The US Department of Commerce released the final determinations of its softwood lumber review. In related news: Canada will challenge US rates via dispute panel; and BC MP calls on Ottawa to protect forestry jobs. Meanwhile: Canadian industry fears economic fallout of rail strike, as railroads begin network shutdown; Burlington’s wood-fired generator is losing money; Canadian GDP growth is up, US inflation falls; US home builder confidence moves lower; and Europe’s wood pellet market declined.
In Wildfire news: the World Resources Institute says forest fires are getting worse; wildfires impact mercury levels in Idaho streams; BC’s wildfires are smaller this year; and 37% of Athens forest area has burnt since 2017. In Safety news: Idaho firefighter Justin Shaw remains in critical condition; and WorkSafeBC says safety failures contributed to Devyn Gales death in 2023.
Finally, how the Canadian Forest Service got its humble beginning 125 years ago.
Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog Editor
The US Department of Commerce released its final determinations for the fifth Administrative Review (AR5) in the antidumping duty and countervailing duty investigations of imports of certain softwood lumber products from Canada. The final determination rates are listed in the table below. These rates will take effect once they are published in the U.S. Federal Register, expected within approximately one week.
MONTREAL — The country’s two main railways have started to halt shipments ahead of a potential strike or lockout next week, the first step toward a possible shutdown as the bargaining deadline approaches. Canadian National said that the company began to embargo hazardous goods from the U.S. on Monday in anticipation of a work stoppage. The category includes chlorine to disinfect drinking water and ammonia for fertilizer, as well as other toxic or poisonous substances and explosive materials. On Friday, CPKC said it would temporarily ban traffic of dangerous materials. Effective Monday, the company had embargoed all freight classified as toxic or poisonous “inhalation hazards” on its North America-wide network according to a customer advisory. …The two railways warned last week they will lock out 9,300 engineers, conductors and yard workers on Aug. 22 unless they find common ground on new contracts after negotiations stalled over scheduling and wages.
The key data published this past week was national industry output or GDP, which came in above expectations at growth of 0.2 per cent month to month. This points to a better-than-expected annualized growth rate of two per cent for the second quarter of this year. …BC has consistently outperformed the national average both during and before the pandemic period. …Resources remain a critical component of B.C.’s economy and its goods exports. On the forestry front, real Canadian output pointed to a flat performance in May. Forestry and logging output rose by 0.6% and wood manufacturing gained 1.7% from the previous month. Year over year, forestry and logging were down 5.3%, while wood product manufacturing increased by 10% over the last 12 months. Nationally, wood product manufacturing was range-bound through the pandemic despite a recent uptick, while forestry and logging continues to trend lower. Year to date, the former rose by 3.2%, with forestry and logging were down 6.9%.
VANCOUVER, BC — Conifex Timber reported results for the second quarter ended June 30, 2024. EBITDA was negative $7.1 million for the quarter compared to EBITDA of negative $0.5 million in the first quarter of 2024 and negative $8.7 million in the second quarter of 2024. Net loss was $9.7 million for the quarter versus net loss of $4.5 million in the previous quarter and negative $9.2 million for the year-earlier quarter. Shipments of Conifex-produced lumber totaled 38.5 million board feet in the second quarter of 2024, representing a decrease of 13% from the 44.5 million board feet shipped in the previous quarter. …Electricity production contributed revenues of $4.5 million in the second quarter of 2024, $8.2 million in the previous quarter and $4.8 million in the second quarter of 2023.
Europe is the world’s largest wood pellet market, producing just slightly more than it consumes. According to Bioenergy Europe’s Statistical Report 2024, released in June, the EU alone produced 20.7 million metric tons in 2023 and consumed 21.9 million MT. That equates to producing 44% and consuming 50% of the world’s pellets. But while production and consumption has steadily climbed in the EU and United Kingdom without interruption for nearly the past decade, last year saw a deviation from that trend. Wood pellet consumption actually declined by a collective 2 million tons from 2022 to 2023, from 32.1 million MT to 30.1 million MT, the culmination of a number of market forces. …Bioenergy Europe highlights the challenges the European pellet industry has faced as being threefold: higher input prices, falling industrial demand and a record warm winter. 
A lumber industry-supported group is looking to fund U.S. cities’ efforts to encourage more mass timber use in construction. The
NEW ZEALAND — The wood vs concrete debate elicits lots of huffing and puffing, but the three little pigs didn’t have to worry about hitting carbon emission targets. Red Stag chief Marty Verry says the use of engineered wood has reached “significant” scale in New Zealand, as more developers and designers specify mass timber products across residential and commercial builds. …Mass timber might be grabbing market share from steel and concrete, largely on the back of its carbon zero credentials, but its competing products say it’s not playing by the same rules. …Timber framing is the most common home construction system in New Zealand, but there’s also been a surge in large-scale use of mass timber in the commercial space, with its proponents touting its inherent benefits, in the form of sustainability and speed. Steel fabricators, in particular, suggest the sector should still be using product declarations. [to access the full story a NBR subscription is required]
