The Canadian and American economies are woven together tightly. So when Donald Trump slapped 25% tariffs on Canadian imports last year, many economists—myself included saw a disaster looming. …The most exposed sectors were those most dependent on US demand: steel, aluminum, autos, energy and lumber. …In our worst-case scenario, we expected it would shrink Canada’s GDP by 2.6 per cent, leading to a moderate recession and shaving nearly $2,000 a year off income for every Canadian. So far, however, that doomsday scenario hasn’t materialized. This was possible because of the Canada-US-Mexico trade agreement. …Avoiding the worst of the tariffs doesn’t mean we’ve won or even survived the trade war. Communities across the country are still hurting. …Regions in Quebec and British Columbia are under strain, with key industrial sectors—steel, aluminum, copper, lumber—are facing additional tariffs under Section 232 authority.
MONTREAL, Quebec – Domtar announced a curtailment in its lumber production. Due to challenging market conditions, US tariffs, and ongoing economic uncertainty, the company will temporarily reduce its lumber production by 150 million board feet for the first quarter of 2026 across its facilities in Quebec, Ontario and the United States. “The demand for lumber in North America remains weak, requiring us to adjust our production levels in line with market conditions,” said Luc Thériault, CEO, Wood Products, and President – Canada, for Domtar. “While this decision is necessary, we are fully aware of the impact it will have on our employees, contractors, suppliers and the communities in which we operate.” Domtar will continue to monitor market conditions and adjust its production plans accordingly. Domtar has a workforce of nearly 14,000 employees in more than 60 locations across North America.
Environmental group Greenpeace is calling for more transparency on the part of Canada’s largest pulp and paper company, saying it has received millions of dollars in government funding without providing the public with details of how that money is being used or sharing its plans for the future of Canada’s forests. In a report entitled 
Two recent decisions from the courts of British Columbia and New Brunswick have addressed the relationship between Aboriginal title and private property rights. In Cowichan Tribes v. Canada, the Supreme Court of BC granted a declaration of Aboriginal title, which included lands held in fee simple by third parties. In contrast, in JD Irving Limited et al. v. Wolastoqey Nation, the New Brunswick Court of Appeal held that such a declaration could not extend to privately-owned lands. While these remedial declarations are discretionary, the apparent conflict in judicial approaches raises questions about the future approach to Aboriginal title claims in respect of private property. What you need to know:
VANCOUVER, BC — West Fraser Timber announced that it will record an impairment of its Lumber segment goodwill in the fourth quarter of 2025 due to persistently challenging economic conditions. The Company is also providing initial 2026 guidance for key product shipments, operational costs and capital expenditures. In Q4-2025, West Fraser expects to record an approximately $409 million non-cash impairment of goodwill as a result of the protracted downcycle that has caused management to recalibrate certain assumptions used in its annual goodwill impairment test. Adjustments to these assumptions include, but are not limited to, species-specific product pricing trends, lower demand and pricing for wood chip residuals, and the depth and duration of the current downcycle and its expected recovery. The impairment represents the entire amount of goodwill associated with the Company’s US lumber operations.
A new global risk assessment is warning that no country would be more “profoundly affected” by a political upheaval in the US than Canada. Published Monday, the Eurasia Group’s “
Day 1 of the TLA Conference featured the Politics over Lunch session, a wide-ranging and candid discussion of BC’s political landscape and its implications for the forest sector. Moderated by Vaughn Palmer, the luncheon brought together Rob Shaw, Political Correspondent with CHEK News, and Richard Zussman, Vice President of Public Affairs at Burson. The pair examined shifting government priorities, with Zussman arguing that economic growth and jobs are increasingly shaping policy decisions amid trade uncertainty and fiscal pressures, while Shaw highlighted inconsistent communication around those priorities. They explored the BC Conservative leadership race, the challenges of translating regional resource issues into urban political discourse, and ongoing uncertainty surrounding land use and DRIPA. Discussion also touched on the province’s projected $11-billion deficit, and the gap between government rhetoric and forestry realities. Delivered with humour and frankness, the session offered delegates a clear-eyed view of how politics, policy, and economic pressures are colliding in BC’s forest sector.
With Canadian lumber producers facing crippling American duties and tariffs, Canadian sawmills that want to stay in business may have to develop markets outside the U.S. Since North America is the only major lumber market that still uses imperial measurements for lumber, this would require retooling logging and sawmill operations to metric. Some B.C. mills are already partway there. With Japan and China becoming saturated, Canadian lumber exporters will need to develop–or redevelop–markets beyond the Indo-Pacific. “We did this before,” said Rick Doman, chairman of Forest Innovation Investment (FII). In the 1990s and early 2000s, Canadian sawmills produced lumber for those markets, he said, but eventually lost them. “The North American market got so strong that we left those markets, and really the Nordic countries took over those markets,” Doman said. But the U.S. has since erected trade barriers in the form of duties and tariffs.
Nathanson, Schachter & Thompson LLP is again ranked as a Tier 1 firm in Dispute Resolution in British Columbia by The Legal 500. We are included as one of four firms in British Columbia ranked as Tier 1. We are also the only firm in Tier 1 that received a Client Satisfaction accolade. Partners Irwin Nathanson, K.C. and Stephen Schachter, K.C. are included in the Hall of Fame category once again. They are the only two partners from the same firm included in this category. Partner Karen Carteri continues to be recognized as a Leading Partner, particularly for her work in complex shareholder and partnership disputes. Clients describe NST as a firm that “whole-heartedly embraces and delivers a hands-on and effective approach” while offering particular praise for partners Karen Carteri, Emily Hansen, Julia Lockhart and Kayla Strong. 
The union representing 350 Crofton mill workers facing layoffs next month wants federal money earmarked for softwood lumber workers to pay for early retirement for some of its members. Geoff Dawe, president of the Public and Private Workers of Canada, said he’s not sure why it’s taken so long for the provincial government to negotiate its share of a $50-million federal fund aimed at supporting softwood lumber workers. The fund is for income support and costs of re-training an estimated 6,000 forestry workers across the country. …Dawe wants some of that $50 million to go toward an early-retirement fund for members who will be out of work when forestry company Domtar starts laying off its Crofton workers on Feb. 3. …Dawe said the provincial and federal governments should bring back a lump-sum payment program for older mill workers that will “leave them some dignity.”
For a town still feeling the loss of its paper mill more than a decade ago, the promise of new industry is tantalizing; 50 or more new jobs, a much-needed boost to the local economy, perhaps a stepping stone to attract new business or help those already here expand. …the plan to build a new $210-million biofuel plant in Fort Frances is coming close to fruition and it could be a game-changer for the region – if it breaks ground this fall as anticipated. After an exhaustive search, the team has settled on the former Resolute mill site for its pilot project, a refinery that can turn the byproducts of logging … into synthetic gas, diesel and aviation fuel. The town is close to an abundant feedstock source, in the heart of a small labour market, owns its own affordable power production and is not far from colleges primed to provide essential training.
WASHINGTON — U.S. President Donald Trump said Tuesday the Canada-United States-Mexico Agreement on trade is “irrelevant” to him and Americans don’t need Canadian products. “It expires very shortly and we could have it or not,” Trump said while touring a Ford plant in Michigan. “It wouldn’t matter to me. I think they want it. I don’t really care about it.” Trump statements have rattled Canada and Mexico ahead of a mandatory review this year of the future of the continental trade pact, known as CUSMA. The president told reporters that “Canada wants it” but the United States doesn’t need anything from its northern neighbour. The three countries have started domestic consultations on the review and Dominic LeBlanc, the minister in charge of Canada-U.S. relations, is set to meet with U.S. counterparts in mid-January to launch formal CUSMA talks. The trade pact has shielded Canada and Mexico from the worst impacts of Trump’s tariffs.
The U.S. Endowment for Forestry and Communities has announced a new collaboration with the Georgia Institute of Technology to address the far-reaching social, economic and environmental impacts of pulp and paper mill closures across the United States, particularly in the rural South, where these mills have long served as economic anchors. The Endowment and Georgia Tech are developing an integrated decision-making dashboard to help policymakers, community leaders and industry stakeholders quantify the effects of mill closures and identify data-driven pathways to offset them through the sustainable use of forestry residues… Over the past decade, nearly 50 paper mills have shut down nationwide … resulting in the loss of thousands of jobs and disrupted local supply chains that once connected family forest owners, loggers, sawmills and manufacturers… As markets for timber and forestry byproducts contract, landowners face reduced incentives for active management – conditions that can increase the risk of wildfire, invasive species and forest conversion to other uses.
One of Maine’s largest mills is again accepting Canadian wood from New Brunswick, after briefly halting shipments citing the cost of American tariffs. Woodland Pulp in Baileyville, Maine – situated on the banks of the St. Croix River a short drive across the border from St. Stephen – stopped purchases of New Brunswick timber in mid-October in the aftermath of higher US tariffs. Shortly after, it shut down completely for 26 days, citing a challenging global pulp market. That led to the temporary lay off of 144 employees. But now back in operation, Woodland Pulp says its full complement of staff is returning and that the decision was made to restart accepting Canadian fibre, including wood chips. …Spokesperson Scott Beal said it remains unclear how much the mill will purchase from New Brunswick sources going forward.. …Tariffs are paid by the importer. [to access the full story a Telegraph-Journal subscription is required]
