The future of New Brunswick’s Nackawic pulp mill is in doubt, as the province says AV Group may be “tapping out”. In related news: Fibre Excellence’s Saint-Gaudens pulp mill gets an extension; the US and North Carolina sue Domtar over contamination; Weyerhaeuser is investing $1 million in Drayton Valley, Alberta; and a New Zealand processor is caught up in a US investigation into Canadian lumber. Meanwhile: Oregon honours a fallen wildland firefighter; Huber Engineered Woods names Joe Burgess president; and a proposed 25-storey hybrid mass timber tower in Florida.
In Forestry news: Saskatchewan and Newfoundland celebrate National Forest Week; BC urges fall flood preparedness; a UVic report on how to tackle persistent drought; and a UBC professorship reimagines BC’s forestry future. Meanwhile: the US Endowment awards $0.5M for forest technology; a Georgia pilot facility will turn woody biomass into value-added products; Oregon proposes to fast-track fire-burned timber; and US perspectives on responsible forest management, modern logging and the Roadless Rule.
Finally, the Wood Pellet Association of Canada kicks-off its annual conference in Victoria.
Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog News Editor
The 
PRINCE GEORGE — A long-standing Prince George transportation company is preparing for a major downsizing after losing a key forestry hauling contract in the wake of Canfor’s Northwood Pulp Mill closure. Excel Transportation announced it will no longer serve as a hauling contractor for Canfor, a decision the company says stems from the ongoing downturn in northern B.C.’s forestry sector rather than any concerns about performance or safety. “This is one of the most difficult announcements we’ve had to make in our company’s history,” said CEO Annie Horning in a statement. The closure of the Northwood mill earlier this year eliminated roughly 300 Canfor jobs and significantly reduced the amount of wood being moved throughout the region. With less timber available to haul, Canfor reduced the number of hauling contracts it requires and ultimately chose not to retain Excel.
U.S. District Court Judge Vince Chhabria is ordering a temporary pause of the Agriculture Department’s imminent plans to relocate employees across the country. Chhabria 
From capacity shifts and trade flow developments to network disruptions and sustainability innovations, the container shipping landscape continues to evolve at pace. Join Patrick Hore, Global Head of Energy, Chemicals & Raw Materials at Maersk, as he delivers an essential market update on the forces currently shaping global supply chains. In his session, “Latest from the Container Shipping Market: What Do You Need to Know for Your Supply Chains?“, Patrick will explore: Volume trends across key global trade routes; Fleet capacity outlook and what it means for shippers; Current network disruptions and future scenarios; and Technical and sustainability developments transforming container shipping. Whether you’re responsible for sourcing, logistics, operations or strategy, this session will provide valuable insights to help you navigate an increasingly complex shipping environment. Join Patrick Hore and an outstanding line-up of industry experts at the CELCO Conference. 
Annie Dillard, author of the Pulitzer prize-winning book Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, died aged 81 at her home in South Wellfleet, Massachusetts, on Tuesday. Maggie Nelson, Dillard’s literary editor, confirmed her death to the New York Times. Pilgrim at Tinker Creek, a nonfiction narrative Dillard wrote about the natural world surrounding her mountainous Virginia home, was published in 1974 when the young writer was just 28. The book was an instant critical and financial success, skyrocketing Dillard to becoming one of the most prominent nonfiction writers of her generation. Tinker Creek won the 1975 Pulitzer prize for general nonfiction, and in 1998 it was included in Modern Library’s list of 100 best nonfiction books. …Her work was often compared to Henry David Thoreau, the naturalist about whom she wrote her master’s thesis. [Tree Frog Editor Sandy McKellar adds – Dr. Bart van der Kamp assigned this book as required reading for his UBC Forestry 100 class!]
The Wood Design Manual 2025 is now available in an early release digital format. The latest edition of this essential Canadian reference for designing timber structures is now available for engineers, students and self-learners. The Wood Design Manual 2025 has been reorganized into three volumes to make it easier to find and use the information you need:
Wildfire risk reduction and fibre procurement research trials are ongoing within the Forest Operations Resilience Vertical. The team worked alongside Carrier Lumber Ltd. in Prince George, BC, on a commercial thinning trial assuming different fibre market availabilities, including a baseline sawlog and pulp scenario, a sawlog only scenario, a sawlog, pulp, and biomass scenario, and a sawlog and biolog scenario, where pulp was hauled as biomass to be chipped. A second trial is underway with Vanderwell Contractors in Calling Lake, Alberta, where the scenarios will trial different topping diameters for sawlogs and rat tail recovery, as well as mulching residual material on trails to influence fire behaviour. These trials assist FPInnovations in assessing which alterations to standard commercial thinning practices can influence wildfire behaviour and procure fibre, with cost and productivity data collected alongside wildfire fuel loading metrics. 
Drought and water-scarcity challenges persist in B.C., with some areas expected to remain affected through the winter and potentially into 2027. While some recent rainfall has provided local relief, the snowpack is forecast to be low in the coming months, so water conservation must continue through winter. People, businesses, farms, water suppliers, First Nations and local governments are being urged to continue conserving water and planning ahead. Communities, particularly those in and below areas affected by wildfire, should also prepare for flooding, debris flows, landslides and erosion during intense fall, winter storms. …While late-summer rainfall has helped calm conditions, the wildfire season is not over and large areas of the province remain at risk for wildfire activity, including the potential for increased activity in October.
Filmmaker Murray Wilson responds to criticism of the documentary’s case for active forest management:
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As the provincial government advances plans to carve British Columbia’s lands into zones where logging and other industrial activities are permitted or barred, a former longtime public servant says he is struggling to not be cynical about what could lie ahead. In August, The Tyee broke the news that the provincial ministries of Forests and Water, Land and Resource Stewardship were proposing to divide B.C.’s vast and spectacularly diverse lands into “working forest,” “multiple-use” and “conservation and protection” zones. The details were included in a leaked internal government email. The zoning exercise is happening as Premier David Eby tells Forests Minister Ravi Parmar to find more trees for companies to log in order to meet a logging target of 45 million cubic metres per year. Forest ecologist Andy MacKinnon, who worked in the Forests Ministry for 30 years, said he worries that the “Path to 45” initiative will drive the zoning plan. 
Mosaic Forest Management is asking recreation users how they find gate and access information for its lands, returning to the public on an issue that surfaced as one of the clearest concerns in last year’s feedback. The survey asks people who camp, cut firewood or spend time on Mosaic’s lands how they plan trips, which apps and maps they already use, and what tools would help most. It is open until September 29, 2026. Mosaic’s lands are private managed forests, working forests where harvesting, road maintenance and hauling continue year-round. Public recreation is offered voluntarily alongside those operations, which means access can change with active work, road conditions and seasonal wildfire risk. Communicating those changes clearly is the challenge the new tools are meant to address. …Recreation users can complete the survey at 
The Province, in partnership with Na̲nwak̲olas Council, has identified the first candidate area to explore a proposed three-zone forest management model in B.C. The B.C. government is working closely with First Nations, along with industry, local governments and interested parties to identify other candidate areas. Candidate areas will be used to explore a three-zone model for public forests that supports a more co-ordinated approach to land use, stewardship and economic priorities that integrate with ongoing planning processes. The intended outcome is to demonstrate how this model can improve predictability for industry, workers, First Nations, local communities and conservation interests
HURKETT — The Ontario government is investing over $1.1 million in five projects that will increase Indigenous participation in forestry and build a stronger, more resilient forest sector. As part its plan to protect Ontario, the government is fighting back against unjustified U.S. tariffs and economic attacks by making strategic investments through the Forest Biomass Program that will support economic development and clean energy projects to help the forestry sector increase productivity and capacity, with the long-term potential to create over 200 good-paying jobs in the sector. …Since launching the Forest Biomass Program in 2023, Ontario has invested close to $5 million in 22 projects under the Indigenous Bioeconomy Partnerships funding stream. The government’s latest investments will build a more resilient forest sector by developing projects with the potential to add annual demand for over 100,000 tonnes of mill by-products and underused wood, known as forest biomass.
The U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities (the Endowment) today announced $500,000 in awards to CTrees and Spatial Informatics Group (SIG) through its Technology Solutions to Improve Forest Health and Forest Management initiative. CTrees will receive $300,000 to develop Forest Asset Intelligence: The Wood Triangle, while Spatial Informatics Group will receive $200,000 to develop and deploy the Planscape Bioeconomy Module. The initiative supports practical technology solutions that can improve forest health outcomes, strengthen wood markets, support forest management decision-making and increase operational effectiveness. Projects were also evaluated for their potential to be applied more broadly across regions, ownership types and markets.
A recent 
BILLINGS, Mont. — Killing endangered animals while logging a forest or building a dam would not be considered illegal unless the animals were specifically targeted, under a new interpretation of the Endangered Species Act by President Donald Trump’s administration that marks a sea change in how the landmark environmental law is enforced. A directive sent to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees this week says imperiled animals or plants must be intentionally targeted for their killing to be considered illegal. That’s a sharp turnaround from past practice at the wildlife service… Experts said the change would allow timber companies to log forests in the Pacific Northwest even if they knew that doing so could kill imperiled birds nesting in the trees…. …Under the new law, only people acting directly against animals, such as hunters, trappers, anglers and perhaps pesticide users would need permits, said Sandi Snodgrass, an attorney with Holland and Hart in Denver…
The agency gave the public one week to weigh in on plans to log 5,000 acres of the Akawa Butte Fire burn area. The Trump administration is seeking to fast-track logging in forests recently burned by wildfires in a policy shift that’s starting with Central Oregon. The U.S. Forest Service aims to log about 5,000 acres in the Deschutes National Forest where the Akawa Butte Fire burned this summer. The agency gave tribes, counties and the public just one week to weigh in, with a deadline of just before midnight Monday. Similar projects typically include a 30-day public comment period. The proposal to log the Akawa Butte Fire burn area relies on a new policy that allows the Forest Service to fast-track logging recently burned forests. Forest Service officials say they need to act quickly to remove dead and dying trees that could become fire fuel later on. …Environmental groups say the Forest Service is rushing a sensitive process.
There is a giant misconception regarding the way we manage our forests here in Northern California. …Recently, there has been a lot of talk of two harvest plans in the Charlie Creek area of Branscomb. I’m very familiar with this area and the work being done around it. An organization has sued Calfire over approved harvest plans that surround Charlie Creek. So I simply want to lay out what is being said by the organization’s website, in local news outlets, and what is actually occurring. First off, every timber harvest plan in the state of California goes through an extremely rigorous process before work begins. …The “experts “ from the other side who claim the whole mountain is gonna fall into the creek, have never set foot or eye on plan area. …The two Branscomb harvest plans currently in the courts are fully compliant following the strictest regulations …Here is the truth about the two plans in lawsuit.
Oregon — U.S. Sen. Jeff Merkley and Rep. Andrea Salinas have introduced legislation that would transfer 18,626 acres of federal forestland to the Confederated Tribes of Grand Ronde, a federally recognized tribe in western Oregon, amid concerns from conservation groups about the extent of logging and potential impacts to wildlife habitat. The legislation is part of a larger push by tribes across the U.S. to regain ancestral lands. Such land transfers have been rare in Oregon, where tribes retain only a small fraction of their historic territories. The bill is backed by all seven Democrats in Oregon’s congressional delegation who said it addresses historic dispossession and will allow the tribe to sustainably manage the land and boost economic opportunity in the region. Other supporters are U.S. Senator Ron Wyden and representatives Suzanne Bonamici, Val Hoyle, Maxine Dexter and Janelle Bynum. [A subscription to the Oregonian is required for full access]
Scientists have identified a previously unknown frog species living in the seasonally flooded forests of the western Amazon. Named Adenomera varcena, the species adds to growing evidence that Amazonian biodiversity is even richer than it appears. The discovery also highlights the importance of cryptic diversity, in which animals that look nearly identical can actually belong to separate species. Researchers distinguished the new frog by combining several lines of evidence, including its DNA and distinctive call. The discovery grew out of field expeditions in the Upper Juruá River region of western Acre. Scientists surveyed forest fragments near the Moa and Crôa rivers, close to Cruzeiro do Sul. Confirming that the frog represented a new species required far more than simply examining its appearance. The team compared DNA data, recordings of its calls, body shape (morphology), habitat information, and specimens preserved in scientific collections.
NB Power is pushing ahead with the conversion of its Belledune Generating Station from coal to biomass. A Thursday announcement is expected to reveal the proponents that will supply the repurposed power plant – one of New Brunswick’s largest – with 300,000 tonnes of wood pellets annually. Among them is expected to be a partnership proposing to build a torrefied wood pellet production facility at the Port of Belledune. “Once it’s officially confirmed, we are going to have a plant right at the port,” said Pabineau First Nation Chief Terry Richardson in an interview. “What’s great about this project is it’s Canadian technology, Canadian companies, and First Nations all partnering together.” Brunswick News reported in May on a partnership between Pabineau First Nation, Eel River Bar First Nation, Arbec Forest Products, and Airex Energy, a Quebec company proposing to build a torrefied wood pellet production facility at the Port of Belledune. [A Telegraph-Journal subscription is required for full access]
Our government could do something about climate change, but it refuses. In fact, most elected leaders and political candidates don’t even talk about it. As the fossil-fuel industry increasingly allied itself with Republicans to block climate action over the decades, Democrats became the party more willing to address it. But now, even many Democrats have gone quiet. As the November midterms approach, think tanks and consultants are advising them to avoid the topic global warming because “it is not a priority for voters.” The silence is called “climate hushing,” the strategic choice to avoid talking about global warming to avoid political backlash, polarization or economic anxiety. In other words, our elected leaders should avoid mentioning the huge elephant in the room, even as it gets more dangerous. Hardly an evening newscast goes by today without reports of major weather disasters and millions of Americans under threat of fire, flood, killer heat or other calamity. 
Do forests cool the planet or warm it? It’s a deceptively simple question with no clear answer. The catch is that the same forest can push climate in opposite directions at once. Forests are widely viewed as climate change mitigators—and planting trees as a partial climate solution—because they absorb carbon dioxide. Yet that framing is incomplete. Trees also release reactive gases called biogenic volatile organic compounds (BVOCs) that can influence cloud formation, contribute to air pollution, and extend the atmospheric lifetime of methane, a greenhouse gas that can trap about 80 times as much heat as carbon dioxide. …Whether forests cool or warm the planet depends on how BVOCs behave once they leave the foliage. From there, the normal steps of plant metabolism synthesize and release BVOCs. …The Model of Emissions of Gases and Aerosols from Nature estimates BVOC emissions by combining information about terrestrial vegetation with data on environmental conditions that influence emissions. 
