Category Archives: Forestry

Forestry

Forest Products Association of Canada Responds to the Latest EUDR Proposal

Forest Products Association of Canada
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada

Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) President and CEO Derek Nighbor released the following statement following yesterday’s EU Commission proposal related to the implementation of the EU Deforestation-free Product Regulation (EUDR).  “This proposal does not address real concerns with an EU Information Technology (IT) system that is still not fit for purpose and does not address concerns raised by micro- and small businesses part of the integrated supply chain for larger organizations. “We would like to see practical simplification of the EUDR, that appropriately recognizes low-risk third countries such as Canada, as well as EU Member States.  We are committed to work quickly with global partners to find an improved proposal, that will both meet the intent of the Regulation, while also enabling strong and vibrant trading relationships, as committed to in the June 2025 strategic partnership between the European Union and Canada.

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LP Building Solutions Invests in the Future of Forestry Workforce with ForestryWorks and First Nations Forestry Council Partnerships

By LP Building Solutions
Business Wire
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, United States

NASHVILLE, Tenn.– LP Building Solutions (LP) announced the continuation of its partnership with the [US based] Forest Workforce Training Institute’s ForestryWorks® program and a new collaboration with the [British Columbia, Canada] First Nations Forestry Council. Both initiatives aim to develop the next generation of forestry professionals and advance sustainable forest management across North America. …“Programs like ForestryWorks and First Nations Forestry Council help ensure forests remain healthy and productive while supporting the future of sustainable forestry,” said LP Chair and CEO Brad Southern. “By investing in tomorrow’s workforce, we’re also investing in the continued success of renewable, high-performance building solutions.” …“We’re pleased to welcome LP Building Solutions as a program partner in advancing Indigenous participation in forestry through the Indigenous Forestry Scholarship Program,” said BC First Nations Forestry Council CEO Lennard (Suxʷsxʷwels) Joe. 

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Provincial Forest Advisory Council Releases Interim Status Report, Launches Phase 2 Engagement

Provincial Forest Advisory Council
October 24, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

Shannon Janzen

Garry Merkel

The Provincial Forest Advisory Council is dedicated to developing independent recommendations for a new, stable forest system that supports resilient communities, economies, and ecosystems across British Columbia. The council has completed its interim report which analyzed core challenges, recurring barriers, and persistent structural issues within BC’s forest sector. The interim report was provided to the Cooperation and Responsible Government Accord 2025 (CARGA) sponsors: CARGA Sponsors – Honourable Ravi Parmar, Minister of Forests & MLA Rob Botterell, BC Green Caucus. It is clear to the Council that BC’s land management systems, processes, policy, and legislation were not built for our current reality and are not designed to achieve all three components of our objective in unison. Instead, we appear stuck in a forestry model that:  

  • Favours quota-based wood extraction ahead of land management,
  • Drives indecision, red tape and favours a drawn-out, and sometimes confusing, process versus definitive and reliable outcomes, and
  • Is unresponsive to changing circumstances, fostering conflict as opposed to collaboration and innovation. 

So, how do we get unstuck?  

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Canada backs Indigenous-led growth in Prairie forest sectors

By Natural Resources Canada
Government of Canada
October 24, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

On October 24, 2025, the Honourable Rebecca Chartrand, Minister of Northern and Arctic Affairs, on behalf of the Honourable Tim Hodgson, Minister of Energy and Natural Resources, announced a total investment of $5.44 million for 28 projects in the provinces of Manitoba, Saskatchewan and Alberta that will accelerate Indigenous participation and leadership in the sector, create good jobs and promote the use of Canadian wood in green construction. The Indigenous Forestry Initiative (IFI) program seeks to advance reconciliation in the forest sector by supporting Indigenous-identified priorities to accelerate Indigenous awareness, influence, inclusion and leadership. The IFI provides financial support to Indigenous-led activities in the forest sector, such as gathering, developing, using and protecting Indigenous knowledge, science and leadership in forest stewardship. It also funds projects focused on the identification, consideration and pursuit of economic development opportunities in the sector. The investment announced today includes $3.5 million in funding for 26 projects under the IFI.

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Dan Macmaster is honoured with an alumni UBC Builder Award

Branchlines UBC Faculty of Forestry
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

Dan Macmaster

An exceptional role model and volunteer with UBC Forestry, Dan Macmaster (MSFM’13, RPF) was selected as the recipient of a 2024-25 Alumni Builder Award in recognition of his extensive career accomplishments and mentorship of the next generation of foresters. Among his contributions, Dan has regularly volunteered with the Faculty’s Master of Sustainable Forest Management program, serving on the Advisory Committee, guest lecturing, presenting at field camps and organizing multi-day field activities for students. A Registered Professional Forester and the Forestry Manager with the Osoyoos Indian Band on their Nk’Mip First Nations Woodland licence, Dan plays an instrumental role in managing the Band’s six forestry licences, including log extraction, wildfire risk mitigation and habitat and biodiversity management. He is also closely involved in business partnership procurement for the Band with the forest sector, utilities and different levels of government, among others.

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NorthX strengthens Canada’s leadership in wildfire tech with 2025 Call for Innovation

By NorthX Climate Tech
Cision Newswire
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

VANCOUVER, BC – NorthX Climate Tech (NorthX), a BC-based innovation catalyst backing the builders of Canadian climate hard tech, today launched a funding opportunity for Canadian wildfire technologies. Through the 2025 Wildfire Tech Call for Innovation, NorthX will provide up to $3 million in non-dilutive investments to Canadian companies developing advanced technologies that prevent mega wildfires, enhance firefighting response, and support faster recovery. “With each passing year, wildfires are posing an ever-growing threat to communities across Canada,” said Sarah Goodman, President & CEO of NorthX. “In response, NorthX led the way with Canada’s first wildfire innovation call in 2024. This new round builds on that success, backing Canadian innovators developing the tools to fight fires, cut emissions, and protect lives.” …Founded in 2021 with an initial investment from the Government of Canada, the BC Government, and Shell Canada, NorthX Climate Tech (NorthX) is a catalyst for climate action…

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Hope FireSmart receives $5,000 from Cascades Lower Canyon Community Forest

By Kemone Moodley
Hope Standard
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

The District of Hope FireSmart team is one step closer towards getting a crew vehicle thanks to a $5,000 donation from Cascades Lower Canyon Community Forest. “This vehicle will help our crew travel with their tools and equipment as they carry out wildfire mitigation work across Hope — from supporting homeowners to protecting critical community infrastructure,” Hope FireSmart said via social media. The program, which has been part of Hope since May 2024, is continuously working to improve wildfire safety in the community. As part of this initiative, FireSmart crew have been providing hands-on assistance with wildfire mitigation or risk reduction to residents for free. The team also developed Hope’s Community Wildfire Resiliency Plan which outlines strategies and actions that the community and district can do to reduce wildfire risk and increase community preparedness. 

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After the flames: How fire-loving fungi help B.C.’s forests recover

By Lou Bosshart
University of British Columbia
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

As B.C. faces increasingly severe wildfire seasons, new research at UBC is revealing the hidden helpers at work underneath the ash. Assistant professor Dr. Monika Fischer studies pyrophilous fungi—fire-loving organisms that thrive in burned landscapes and may play a crucial role in helping forests recover. Now that fall rains have returned and mushrooms are emerging across the province, these post-fire specialists are appearing too, turning blackened soil into a riot of colour. These are specialized fungi that appear only after fire—unlike the typical cap-and-stem mushrooms we know. Many belong to a group called Ascomycota and produce tiny, cup-shaped fruiting bodies in vivid colours. Pyronema creates a neon orange crust, Geopyxis forms brown cups with white rims, and Peziza adds a splash of purple. They grow among mosses and liverworts, creating a surprising rainbow of life against the blackened ground. 

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Rural volunteers struggle to fight wildfires with broken tools and little training

By Marc Fawcett-Atkinson
National Observer
October 23, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

For years fighting wildfires in northern BC and Yukon, Chad Thomas saw the same problems again and again: First Nations and other communities with broken equipment and volunteers doing their best with minimal training. …Speaking at a Wednesday press conference on Parliament Hill, Thomas, along with other firefighters, wildfire survivors and climate advocates said the federal government must tackle these problems before wildfires flare up again next spring. …In the short term, Thomas said the current wildfire response model, which relies heavily on provincial and territorial wildfire services to respond to fires and protect communities, is inadequate. …Over the past 15 years, the number of new recruits joining volunteer firefighting crews has fallen, a consequence of inadequate equipment, training and education. …Beyond direct wildfire mitigation and response support, the group is pushing federal officials and MPs to refuse climate-wrecking projects under the government’s push for so-called “nation-building” projects.

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Woodlot Innovator Wins 2025 Minister’s Award

Woodlots BC
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

Patrick Russell, Russ Clinton & Gord Chipman

Russ Clinton of Quesnel, BC is the 2025 recipient of the Minister’s Award for Innovation and Excellence in Woodlot Management. Clinton was presented with a signed certificate signed by Ravi Parmar, Minister of Forests, and a $1,000 grant and carved tree statue at the 2025 Woodlots BC Conference on October 18 in Osoyoos. Clinton has spent his career cultivating a deep connection to the land through forestry. Fuelled by a passion for planting and growing trees, he has managed his woodlot with a blend of traditional stewardship and innovative practices. “As a forward-thinking forester, Russ is never afraid to get his hands dirty,” said Melissa Steidle, Woodlots BC Representative for North Region. “His passion for planting and growing trees shines through on the lands he manages. A strong and steady advocate for forestry and good forest management, he is a constant fixture at local meetings and panel discussions ready to initiate positive forestry conversations.”

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Forest Practices Board to audit forestry operations near Port McNeill

BC Forest Practices Board
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

CAMPBELL RIVER – The Forest Practices Board will conduct an audit of Aat’uu Forestry Limited Partnership’s Forest Licence A19236 in the Campbell River Natural Resource District of the North Island Timber Supply Area, starting Monday, Oct. 20, 2025. The audit will examine whether forestry activities carried out between Oct. 1, 2023, and Oct. 24, 2025, comply with the Forest and Range Practices Act and the Wildfire Act. …Forest Licence A19236 is held by Aat’uu Forestry Limited Partnership, a company owned by the Ehattesaht First Nation, and is managed by Strategic Natural Resource Group from its Campbell River office. The licence covers an operating area of about 60,000 hectares, of which Aat’uu currently manages an allowable annual cut of approximately 50,000 cubic metres. The audit area is on the west coast of Vancouver Island, about 70 kilometres south of Port McNeill, near the community of Zeballos, within Ehattesaht territory and neighbouring territories of the Nuchatlaht and Ka:’yu:’k’t’h’/Che:k:tles7et’h’ Nations.

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Parks Canada releases 2 reports that confirm cause, detail spread of 2024 Jasper wildfire

By Jack Farrell
Canadian Press in the CBC News
October 21, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

Two new reports on the July 2024 devastating wildfire in Jasper, Alta., confirm the blaze was caused by lightning and accelerated by “tornado-force fire-generated” winds and dry conditions. The fire — three separate blazes that merged into one — destroyed a third of the community’s structures. It forced 25,000 residents and displaced an estimated 2,000 people. The reports, commissioned by Parks Canada, say efforts to reduce fuel for wildfires, including prescribed burns, helped mitigate the blaze. But one of the reports, which looks at how the fire formed and developed, says more burns and other attempts to reduce fuel would have been beneficial, since the fire began in an area south of town that had not burned or been treated in over a century. …The reports come after the town published its own fire report earlier this year, leading to controversy with the province as it said Premier Danielle Smith’s government caused command challenges in the fire response.

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Wildfire seasons in the Northwest Territories unlikely to ease off by next century, study finds

By Sarah St-Pierre
CBC News
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

The Northwest Territories could see more difficult wildfire seasons ahead – all the way into the next century, according to recent research. One study published last month by researchers from the University of British Columbia and Natural Resources Canada predicts that while the rest of the country will see an increase in burn probability by 2100, the N.W.T.’s rate will remain about the same. Chris Mulverhill, one of the study’s co-authors, said the chance of a wildfire in Yellowknife is already as high as it can get. “We hopefully don’t want to give the impression that Yellowknife [and other northern communities] are going to be spared from intense fire seasons in the future,” he wrote in an email. …Mulverhill said the projections are based on current forest conditions, but climate change in northern areas is expected to cause large changes in the structure, composition, and condition of vegetation.

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Environmental groups urging B.C. to do more to protect biodiversity

By Madeline Dunnett, The Discourse
The Alberni Valley News
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

Organizations across B.C. are pushing the province to deliver on a promise to create legislation that will protect biodiversity. The promise stems from a five-year-old independent Old Growth Strategic Review Report, which was undertaken to inform policies around old growth forest management. The report made 14 different recommendations for the province to act on. In a recently-made public letter from March to the minister of water, land and resource stewardship, 88 different organizations urged the province to move forward on implementing a biodiversity and ecosystem health framework and associated laws that would see the protection of vital natural areas in B.C. …Jen Groundwater, a volunteer for Save Our Forests Comox Valley (one of the 88 letter writers), told the Discourse she’s been spending time digging through provincial government initiatives going back to the 1990s and has seen little progress on its promises. 

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Independent watchdog sets eyes on forestry operation near Port McNeill

By Brendan Jure
Campbell River Mirror
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

The Forest Practices Board, an independent watchdog, is set to conduct an audit on a forestry operation near Port McNeill. The Aat’uu Forestry Limited Partnership’s Forest Licence A19236 in the Campbell River Natural Resource District of the North Island Timber Supply Area is the subject of the audit, starting on Oct. 20. “The audit will examine whether forestry activities carried out between Oct. 1, 2023, and Oct. 24, 2025, comply with the Forest and Range Practices Act and the Wildfire Act,” reads a press release from the Forest Practices Board. “Activities subject to audit include timber harvesting; road and bridge construction, maintenance, and deactivation; silviculture; wildfire protection; and related operational planning.” The Aat’uu Forestery Limited Partnership is a company owned by the Ehattesaht First Nation. It is managed by Strategic Natural Resource Group from an office in Campbell River.

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MLA Tony Luck demands forest ministry clear cutting permit backlogs

By Adam Louis
Agassiz-Harrison Observer
October 21, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West

Tony Luck

Fraser-Nicola MLA Tony Luck is outraged at the B.C. government’s delay in cutting permits from the Ministry of Forests. The local MLA issued an open letter to Forests Minister Ravi Parmar specifically for failing to issue cutting permits that forced the closure of Aspen Planers’ sawmill in Merritt recently. “When a sawmill shuts down,” Luck stated on Oct. 20. “The heart of a community stops beating. And it’s happening on this government’s watch.” Luck said that 200 people in Merritt are out of work with the mill shutting down, as are 68 more people from Lillooet. The plant in Savona – an unincorporated community near Kamloops Lake – has reduced from three shifts to two, cutting hours and pay, which Luck attributes to the Ministry of Forests’ slow action on cutting permits. …Luck demanded immediate action from the Ministry of Forests, including fast-tracking cutting permits, publishing clear deadlines and being accountable for backlogs. 

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Addressing wildfire risk ‘top of mind’ for some Nova Scotia woodlots owners after devastating fires

By Josh Hoffman
CBC News
October 26, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada East

Nova Scotia — Reducing the risk of wildfires is a growing concern for some woodlot owners in Nova Scotia after devastating blazes across the province in recent years, according to an organization that represents them. The Western Woodlot Services Cooperative organized a wildfire prevention conference in Bridgewater, N.S., on Saturday, where dozens of owners showed up to hear about what role they can play in decreasing the potential of wildfires spreading through their properties. “Figuring out ways of how we can be more fire smart or how we can mitigate fire risk within our woodlots is really top of mind for a lot of our private woodlot owner members,” said Patricia Amero, general manager of the co-operative. 

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Nova Scotia still failing to consult on law blocking protests on Crown land: Mi’kmaq leaders

By Lyndsay Armstrong
The Canadian Press in Global News
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada East

Twila Gaudet

A Mi’kmaq leader in Nova Scotia says the provincial government continues to ignore First Nations’ concerns on a new law they say targets their community’s ability to protect its territory. The law was recently pushed through the legislature without advanced notice or consultation, said Twila Gaudet, the director of consultation for Kwilmu’kw Maw-klusuaqn, which works on behalf of the Assembly of Nova Scotia Mi’kmaw Chiefs. In a statement Tuesday, Gaudet said the law “appears to be targeting Mi’kmaw harvesters who are protesting the unsustainable forest management practices in the Cape Breton Highlands.” Among other things, the law makes it illegal for protesters to block forest access roads on Crown land, and offenders could be fined up to $50,000 and imprisoned for up to six months. It also allows government to “demolish or otherwise dispose of” structures on Crown land if they pose a threat to the province’s economic interests.

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Broad Coalition of Civil Society Organizations Presents Legislative Petition to Repeal Bill 5

By Ontario Nature
Cision Newswire
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada East

TORONTO — On the first day of the Legislative Assembly’s Fall session, representatives from Ontario Nature, Legal Advocates for Nature’s Defence, National Farmers Union – Ontario and the Canadian Union of Public Employees Ontario are presenting a formal petition with 1,706 signatories to the Legislative Assembly calling on the Government of Ontario to repeal Bill 5, the Protect Ontario by Unleashing our Economy Act. Bill 5 infringes on Indigenous rights, gives unchecked powers to provincial ministers, dismantles protections for at-risk species, overrides municipal planning and undermines democratic processes. “Bill 5 threatens the long-term sustainability and well-being of Ontario under the guise of addressing economic uncertainty. Bill 5 is a step in the wrong direction that will further threaten Ontario’s most vulnerable species. We need economic solutions that operate in harmony with nature, not in conflict,” said Tony Morris, Conservation Policy and Campaigns Director, Ontario Nature

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Ecological stoichiometry of mountain pine beetle, its mutualist fungi, and the disease white pine blister rust in whitebark pine

By Diana Six, Hannah Alverson and Lorinda Bullington
Research Gate
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States

Ecological stoichiometry can help clarify how symbionts and other co-occurring organisms mediate nutrient deficiencies for hosts. We used ecological stoichiometry (comparisons of elemental compositions in food vs consumer) to investigate whether obligate mutualist fungi (Grosmannia clavigera, Ophiostoma montium) of the tree-killing bark beetle Dendroctonus ponderosae (mountain pine beetle) and the invasive tree pathogenic fungus, Cronartium ribicola (causal agent of the disease white pine blister rust) influenced availability of carbon, nitrogen, and phosphorus to the beetle in Pinus albicaulis (whitebark pine), as well as how these elements varied among three populations of the tree. 

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Fix Our Forests Act advances toward becoming law in US

By Hunter Bassler
Wildfire Today
October 21, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States

The bipartisan Fix Our Forests Act passed out of the Senate Agriculture Committee on Tuesday morning, marking the first advancement of the bill since it previously stalled in committees under both the Biden and the previous Trump administration. The Act would create an interagency Fireshed Center focused on wildfire prediction and tracking, establish fireshed management areas in forests with high wildfire risks, and expedite the review of wildfire-related forest management projects under the National Environmental Policy Act. The act has gained support from lawmakers on both sides of the aisle, along with numerous environmental and wildfire-focused organizations. Critics of the Act claim it would further open up forests to logging and allow a large-scale rollback of the Endangered Species Act, National Historic Preservation Act, and National Environmental Policy Act.

Related Coverage by: 

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Trump’s War on Environment Continues Despite Government Shutdown

Center for Biological Diversity
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States

WASHINGTON— The Trump administration is continuing its anti-environment agenda by prioritizing fossil fuel production, border wall construction and other destructive programs during a government shutdown that has left hundreds of thousands of federal workers without pay. While most government functions have stopped as the shutdown enters its fourth week, work continues to process oil and gas permits and advance logging in national forests. Some of the environmentally harmful programs operating through the shutdown include: Logging in national forests continues as the U.S. Forest Service works to further timber sales; The Forest Service continues to approve mining projects, including an exploration permit in Montana; The Bureau of Land Management is processing oil and gas drilling permits and coal mining projects; and The Environmental Protection Agency’s pesticides office remains open and work continues to expedite approval of the dangerous pesticide dicamba.

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Some Oregon wildfire mitigation projects stalled by government shutdown

By Justin Higginbottom
Oregon Public Broadcasting
October 24, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

Fall is the busy season for forestry work, like fuels reduction. Summer fire restrictions have ended, and winter snow has not yet arrived. But Armando Lopez, owner of DL Reforestation in Jackson County, said the federal government shutdown has put his work on hold. Inspectors can’t visit project areas, and he’s waiting on hundreds of thousands of dollars in payments. Every day, he eagerly checks whether the government has reopened. …Lopez employs around 40 workers, most of them on temporary H-2B visas. If the shutdown doesn’t end next week, Lopez said, he won’t be able to pay them. …The Oregon Department of Forestry said in a statement that payment delays for contractors like Lopez are varied, depending on the federal agency and funding source. …But U.S. Forest Service, state, private and tribal forestry awards are continuing.

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Bureau of Land Management Seeks Public Input on Proposal to Rescind Public Lands Rule Affecting Western Oregon Forests

By John Oliver
Grants Pass Tribune
October 26, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

OREGON — The Bureau of Land Management is seeking public comments on its proposal to rescind the Conservation and Landscape Health Rule, adopted in 2024. The rule was designed to elevate conservation as a recognized use of federal lands, placing it on equal footing with traditional uses such as grazing, recreation, and timber harvesting. …The Rule aimed to modernize how the BLM manages its 245 million acres nationwide, emphasizing ecological health, habitat restoration, and the use of science and Indigenous knowledge in planning decisions. Supporters of the rule have described it as an effort to ensure the long-term sustainability of public lands amid growing challenges such as wildfire risks. However, its implementation drew opposition from some state and local officials in the West, including timber industry representatives and rural county leaders, who warned that the new policy could restrict economic activities on public lands and diminish local control over forest management.

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Gov. Kotek issues executive order placing climate lens on farms, forests, waterways

By Gosia Wozniacka
The Oregonian
October 23, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: US West

Tina Kotek

Gov. Tina Kotek wants Oregon to go full force on harnessing the potential of forests, farms, wetlands and waterways to reduce emissions, preserve wildlife habitat and help communities withstand the threat of climate change. That’s the focus of a sweeping executive order Kotek issued on Thursday to prioritize conservation on both natural landscapes such as forests or wetlands as well as on so-called working lands – farms, ranches and commercial timberlands. It also includes waterways and state-managed ocean waters. Kotek’s order calls on state agencies to collectively protect or restore 10% more land and waterways over the next decade, based on current baseline conditions, with a focus on safeguarding the most climate-resilient landscapes. …Kotek said the order is one of a series of actions she’s taking to push the ball forward on preventing and responding to global warming. 

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Plan that settled ‘timber wars’ faces new test

By Mark Heller
E&E News by Politico
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

EUGENE, Oregon — With the Trump administration poised to rewrite forest management policy, groups are on guard for changes to climate and lumber harvesting sections. Travis Joseph has a message for environmental groups worried that the Pacific Northwest’s oldest trees are about to fall to loggers: Timber companies don’t really want to cut them down. Joseph, who heads a timber industry group and is a former aide to ex-Democratic Rep. Peter DeFazio of Oregon, made that proclamation. …“I love these trees, too,” said Joseph, CEO of the American Forest Resource Council (AFRC). “But they’re at risk. Let’s save them. Let’s come in here and protect them.” Joseph’s group says the threat to big trees in western Oregon — these giants were 5 or 6 feet across at the trunk — isn’t logging. It’s wildfire that’s becoming a bigger menace as climate change makes summers hotter and reduces the winter snowpack. [to access the full story a subscription is required]

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Fewer Oregon acres burned in 2025 wildfire season, but more homes lost

By Alex Baumhardt
Lookout Eugene-Springfield
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: US West

Oregon’s 2025 fire season officially wrapped up Friday with significantly fewer acres burned — and at a lower cost to the state — than in previous years. But fires this year got much closer to communities, burning 200 homes and structures. …And humans caused most of this year’s fires. Oregon experienced more than 1,100 fires from early June to mid-October. They burned roughly 350,000 acres, far less than the 1.9 million acres that burned in 2024. Fires this year also cost the state less to fight. …The U.S. Forest Service has had a target for nearly a century of keeping at least 90% of wildfires from growing larger than 10 acres. But it has come under scrutiny by some indigenous wildfire and ecology experts and scientists, as well as Forest Service scientists. They argue that some wildfires must be allowed to burn more acres to help regenerate plants that support animal habitats, reduce pest infestation and invasive species and keep ecosystems healthy.

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Half of Oregon could see more logging, grazing under federal wildfire bill

By April Ehrlich
Oregon Public Broadcasting
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: US West

The Fix Our Forests Act passed out of a Senate committee Tuesday, and now heads to a full vote. Some environmental groups are warning that a federal bill intended to prevent major wildfires could effectively increase logging, cattle grazing and mining on federal lands — which make up half of Oregon’s land base. The bipartisan Fix Our Forests Act passed out of the U.S. Senate Agriculture Committee on Tuesday and now heads to the Senate floor for a final vote. It could overhaul how the nation prepares its land for wildfires, while also scaling back environmental oversight of land management projects. The bill has conservationists divided. On one side, some advocates say it would bring long-needed changes by fast-tracking prescribed fires. …On the other side, environmental groups say the bill significantly weakens environmental protections and public oversight.

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Out-of-state senators vote on forest ‘fix’ for places like Lane County

By Ashli Blow
Lookout Eugene-Springfield
October 23, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

A U.S. Senate committee has advanced the Fix Our Forests Act — a sweeping forest-management bill that could reshape logging and wildfire policy in heavily forested areas like Lane County. Local environmentalists say Democrats behind the proposal misunderstand the challenges facing forests in the West. …The U.S. Senate Committee on Agriculture, Nutrition and Forestry is largely made up of lawmakers from the East Coast and Midwest. …The 176-page bill largely outlines strategies to clear landscapes of brush and grass that can fuel fires that burn large and hot for weeks at a time. “These are things that are all bipartisan in nature,” said Sen. Amy Klobuchar, D-Minn., ranking member of the committee. However, more than 150 environmental organizations — including groups with Eugene activists including Oregon Wild and Cascadia Wildlands — sent the committee a letter opposing the bill.

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Montana sawmill adapts to industry changes

By Evan Charney
KTVH Helena Montana
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

CLANCY, Montana — Healthy forests depend on a strong forest products industry. Sawmills help support thousands of Montana jobs, reduce wildfire risks, and provide a renewable resource. Despite recent mill closures in Missoula and Seeley Lake, Marks Lumber in Clancy continues to carry on. …Both Roseburg Forest Products in Missoula and Pyramid Mountain Lumber in Seeley Lake closed last year. Marks Lumber has been open for 36 years, and they have adapted to industry changes before. “ …In light of the recent closures, they have made some changes, including shifting to more board production (processed wood) rather than the raw tree, which is more expensive to manufacture, and slowing down on how much logging they do. Marks Lumber also had to change where their sawdust and chips go. Roseburg used to buy that material, but now they send them to Weyerhaeuser Forest Products in Columbia Falls.

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Montana Land Board Approves Project to Conserve 53,000 Acres of Timber Forests Near Libby

By Tristan Scott
The Flathead Beacon
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: US West

A project to permanently protect 53,000 acres of private timberland in Flathead and Lincoln counties cleared a final hurdle on Oct. 20 when the Montana Land Board delivered a 4-1 vote in favor of a conservation easement that has earned plaudits from a wide-ranging alliance of stakeholders, including the wood products industry, the conservation community, and prominent hunting and fishing groups. Called the Montana Great Outdoors Conservation Easement, the project is now in its second phase. In total, the project encompasses 85,752 acres of private timberland owned by Green Diamond Resource Company. …“It’s going to be parceled out, subdivided into 20- to 60-acre little parcels full of McMansions and ranchettes,” Kyle Schmauch, chief of staff and communications director for the Senate Republicans of the Montana Legislature said. “This is where the locals go to recreate, people who’ve grown up here. This is where they go to escape the crowds…”

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Ecological forestry, a new approach to forest management

By Rob Riley, president, Northern Forest Center
The Concord Monitor
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: US East

Rob Riley

Concord, NH — In response to the Monitor’s article on forestry, I want to share why I believe ecological forestry is our best tool for ensuring healthy, resilient forests in the future. …The multiple impacts of climate change — extreme weather, invasive pests and pathogens, changing seasonal patterns — are increasingly evident on the landscape and are impacting biodiversity and forest health. …Today, foresters incorporate carbon uptake and storage, climate resilience, a greater focus on biodiversity and other critical concerns in forest management. Ecological forestry prioritizes forest health and integrity. …Rather than focusing primarily on timber, ecological forestry sees the entire puzzle — yet it also allows for harvesting forest products — which people need for everything from building homes to paper products and which landowners depend on for revenue to support keeping forests as forests. …You can help by rejecting over-simplified arguments against managing forests and using forest products. 

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From sap to sustainability: Inside Michigan State University’s Forestry Innovation Center

By Kim Ward
Michigan State University
October 21, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: US East

Jesse Randall

The Michigan State University’s Forestry Innovation Center (FIC), is a unique outpost where maple trees, paper mills, Christmas trees and global markets are all connected. …The FIC is the program administrator for the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, which oversees 5 million acres of certified forestland and approximately 5 million tons of procured wood, anchoring Michigan’s $26 billion forest products industry. It also manages 9,000 acres of research forests, offering diverse conditions for experiments in snowpack, soils and wildlife impacts to trees. “We’ve gone from being regionally irrelevant to running the industry in terms of training and certification, while also becoming a hub for global maple research,” said Jesse Randall, the director of the center. …“We’re where industry, science and community come together — from school kids to projects that stretch 300 years into the future,” Randall says. “Everything we do connects back to Michigan and it all starts in our forests and runs through here.”

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Wisconsin “Forests FIRST” project aims to strengthen our state’s forest products industry health and economic future

By Wisconsin Forests FIRST coalition
WisPolitics
October 20, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: US East

Wisconsin’s forest products industry is integral to our state’s environment, economy, and quality of life. To ensure that this important element of Wisconsin’s heritage continues to thrive for future generations, a coalition of forest products industry stakeholders is taking a major step forward with the launch of Wisconsin Forests FIRST (Forest Industry Roadmap and Strategies for Tomorrow). Wisconsin Forests FIRST is a statewide initiative created to develop a strategic plan and roadmap to ensure our forests remain healthy and to promote a resilient, sustainable, and competitive forest products industry. This coalition effort is supported with a $1 million state grant from the forestry account, which received bi-partisan support and was signed into law by Governor Evers. Currently in the initial planning stages, the project’s overarching goal is to examine Wisconsin’s forest products industry and its role to support and enhance the state’s ecological, social and economic well-being.

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From Forest to Fashion: Textile Exchange Conference delegates explore sustainable forestry in Portugal

The Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification (PEFC)
October 23, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: International

As part of the official Textile Exchange Conference 2025 programme in Lisbon, over 20 sustainability professionals from leading global fashion brands stepped out of the city and into the forests of Talhadas, in Sever do Vouga, to experience first-hand how sustainably managed forests support responsible sourcing for the fashion and textile sectors. …The field visit also highlighted how collaboration between the forestry and fashion sectors can drive meaningful change. The project in Talhadas was made possible through industry support from the Inditex Group, whose investment is contributing to reforestation and biodiversity restoration in the region. This partnership demonstrates how brand commitments to sustainability and ESG goals can translate into real, on-the-ground impact. …For many attendees, the visit underscored a vital message: that sustainability in fashion begins with the forest. 

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EU lawmakers cut down proposed forest health data collection law

By Marta Pacheco
Euronews
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: International

European lawmakers rejected on Tuesday a draft law to monitor and report on “forest health”, which would mandate EU countries to collect data on forestry conditions and enable preparedness against forest fires across the bloc. The ballot revealed that the far-right and centrist MEPs predominantly voted no in the European Parliament, with 370 votes against and 261 in favour of draft legislation to harmonise data collection on forests and close knowledge gaps about the state of woodlands across the EU. …The Commission’s proposal built on the existing EU forest information entry point, satellite and remote sensing and national inventories, and sought to fill gaps in comparability and completeness of forest information. …Austrian lawmaker Alexander Bernhuber (EPP), who served as lead negotiator on the forest monitoring law in the Parliament’s committee for environment, said the group rejected “ideology” and advocated instead for an “effective and efficient” environmental policy.

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EU proposes soft delay of anti-deforestation law & more exemptions for rich nations

By Shanna Hanbury
Mongabay
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: International

The European Union has dropped plans for another one-year delay to its anti-deforestation law, instead proposing a six-month grace period before enforcement begins. The proposal also introduces simplification measures and exemptions that favor EU nation states, the U.S., Canada, Australia and China. …EU authorities will only begin checks and enforcement of the law on June 30, 2026, giving companies an additional six months to adapt. …For countries currently classified as “low risk” under the EUDR — all EU nations, the U.S., China, Australia and Canada — micro and small producers who sell directly to the EU would be exempt from the EUDR’s regulations under the proposal….“The IT issue has never been satisfactorily explained,” Nicole Polsterer, policy specialist at the environmental NGO FERN, said. “In this vacuum, or under this disguise, German foresters and U.S. lobbying have successfully carved out an exemption from geolocation for themselves.”

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Innovation tops agenda as experts on Europe’s forests and forest industry meet

Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: International

The European Forestry Commission (EFC) will meet in Istanbul, Türkiye, from 22 to 25 October to review and coordinate regional strategies on forests and the forest industry, with a specific focus on innovation. The session, coordinated by the Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO), will bring together government officials and representatives of international organizations, civil society and the private sector to discuss a wide range of issues. The session will take place alongside FAO European Forest Week 2025 and Istanbul Forest Innovation Week, with innovation as their overarching theme. …The EFC session will cover global and regional forestry processes and initiatives, international developments and cooperation, and updates on ongoing work in the region. Discussions also will focus on innovation in forestry, the progress of the Committee on Mediterranean Forestry Questions – Silva Mediterranea, and the European Forestry Commission Working Party on the Management of Mountain Watersheds.

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Metsä Group introduces a new wood trade operating model: the bearing capacity of soil to be used as a pricing factor

Cision Newswire
October 22, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: International

Showing the way forward, Metsä Group will introduce a data-analytics-based operating model for wood trade, in which the bearing capacity of soil and the prevailing weather conditions determine the harvesting time for felling sites. From 1 November 2025, the bearing capacity of soil will also be used as a wood trade pricing factor in all stumpage sales concluded with Metsä Group. As a pricing factor, bearing capacity will replace the traditionally used harvestability, which is linked to seasons – harvestable in summer, winter or at all times. …In the new operating model, Metsä Group uses data about the soil type, site type, moisture and trees provided by operators such as the National Land Survey of Finland, the Geological Survey of Finland and Natural Resources Institute Finland to allocate felling sites and their routes to three different categories of bearing capacity (good, normal or limited bearing capacity).

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Europe Shortens Deforestation Enforcement Delay to Six Months

By John Ainger
Bloomberg Green
October 21, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: International

The European Union proposed granting companies six months of leeway to comply with its landmark law to curb deforestation across the world, rejecting a longer delay despite industry complaints. The EU’s Deforestation Regulation aims to tackle the felling of trees associated with imports. Yet it has faced criticism at home and abroad for being too bureaucratic. The European Commission proposed Tuesday giving large companies six months of relief from sanctions after the law goes into effect at the end of the year. Bloomberg previously reported plans to delay implementing the rules by a year. …Both parliament and member states will need to sign off on the changes before the end of the year, and have the right to propose amendments. …A six-month adjustment period will be welcomed by environmental activists, alarmed by high rates of deforestation, said Luciana Chávez. [to access the full story a Bloomberg subscription is required]

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