists had broadly expected inflation would remain unchanged heading into Tuesday. The removal of the consumer carbon price continues to drive down gasoline costs annually, StatCan said. …Inflation excluding tax changes – stripping out influences from the carbon price removal – was also steady at 2.3 per cent last month. …The central bank’s closely watched core inflation metrics meanwhile ticked down a tenth of a percentage point to three per cent in May.

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Harvard Report Shows US Housing Affordability Crisis Worsening

The National Association of Home Builders
June 26, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: United States

The US housing market continues to face uncertainty and record-high unaffordability as home prices and interest rates push sales to their lowest level in 30 years, according to The State of the Nation’s Housing 2025 report by the Harvard Joint Center for Housing Studies (JCHS). The report highlights the record-high number of cost-burdened renters, the staggering increase in cost-burdened home owners, and the pricing out of first-time home buyers. …Builders have responded to these issues with smaller homes and mortgage rate buydowns, and while the new homeownership rate continues to fall and existing home sales hit a 30-year low, new home sales increased by 3% last year. The JCHS report notes that increasing housing supply would help alleviate the crisis. Zoning reforms and revisiting land-use policies can be used at the local level. 

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Western Governors Association Unveils Housing Plan That Includes NAHB Priorities

The National Association of Home Builders
June 26, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: United States

During its June 22-24 meeting in Santa Fe, New Mexico, the Western Governors Association (WGA) unveiled a new report focused on expanding housing to western states. NAHB worked closely with the WGA in drafting the report, Building Resilient and New Affordable Developments in the West, and NAHB Chairman Buddy Hughes participated in a panel that highlighted the key findings. Hughes encouraged the governors to keep the “5 Ls” in mind when working on housing issues: Labor, Land, Lumber and materials, Lending, and Laws and regulations. The lack of skilled labor, local land use policies that restrict home and apartment construction, lumber price volatility and elevated material prices, high lending costs for builders, and high regulatory burdens are the main drivers of low housing supply and high home prices, he noted. The report contains a number of policy objectives that seek to ease home building costs and increase the supply of housing.

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The US economy shrank much faster in the first quarter than previously reported

By Bryan Mena
CNN Business
June 26, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: United States

The US economy contracted in the beginning of the year at a much faster pace than previously reported, after new data factored in much weaker consumer spending. Gross domestic product, the broadest measure of economic output, registered an annualized rate of -0.5% from January through March, the Commerce Department said Thursday in its third and final estimate. That’s worse than the 0.2% decline reported in the second estimate. …The latest estimate showed that consumer spending — the lifeblood of the US economy — was tepid in the beginning of the year. Spending in the first quarter grew at a rate of just 0.5%, down from 1.2% in an earlier estimate. That’s the weakest rate in more than four years. …Economic data released Thursday provides a clearer picture how the US economy has fared in the face of Trump’s policy shifts, which includes fresh figures on new applications for unemployment benefits, and mortgage rates.

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Elevated Rates, Challenging Affordability Conditions Put a Damper on New Home Sales

By Robert Dietz, Chief Economist
NAHB Eye on Housing
June 25, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: United States

Elevated interest rates and economic uncertainty sent more home buyers to the sidelines in May as housing affordability conditions remain challenging. Sales of newly built single-family homes declined 13.7% in May, falling back to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 623,000 according to the US Census Bureau. This was the slowest pace since October of last year, as mortgage rates averaged 6.83% in May. Sales were particularly slow in the South, with the pace of sales down 21% in May. …On a year-to-date basis, new home sales are 3.2% lower thus far in 2025. As a result of slowing home sales conditions, inventory continues to rise, marking an elevated 9.8 months’ supply in May. As estimated by NAHB, total months’ supply, defined as a combination of current new and resale single-family inventory, now stands at 5.2. This is the highest sales-adjusted inventory level since 2015 and will place downward pressure on housing construction starts in the months ahead.

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US Consumer Confidence Retreats in June

By Fan-Yu Kuo
NAHB Eye on Housing
June 24, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: United States

After a strong rebound in May, consumer confidence resumed its downward trend in June. Consumers remain concerned about the economy and labor market amid ongoing uncertainty, especially around tariffs. This month’s decline erased almost half of last month’s sharp gain, suggesting continued volatility in consumer sentiment. The Consumer Confidence Index, reported by the Conference Board… fell from 98.4 to 93.0 in June, the second lowest level since February of 2021. The Consumer Confidence Index consists of two components: how consumers feel about their present situation and their expected situation. The Present Situation Index decreased 6.4 points from 135.5 to 129.1, the lowest since October 2024; and the Expectation Situation Index dropped 4.6 points from 73.6 to 69.0. This is the fifth consecutive month that the Expectation Index has been below 80, a threshold that often signals a recession within a year.

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Vietnam, US promote sustainable timber trade, legal supply chains

Vietnam+
June 24, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: United States, International

HANOI, Vietnam – Speaking at a workshop on Vietnam-US timber and wooden product trade… Secretary General of the Vietnam Timber and Forest Products Association (VIFOREST) Ngo Sy Hoai said that in 2024, Vietnam exported wood and wood products worth 9 billion USD to the US, up 24% year-on-year. The US accounts for 55% of the country’s total wood exports. …Meanwhile, Vietnam imported 316.36 million USD worth of timber from the US in 2024, up 32.9% year-on-year, accounting for 11.2% of Vietnam’s total wood imports. …Vietnam has banned natural forest logging since 2014, focusing instead on sustainable plantation forestry… on 3 million hectares of planted forests, mainly acacia and eucalyptus and 1 million hectares of rubber plantations. 700,000 ha of commercial forests in Vietnam have been certified under the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) or the Programme for the Endorsement ofForest Certification (PEFC) standards. Vietnam aims to reach 70% certified plantation coverage by 2030. Vietnam is also preparing to comply with the EU’s Deforestation Regulation.

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Southern Pine Lumber Exports Are Up In April

The Southern Forest Products Association
June 24, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: United States, US East

April 2025 Southern Pine lumber exports (treated and untreated) were up 22.7% over the same month in 2024 at 57.4 MMBF and up 34.8% over March 2025, according to April 2025 data from the USDA’s Foreign Agriculture Services’ Global Agricultural Trade System. Year-to-date exports, however, are running 4% behind the same period in 2024 at 179.7 MMBF. When looking at the report by dollar value, Southern Pine exports were up 27% to $22.6 million in April – a 12-month high – compared to the same month in 2024 and up 26% over March 2025. Mexico leads the way YTD 2025 at $20.7 million, followed by the Dominican Republic at $15.8 million, and Canada at $5 million. Treated lumber exports, meanwhile, were up 47% compared to April 2025 at $15 million and up 53% over March 2025. …Softwood lumber imports were down 5% in April to 1.2 MMBF over the year and down 13.7% over March 2025.

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European sawn timber industry transformed by €400M buying spree

By Sanjoy Narayan
RISI Fastmarkets
June 26, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: International

The European sawn timber markets are experiencing unprecedented mergers and acquisitions (M&A) activity spanning 2024-2025 while industry leaders race to secure scale and strategic positioning. The consolidation wave spans from Stora Enso’s €137 million acquisition of Finland’s Junnikkala, to Austrian HS Timber Group’s aggressive Baltic expansion through dual Latvian acquisitions. …Distressed asset opportunities have also emerged. …This flurry of deals, concentrated within an 18-month period, represents the industry’s response to margin pressures, supply chain uncertainties, and the need for operational scale in increasingly challenging market conditions. …The current consolidation wave, builds upon a decade-long trend of M&A activity that has steadily reshaped European timber markets. …For traders, the vertical integration trend suggests tighter control over upstream supply chains, potentially reducing spot market availability of both logs and finished products. …The timing proves strategic given that North American mill closures have continued to reshape supply dynamics in global markets. 

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New Homes England 2024 to 2025 housebuilding statistics published

The Government of UK
June 26, 2025
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: International

UK — Housing programmes delivered by Homes England resulted in 38,308 new houses starting on site and 36,872 new homes completed between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025. This represents an increase in both starts (by 5%) and completions (by 12%) compared to the same period the previous year. 30,087 of new starts on site were for affordable houses — a 0.6% increase on the previous year, and representing 79% of all starts. …Eamonn Boylan, Chief Executive of Homes England, said: ”The statistics demonstrate the importance of programmes like the Affordable Homes Programme (AHP) to enable the delivery of these much-needed homes — and comes hot on the heels of the government committing a further £39 billion in funding to affordable homes over a 10 year period, giving confidence and certainty to the sector.”

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Wood, Paper & Green Building

Kelowna manufacturer argues airport expansion not as ‘local’ as it could be

By Cindy White
Castanet
June 26, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: Canada, Canada West

You can see the airport from the factory floor at Geometrik Manufacturing in Kelowna. That proximity is one of the reasons a recent announcement about the completion of the mass timber ceiling at the Kelowna International Airport terminal expansion project stings, especially claims that it showcases the local community. Geometrik, which produces wood acoustic panels, was passed over in favour of a company based in the Lower Mainland. …The City of Kelowna said the selection of suppliers for components like the wood acoustic ceilings and wall system are the responsibility of the general contractor and the city would assume additional risk that could compromise the project’s schedule and quality if it got involved in subcontractor decisions. …Geometrik has worked on projects at UBCO and Okanagan College and Bouvier is hoping their past record with YLW will be considered when the next phase of expansion goes ahead.

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Ontario Launches Advanced Wood Construction Action Plan

By Ministry of Natural Resources
The Government of Ontario
June 26, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: Canada, Canada East

Kevin Holland

KITCHENER — The Ontario government has released the Advanced Wood Construction Action Plan to increase the manufacturing and use of high-quality made-in-Ontario wood building products. To support the government’s plan to protect Ontario, the use of prefabricated and modular wood-based building materials, known as advanced wood construction, will help build more homes faster and create a more resilient forestry sector in response to U.S. tariffs by attracting investment, increasing revenues and providing economic opportunities that create and sustain local jobs. “As our government delivers on its plan to protect and build Ontario, this action plan will help promote and prioritize wood-based building with made-in-Ontario wood construction products,” said Mike Harris, Minister of Natural Resources. …Releasing the Advanced Wood Construction Action Plan advances Ontario’s Forest Sector Strategy commitments to increase wood use, grow markets and encourage forest sector innovation.

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Canada Green Building Council showcases mass timber marvel Limberlost Place

By Warren Frey
Journal of Commerce
June 25, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: Canada, Canada East

TORONTO — A mass timber showcase on Toronto’s George Brown campus is also a study in collaboration and innovation. George Brown College’s Nerys Rau, Moriyama Teshima Architects partner Philip Silverstein and PCL’s Mike Love all explained the process behind building Limberlost Place at a session titled Exploring Limberlost Place: at the Canada Green Building Council’s Building Lasting Change conference held recently in downtown Vancouver. Limberlost Place is a 10-storey mass-timber net-zero building that achieved occupancy in January. …Silverstein said the building is rated at Tier 4 of the Toronto Green Standard, adding no other building in the city has reached that metric. “It’s like LEED Platinum on steroids,” Silverstein said. Love said the number one question was “what if the wood gets wet?” “It’s OK for wood to get wet. Just remove any ponding water and let it dry. It wants to breathe,” he said.

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Forestry

Thousands Speak Up on Outdoor Access in Mosaic Forest Management Survey

Mosaic Forest Management
June 25, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Over 7,600 people shared their views on outdoor recreation in a first-ever public survey conducted by Mosaic. “The feedback we received tells us how important Mosaic’s managed forests are to people’s lives,” said Jimmie Hodgson at Mosaic. “It reinforces our responsibility to work toward solutions that reflect what we heard.” Early findings show:

  • Frequent use: Most respondents reported using Mosaic managed lands regularly throughout the year.
  • Camping experiences: Most campers described their experiences as good or excellent.
  • Top concerns: Gate access, illegal dumping and wildfire risk were the most cited issues.
  • Shared values: Respondents emphasized personal accountability when recreating, public safety and minimizing environmental impact.

While many support access restrictions during wildfire season or active operations, others expressed frustration with inconsistent gate schedules, limited access points and unclear communication. The survey also highlighted a strong desire for more transparency, better signage and real-time updates. …A full report will be released this fall.

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Environmental groups say old growth logging continues in BC’s endangered caribou habitat

By Stand.earth, Wilderness Committee and Wildsight
Nation Talk
June 25, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

REVELSTOKE, B.C. — Thousands of hectares of old growth north of Revelstoke will soon be destroyed by industrial logging, threatening almost all of BC’s remaining southernmost mountain caribou herds, according to Wildsight, Stand.earth and Wilderness Committee. The research, conducted using provincial data, reveals that 5,713 hectares of old growth are either approved or pending approval for logging across the ranges of the Columbia North, Groundhog and Wells Gray South herds. …Wildsight recently documented ancient western red cedars being actively felled in core habitat for the Columbia North caribou herd east of Mica Dam. ..The trio of environmental groups is urging the province to stop approved logging and withhold pending permits for new logging in the ranges of these three herds, and immediately protect critical southern mountain caribou habitat. …A handful of companies are having a disproportionate impact… including West Fraser, Interfor, and Canoe Forest Products.

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USDA Rescinds Roadless Rule, Opening Logging on Federal Lands

The National Association of Home Builders
June 25, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States

U.S. Secretary of Agriculture Brooke Rollins announced yesterday during a meeting at the Western Governors’ Association in New Mexico that the U.S. is rescinding the 2001 Roadless Rule, which prohibits road building on more than 58 million acres of federal forest lands. NAHB supports this action to repeal the Roadless Rule because it is overly restrictive, prohibits land to be properly managed at the state and local level, and needlessly blocks federal timber harvesting in a healthy and sustainable manner. With the nation importing more than 25% of the softwood lumber it needs to build new homes, opening up federal forest lands in an environmentally responsible manner is an important step forward to increase domestic timber production to meet the needs of American home owners and home buyers. [END]

Additional coverage from the US Department of Agriculture: WHAT THEY ARE SAYING: Strong Support for Secretary Rollins’ Rescission of Roadless Rule, Eliminating Impediment to Responsible Forest Management

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Plan to sell public land in Oregon, Washington and 9 other states hits roadblock in Senate

By Matthew Daly
The Associated Press in Oregon Live
June 24, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States

A plan to sell more than 2 million acres of federal land in Oregon, Washington and 9 other Western states has been ruled out of Republicans’ big tax and spending cut bill after the Senate parliamentarian determined the proposal by Senate Energy Chairman Mike Lee would violate the chamber’s rules. Lee, an Utah Republican, has proposed selling public lands to states or other entities for use as housing or infrastructure. The plan would revive a longtime ambition of Western conservatives to cede lands to local control after a similar proposal failed in the House earlier this year.The proposal received a mixed reception Monday from the governors of Western states. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, called it problematic in her state because of the close relationship residents have with public lands. …Lee said he would keep trying. …Environmental advocates celebrated the ruling late Monday, but cautioned that Lee’s proposal was far from dead.

Additional coverage from Associated Press, by Morgan Lee: Governors of Western states give mixed reactions to proposed federal land sell-off

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Final decision released for Bonanza Project in Castle Mountains

The USDA Forest Service
June 26, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, Montana — The Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest has released a final decision for the Bonanza Project, located in the Castle Mountains just east of White Sulphur Springs. Primary management activities planned include timber harvest and prescribed fire. “The project area is highly impacted by the mountain pine beetle and some areas have experienced 90% tree mortality,” said District Ranger Jason Oltrogge. “The timber generated from this project will provide wood products to local companies and prescribed fire will restore forests and reduce wildfire severity.” The Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest partnered with the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation to plan this project, and the joint effort made this project a reality. …The project includes commercial timber harvest on 1,980 acres and prescribed burning on 918 acres. Project implementation is anticipated to start later this summer.

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Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy

Trump administration shuts down U.S. website on climate change

By Ian James and Noah Haggerty
The Los Angeles Times
July 1, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: United States

The Trump administration on Monday shut down a federal website that had presented congressionally mandated reports and research on climate change, drawing rebukes from scientists who said it will hinder the nation’s efforts to prepare for worsening droughts, floods and heat waves. The U.S. Global Change Research Program’s website, globalchange.gov, was taken down along with all five versions of the National Climate Assessment report and extensive information on how global warming is affecting the country. “They’re public documents. It’s scientific censorship at its worst,” said Peter Gleick, a California water and climate scientist. …In May, Trump signed an executive order saying that his administration is committed to “restoring a gold standard for science to ensure that federally funded research is transparent, rigorous.” …The president cited an example relating to climate science, saying federal agencies previously used a “worst-case scenario” of warming “based on highly unlikely assumptions.”

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How carbon capture works and the debate about whether it’s a future climate solution

By Tammy Webber
The Associated Press in ABC News
June 26, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: United States

Power plants and industrial facilities that emit carbon dioxide are hopeful that Congress will keep tax credits for capturing the gas and storing it deep underground. The process, called carbon capture and sequestration, is seen by many as an important way to reduce pollution during a transition to renewable energy. But it faces criticism from some conservatives, who say it is expensive and unnecessary, and from environmentalists, who say it has consistently failed to capture as much pollution. …The most commonly used technology allows facilities to capture and store around 60% of their CO2 emissions during the production process. Anything above that rate is much more difficult and expensive, according to the IEA. …Even so, carbon capture is an important tool to reduce CO2 emissions, particularly in heavy industries, said Sangeet Nepal at the Carbon Capture Coalition. “It’s not a substitution for renewables … it’s just a complementary technology”.

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Rise in legal challenges over carbon credit schemes

By Isabella Kaminski
The Guardian UK
June 25, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: International

Judges across the world are proving sceptical of companies’ attempts to offset their greenhouse gas emissions by buying carbon credits, a report has found. In an analysis of nearly 3,000 climate-related lawsuits filed around the world since 2015, the latest annual review of climate litigation by the London School of Economics found action against corporations in particular was “evolving”, with growing scrutiny of how companies plan to meet their stated climate commitments. Dozens of legal challenges over the past decade have raised arguments related to carbon credits, and many have been successful. Last month, Energy Australia acknowledged that carbon offsets did not prevent or undo damage caused by greenhouse gas emissions. …Cases such as these “focus on the integrity of carbon credits and the claims that can be made regarding the carbon emissions of a product or service when credits are purchased to ‘offset’ emissions from that product or service”, the LSE report found.

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UK to Scrap Green Levies for Heavy Industry in Push for Growth

By Philip Aldrick
Bloomberg News in the Financial Post
June 22, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: International

Keir Starmer

LONDON — Energy costs will be cut for as many as 7,000 UK businesses as the government scraps green levies to level the playing field with foreign rivals and boost growth under its new ten-year Industrial Strategy. Big users of electricity will be exempted from several climate schemes from 2027 to reduce their bills by as much as 25% and protect 300,000 skilled jobs, the government said. Separately, heavy industries like steel, chemicals and glass will have their network charges, paid to maintain the grid, discounted by 90% from next year – up from 60% currently. …Prime Minister Keir Starmer said the strategy “marks a turning point for Britain’s economy.” …Labour insisted the exemptions would complement its “long-term mission for clean power” and… will be “funded through reforms to the energy system,” specifically higher UK carbon pricing. As part of the recent trade deal with the European Union, the government agreed to rejoin the EU carbon market.

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Health & Safety

Brink Forest Products fined over $129,000 for worker injury

By Jim Wilson
The Safety Magazine
June 27, 2025
Category: Health & Safety
Region: Canada, Canada West

PRINCE GEORGE, BC — Brink Forest Products, a British Columbia-based employer, has been fined $129,665.50 after a worker sustained serious injuries on the job. The incident occurred at the company’s wood products manufacturing facility in Prince George, according to WorkSafeBC. A worker was seriously injured while clearing a jam of wooden blocks in the waste conveyor system of a trimmer machine. Following the incident, WorkSafeBC conducted a workplace inspection. The agency found that Brink Forest Products “failed to ensure that energy sources were isolated and effectively controlled if the unexpected energization of machinery or release of an energy source could cause injury—a repeated violation.” “The firm also failed to provide its workers with the information, instruction, training, and supervision necessary to ensure their health and safety,” WorkSafeBC added. Both findings were classified as high-risk violations.

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