Trump has the world on edge as he mulls a 20% tariff approach without exemptions. In related tariff news: US lumber dealers appeal to Trump; the US Senate faces a vote; the US Chamber comments on the Section 232 investigation; and Michigan foresters says tariffs are a two-edged sword. In other Business news: Sumitomo Forestry acquires Teal Jone’s Louisiana sawmill; Metsä appoints a new CEO; and the strike at Finland’s UPM Plywood continues.
In other news: BC looks to new opportunities; as policy is blamed for the squeeze; and COFI focuses on the future of forestry. Elsewhere: Nova Scotia’s hemlocks are under threat; Oregon’s timber industry is on the rebound; Colorado rehabs its wildfire ravaged forests; New York sets an ambitious planting goal; and Missiola backs the acquisition of timberlands.
Finally, stay alert as it’s April Fools’ Day! But where did it come from?
Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog News Editor
Vancouver, BC — This week, the BC Council of Forest Industries (COFI) will welcome more than 600 industry, government, and Indigenous leaders to Prince George for a sold-out COFI 2025 Convention, running April 2-4. As one of the largest annual gatherings of the forest sector in Western Canada, the convention focuses on urgent challenges facing the industry—and the path forward. Attendees are set to explore how the sector can respond to rising US tariffs, global trade uncertainty and regulatory complexity. Discussions will center on strategies to improve industry competitiveness, strengthen partnerships with First Nations and sustain local jobs, while positioning BC as a global leader in sustainable forestry. … A highlight of the convention will be the release of a new study comparing international forest jurisdictions by Glen O’Kelly, CEO of O’Kelly Acumen, benchmarking BC’s performance against leading forestry regions—including Sweden, Finland, Austria, the US, and Brazil. 
In the past, intact forests absorbed 7.8 billion tonnes of CO₂ annually – about a fifth of all human emissions – but their carbon storage is increasingly at risk from climate change and human activities such as deforestation. A new study from the Potsdam Institute for Climate Impact Research (PIK) shows that failing to account for the potentially decreasing ability of forests to absorb CO₂ could make reaching the Paris agreement targets significantly harder, if not impossible, and much more costly. “Right now, our climate strategies bet on forests not only remaining intact, but even expanding,” explains Michael Windisch, the study’s lead author and PIK guest scientist. “However, with escalating wildfires like in California, and continued deforestation in the Amazon, that’s a gamble. Climate change itself puts forests’ immense carbon stores at risk.” … “We must act immediately to safeguard the carbon stored in forests,” Windisch emphasises.