Ottawa, Canada —The Sustainable Forestry Initiative (SFI) welcomes the G7 Kananaskis Wildfire Charter and its emphasis on a “whole of society approach” to preventing, responding to, and recovering from extreme wildfires. The Charter, an outcome of the G7 leaders meeting in Alberta earlier this month, outlines a comprehensive global framework that includes science-based mitigation and adaptation strategies such as sustainable forest management, Indigenous-led land stewardship, the use of fire as a positive tool for forest management, data sharing, and collaborative systems to address wildfire-related health and safety risks. …”we’ve long understood that sustainably managed forests can be a solution in wildfire mitigation and adaptation strategies, and we are pleased to have the financial support from Environment & Climate Change Canada, the United States Department of Agriculture, and the Doris Duke Foundation to support forest health and resiliency,” said Kathy Abusow, President & CEO of SFI.
As world leaders gathered for the G7 summit last week in Kananaskis, Alberta, more than 50 wildfires burned across the province. The leaders’ joint statements included the 
Ash and chemicals from some of BC’s largest wildfires are winding up in the Fraser River, which could eventually lead to low oxygen levels and harm marine life, say UBC researchers. In a peer-reviewed study, published in the journal Science of The Total Environment, scientists linked increases in the concentrations of compounds like arsenic and lead, and nutrients such as nitrogen and phosphorus, to wildfires that had burned near the 1,375 kilometre long river. These are all compounds that are found naturally in the water. However, researchers tracked a significant increase in compounds as wildfires were happening near the river. The researchers studied fires within 500 metres, 1,000 metres and 1,500 metres. Fires burning close to major waterways had immediate influence on water quality, said Emily Brown, a research scientist at UBC’s institute for the oceans and fisheries. The more distant wildfires had delayed influence on water quality.
Llenllenéy’ten (High Bar) First Nation (HBFN) has signed a historic Joint Development Agreement (JDA) with West Fraser Timber Co. Ltd. (West Fraser). The JDA was signed during HBFN’s National Indigenous Peoples Day event in Clinton on June 21. A press release issued by High Bar on June 24 stated that “The landmark agreement highlights HBFN’s commitment to sustainable forest management through partnership with the private sector to achieve mutually beneficial outcomes.” The relationship ensures fibre supply for West Fraser, and opens the door for more diverse fibre product development. At the same time, HBFN notes that the agreement creates a path toward increased resource revenues and decision-making authority for HBFN, which marks a meaningful step toward economic reconciliation. Under the JDA, West Fraser will transfer a portion of its timber harvesting rights to Llenllenéy’ten (High Bar) First Nation. 
With wildfire season in full swing, an immigration consultant says there is a simple way to end the shortage of qualified people to fight wildfires: Let existing, trained firefighters who are non-residents stay once their work permits expire by letting them choose a path to permanent residency. Jennie McCahill is representing Irish national Jake McGavin, a team leader with a wildfire-fighting contractor called Carmanah Wildfire, which is based in Sidney but has firefighting crews spread all over B.C. …McGavin, who turns 29 in September, is in his third season fighting wildfires in B.C. He’s been lucky to have received a pair of two-year work permits, but the second is soon to run out. …He wants to stay in Canada not only because he’s fallen in love with B.C. …”Unfortunately, Immigration, Refugees and Citizenship Canada does not recognize wildland firefighting as skilled work.”
Over 7,600 people shared their views on outdoor recreation in a first-ever public survey conducted by Mosaic. “The feedback we received tells us how important Mosaic’s managed forests are to people’s lives,” said Jimmie Hodgson at Mosaic. “It reinforces our responsibility to work toward solutions that reflect what we heard.” Early findings show:
Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation) and the Province have signed an agreement to guide forest stewardship in Squamish Nation territory at a ceremony held at the top of the Sea-to-Sky gondola overlooking Átl’ḵa7tsem (Howe Sound). “This agreement will ensure our cultural sites and key environmental areas are protected for future generations. These have been our lands for thousands of years, and the fact they are now back under our direct control provides a greater sense of security for our people, and a strong optimism for our future,” said Sxwíxwtn Wilson Williams, Councillor and elected spokesperson, Sḵwx̱wú7mesh Úxwumixw (Squamish Nation). …The next step will be to complete a ministerial order, which will include consultation with First Nations, and engagement with the public. It aims to establish objectives for the forestry sector to follow in alignment with the agreement and provide the Squamish Nation certainty in sites of high value.
Firefighters are urging hikers and mountain bikers not to enter trails closed due to a wildfire just north of Squamish, B.C., ahead of the Canada Day long weekend. The Dryden Creek wildfire, which was discovered on June 9, is considered under control by the B.C. Wildfire Service, but a local state of emergency remains in Squamish and a campfire ban remains in effect for the district. Fire suppression work is ongoing in the area, and evacuation orders and alerts remain due to the danger of trees falling and rocks rolling loose. Despite that, firefighters say they’re seeing people disobey trail closures, which could prove to be a risky decision. “Especially last weekend, numerous hikers and mountain bikers accessed trails that were closed,” said B.C. Wildfire fire information officer Jennifer Lohmeyer on Tuesday. “Some people even moved barriers that had been put in place to indicate that the trail was closed,” she added.
The City of Delta is undertaking an inventory of its trees. Crews started last week in Ladner, collecting data on street and park trees as part of Delta’s Urban Forest Strategy. In its request for proposals this spring for a qualified arboricultural consultant to conduct the urban forest subsection inventory of individual city-owned urban trees, the city noted it wanted to focus on street and park specimen trees. The project does not include trees on private property, nor is it the intent to include larger stands of trees in the city’s natural areas. The purpose of the project is to expand a tree inventory that was started in-house in 2023, improve asset management, as well as gain an accurate cost of a city-wide tree inventory for areas with low, medium and high canopy coverage.
It’s been hot in southern Ontario [with] apocalyptic news coverage out of Toronto…. “The world is burning,” announces the headline of a parenting advice column in The Globe and Mail. “Should we tell our children?” The author’s children are not told about forest fires… They are not told about the huge, ongoing increase in greenhouse gas emissions in Asia, cancelling out many times over the modest reductions achieved at great cost in North America and Europe. …The answer… is that natural variability is larger than the trend line produced by statistics. It’s true that Canada has seen more communities damaged or destroyed by fire, but that’s largely because there are more communities. …The Second World War was nearing its end, but the war on forest fires was just beginning, with the deployment of heavy equipment as well as aircraft. Saving timber was the goal, and the unintended consequences have piled up ever since.
New film reveals the roots of B.C.’s wildfire crisis—and what we must do to stop it. A powerful new documentary exploring the causes and consequences of British Columbia’s escalating wildfire crisis will premiere to the public at the Vernon Performing Arts Centre Thursday June 26 at 7:00 pm. Titled B.C. is Burning, the 45-minute film delivers a sobering but hopeful look at what’s fueling today’s megafires—and the science-based solutions that could protect our forests, our communities, and our future. B.C. is Burning was independently produced and funded through community support, with Homestead Foods generously contributing half of the total budget. We also gratefully acknowledge major support from Skyline Helicopters, Padoin Reforestation, and Kalesnikoff.
QUALICUM BEACH, BC — Alien invasive species like Scotch broom do not move into a void. They displace something that was originally present. Broom displaces grasses and native plants – but while grass is food, broom is toxic to grazing animals, wild and domestic. Broom provides flowers for bees in May – but wipes out the native flowers that bees rely on for the rest of the season. Farmers call broom the Scourge of Pastureland – and it affects our food security. Broom competing with young trees on forest land creates millions of dollars in losses to forest companies – and the loss to the future of our forests is beyond measure. Biodiversity? Researchers designate Scotch broom as THE invasive species doing the greatest harm to species at risk in all of B.C. Broom is the top offender of biodiversity. Wildfire? Broom’s high oil content, naturally occurring dry branches, and dense growth patterns make broom extremely flammable. FireSmart classifies broom in the highest risk category.
Elphinstone and West Howe Sound community associations’ efforts to have B.C. Timber Sales (BCTS) defer the 35.2 hectare Elphinstone Highlands cutblock (TA0519) from its current Q1 sales schedule received support from the Sunshine Coast Regional District (SCRD) board. Provision of a letter of support for the deferral requests was endorsed at the board’s June 12 meeting. According to the BCTS Chinook area sales schedule released April 17, TA0519 was slated to go to auction by June 30. In a June 18 email response to Coast Reporter, the Ministry of Forests stated that “Sales schedules are issued to notify of upcoming proposed timber sales auctions. BC Timber Sales starts accepting bids when a licence is placed on BC Bid for auction… TA0519 is a partial harvest/commercial thin sale and was pulled from BC Bid due to an administrative error. It is anticipated that TA0519 will be reposted this fiscal year.”
An insolvent BC forestry company’s attempt to sell off a forest licence to pay back creditors has triggered a dispute with several First Nations, who allege the company is attempting an “end run” around their rights. This spring, three Indigenous groups challenged the Teal-Jones Group before a BC Supreme Court judge for attempting to complete an interim transfer of forest licence A19201 to Western Canadian Timber Products (WCTP). The move came before the B.C. Minister of Forests could consult with 39 First Nations who have territory in the area. …The legal dispute hinged on whether the proposed interim agreement triggered a duty to consult with First Nations. But Fitzpatrick ruled Teal Jones’ agreement with WCTP remained “the highest and best offer presently available for consideration and approval after all that time.” The judge concluded that the sales process had been conducted in a “fair and reasonable manner”.
Looking over the 40-acre waterfront Somass property, Port Alberni’s Chief Administrative Officer Mike Fox sees an area that is key to shaping the city’s future. “I believe this project will be one of those defining moments where people will look back years from now and comment on how the community rallied and how we enabled the development of this key waterfront area,” he says. The land that once housed Western Forest Products Somass Division was purchased from the timber giant after the mill was shuttered in 2017 and the land sat vacant for more than a decade… While there was early discussion about trying to incorporate some of the structures used in the operation of the mill, geotechnical and structural analysis work is being done to see if any meet building standards. One of the buildings included in initial discussions burned down last summer.
The other day, in the midst of a heat wave that suffocated central Canada, this newspaper brought us the story of a five-year-old at a public school in Ottawa, sent to hospital for heat exhaustion. The accompanying photo shows the child and his mother seated on a picnic table in the schoolyard, surrounded by grass and pavement – and one tree. As a forester, I volunteer with a program of Forests Canada called Forestry in the Classroom, whose goal is to connect ”the next generation of forest stewards with forestry and environmental professionals.” This spring I visited a school in north Toronto to take a class of Grade 5 students to a nearby forested ravine, to help them identify trees and to evaluate tree health. On my arrival at the school, I was shocked to find the playground a barren wasteland. 
For years, forest firefighters in Ontario have been calling on the provincial government to reclassify their jobs to recognize them as an emergency service in a bid to stem recruitment and retention issues. It’s a change the Ford government promised it would take on after sustained pressure from front-line staff and union officials. The province now says work to reclassify forest firefighters — officially called resource technicians — has been “completed,” and is blaming the Ontario Public Service Employees Union for a delay in announcing the move. Whether the terms the government has put forward address the substantive changes called for by forest firefighters is contested. Draft information seen by Global News shows the reclassification involves renaming positions within the existing union structure — and moving people one category further up the grid, for a raise of roughly $3 per hour.
A new study suggests small, consistent amounts of exposure to the herbicide glyphosate can lead to higher incidents of cancer – a finding that has Green party Leader David Coon calling on the province to take the issue seriously. The study, by the Italian-based non-profit Ramazzini Institute, involved exposing rats to small levels of the herbicide and two other products for 2+ years. It found that “statistically significant dose-related (amounts of glyphosate) increased incidences of benign and malignant tumors.”…Bayer, which uses glyphosate in its Roundup herbicide, denounced the study. “It is clear this study has serious methodological flaws, which is consistent with the Ramazzini Institute’s long history of making misleading claims about the safety of various products,” the company said. …A government spokesperson initially told Brunswick News that the study’s findings weren’t applicable in New Brunswick because two products studied aren’t used in Canada.
Chris Watson of Lorneville, a rural community in southwest Saint John, recently saw what he believed to be a centuries-old red spruce near Spruce Lake. He drilled a small hole into the trunk by hand and took a pencil-sized sample to have it tested. Ben Phillips, environmental lecturer at Mount Allison University, began a process known as dendochronology on the sample — a study that measures the age of trees by counting small lines otherwise known as tree rings. “This tree, I can confidently say, is over 400 years old,” Phillips, who runs the Acadian Forest Dendochronology Lab on campus, said about the sample he got from Watson. “It is probably in the top 10 oldest trees in the province that I know of.” …Both Phillips and Ilana Urquhart, Nature Trust of New Brunswick conservation co-ordinator, want to see legislation put in place in New Brunswick that would protect areas with old growth, specifically.
The clock is ticking to register and make plans for the 38th Forest Products Machinery & Equipment EXPO from August 6-8 in Nashville, and you do not want to miss it! EXPO is the epicenter of the entire wood products manufacturing sector – held only every other year – with numerous exhibitors showcasing state-of-the-art machinery and specialized services designed for the forest products industry. This event brings together thousands of industry leaders and decision-makers eager to explore cutting-edge products and solutions, spanning advancements in hardwood and softwood log processing, remanufacturing, pallet industries, bioenergy, engineered wood products, and pressure treatment. Seize this unparalleled opportunity to explore new machinery, engage with key decision-makers, reimagine your sawmill operations, and propel your business to new heights.
The U.S. Forest Service has proposed lifting the rule that bars roads in designated wilderness areas. The change could open 1.2 million acres of federal land in Arizona to logging. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins proposed canceling the 25-year-old “roadless rule” that created some 58 million acres of wilderness areas throughout the west. Arizona’s forested wilderness areas come to about 1.2 million acres of the 11 million acres of Forest Service land in Arizona. …Environmental groups immediately decried the proposal. They said it would increase the danger of wildfires and destroy wilderness areas essential to wildlife and many forms of recreation. …However, a century of logging, cattle grazing and fire suppression has dramatically increased tree densities across forested Northern Arizona … from about 50 per acre to more like 1,000 per acre in the past century. …The Four Forests Restoration Initiative has tried and mostly failed to ramp up logging on six million acres of non protected forest already criss-crossed with roads.
President Trump’s Executive Order (EO) “Empowering Commonsense Wildfire Prevention and Response” is the latest of several significant federal policy efforts aimed at tackling the wildfire crisis. The Federation of American Scientists (FAS) focuses on embedding science, data, and technology into government to support communities in preparing for, responding to, and recovering from wildfires. FAS applauds several elements of President Trump’s EO. For instance, the EO correctly recognizes that wildfire technology and prescribed fire are powerful tools for reducing risk and strengthening wildfire resilience. FAS is also glad to see the Administration promote interagency coordination; emphasize the importance of state, local, and Tribal leadership; and recognize the intersection of wildfire resilience and other sectors, such as the grid and our bioeconomy. We are encouraged that the Administration and Congress are recognizing the severity of the wildfire crisis and elevating it as a national priority. Yet the devil is in the details when it comes to making real-world progress.
A proposal to sell public lands through the U.S. Senate’s budget reconciliation bill died by the sword of parliamentary procedure Monday, though the budgetary battle over public lands is not yet over. The Senate parliamentarian … nixed a provision to sell up to three million acres of Bureau of Land Management and U.S. Forest Service land across 11 states, including Wyoming, finding that it violated a rule limiting budget reconciliation bills to measures that are directly related to federal spending. The provision, which framed the sale as a way to alleviate the housing crisis by opening up more land for development, has roiled Westerners of all political persuasions since it was unveiled June 11. …U.S. Sen. Mike Lee, R-Utah, the architect of the provision, will introduce a new measure removing Forest Service land from the bill and narrowing the amount of BLM land for sale to tracts within 5 miles of population centers.
A plan to sell more than 2 million acres of federal land in Oregon, Washington and 9 other Western states has been ruled out of Republicans’ big tax and spending cut bill after the Senate parliamentarian determined the proposal by Senate Energy Chairman Mike Lee would violate the chamber’s rules. Lee, an Utah Republican, has proposed selling public lands to states or other entities for use as housing or infrastructure. The plan would revive a longtime ambition of Western conservatives to cede lands to local control after a similar proposal failed in the House earlier this year.The proposal received a mixed reception Monday from the governors of Western states. New Mexico Gov. Michelle Lujan Grisham, a Democrat, called it problematic in her state because of the close relationship residents have with public lands. …Lee said he would keep trying. …Environmental advocates celebrated the ruling late Monday, but cautioned that Lee’s proposal was far from dead.
HELENA, Montana — US Secretary of Agriculture Brooke L. Rollins announced US Forest Service Chief Tom Schultz and Montana Governor Greg Gianforte signed a historic Shared Stewardship Memorandum of Understanding, establishing a new framework between the US Forest Service (USFS) and the State of Montana to advance forest restoration and reduce wildfire risk across the state. Montana’s Shared Stewardship Agreement expands collaborative efforts to accelerate active forest management, safeguard communities, and support sustainable timber production. …“By cutting burdensome, unnecessary red tape and empowering Montana to lead, we’re proving that through real partnership, conservation and economic growth can go hand-in-hand. …The Forest Service and Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation (DNRC) will jointly identify and execute large-scale forest management projects, initially focusing on approximately 200,000 acres in northwest Montana.
WHITE SULPHUR SPRINGS, Montana — The Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest has released a final decision for the Bonanza Project, located in the Castle Mountains just east of White Sulphur Springs. Primary management activities planned include timber harvest and prescribed fire. “The project area is highly impacted by the mountain pine beetle and some areas have experienced 90% tree mortality,” said District Ranger Jason Oltrogge. “The timber generated from this project will provide wood products to local companies and prescribed fire will restore forests and reduce wildfire severity.” The Helena-Lewis and Clark National Forest partnered with the Montana Department of Natural Resources and Conservation to plan this project, and the joint effort made this project a reality. …The project includes commercial timber harvest on 1,980 acres and prescribed burning on 918 acres. Project implementation is anticipated to start later this summer.
When U.S. Agriculture Secretary Brooke Rollins announced on Monday that her department would be opening up more US Forest Service land to development, she did so with the caveat that just two states — Colorado and Idaho — would not be impacted. Rollins, who serves in President Donald Trump’s cabinet, unveiled the plans during a meeting of Western state governors in Santa Fe, where she told reporters that the Agriculture Department would be rescinding the 2001 “roadless rule” established under former President Bill Clinton. The rule, hailed by conservationists as a landmark preservation effort, protects roughly 58.5 million acres of backcountry Forest Service land from road construction, logging and other development. “For too long, Western states, especially those with large swaths of land administered by our incredible Forest Service, have been inhibited from innovating because of burdensome regulations imposed by the federal government,” Rollins said.
After a longer wait than expected, the a bill that would eliminate the unpopular Oregon Wildfire Hazard Map passed the Oregon House on June 24. Senate Bill 83 repeals a map meant to identify parts of Oregon at high risk of catastrophic wildfires but has become a lightning rod for anger from rural residents who say it places an unfair burden on them. The bill, which passed the Senate in April, now heads to the desk of Gov. Tina Kotek. The map, which was released earlier in 2025 and identifies areas at high wildfire risk, requires stricter building codes and creation of defensible space for roughly 100,000 properties in the name of wildfire prevention. The map was roundly condemned by impacted residents who said it was inaccurate, decreased property values and imposed burdensome regulations.
The Idaho roadless rule is not included in the effort by the Trump administration to rescind the national rule. A spokesperson for the U.S. Department of Agriculture said, “the Idaho state-specific roadless rule was part of the Administrative Procedures Act petitions and will not be affected by rescinding the 2001 Roadless Rule.” The rule, a collaboratively written offshoot of the national rule, was spearheaded by then-Gov. Jim Risch in 2006. It is more flexible than the national rule and allows limited logging and road building in some of the state’s roadless forests that are not otherwise protected as wilderness areas. But it also offers more stringent protections to the most remote areas. …Risch’s Idaho-specific roadless rule, implemented in 2008, overrides the national rule and forbids logging and roads on 3.2 million acres of the state’s 9 million acres of inventoried roadless areas. Some logging and roads are allowed, under limited circumstances, on the remaining 6 million acres.
Less than two weeks have passed since the public learned of a Senate proposal to sell off public lands, and now, the U.S. Department of Agriculture has removed roadless protections for more than 58 million acres of federal land across the nation. …Helena Hunters and Anglers …decided to call an emergency meeting for Tuesday to discuss the implications of the announcement. If roadless areas were truly gone, the group might not continue their yearly monitoring of roadless areas. Montana has almost 6.4 million acres of inventoried roadless areas… Helena Hunters and Anglers has been monitoring some of those roadless areas for the past few years to assess their condition, and some of the findings aren’t good. …A number of other conservation organizations immediately criticized the action, calling it another handout to corporations to the detriment of the American public and future generations. The Colorado-based Center for Western Priorities said Rollins’ reasons were suspect.
HELENA — Aerial resources have been critical in reaching the Jericho Mountain Fire, and Helena has … a tanker base that can support the largest firefighting planes. …The around three thousand gallons of retardant the average plane holds is just one of the reasons it is so effective. Another factor is the team on the ground who get it refueled and refilled and back in the air in just minutes. …The tanker base typically opens for operations on July 7th but kicked off their wildfire season on June 15th nearly a month early this year due to the Jericho Mountain Fire. Once they got the call, the team had the base operational in two hours. So far the tanker base has already helped planes drop more than 32-thousand gallons of retardant this year compared to zero at this time last year.
The U.S. Forest Service is headed for obsolescence due to recent personnel reductions, proposed budget cuts and re-organization plans. The ability of the Forest Service to meet its legislatively mandated multiple-use mission to the American public is being systematically dismantled. …over the last several months we’ve seen an agency deliberately dismantled by indiscriminate firings, forced retirements and coerced resignations. …The gutting of the Forest Service is a national crisis that will take years or decades to recover from once we, as a society, choose to stop the damage to our federal system of governance. We must individually and collectively speak out to all our elected officials and demand a stop to the out-of-control damage being done. We need to begin to rebuild a federal government that we can rely on to deliver critical services to the American public, including the Forest Service, and protect our wild landscapes from destruction.
Members of the U.S. Senate last week proposed a major sale of federal land as part of the “Big, Beautiful Bill” proposed by Republicans to fund the U.S. government. If adopted, the proposed sale could be significant for Alaska, where the federal government owns and manages 61% of all land in the state… The concept would significantly increase the amount of logging required on federal land. The U.S. Forest Service would be required to significantly increase the amount of timber sold to loggers, and the Forest Service would be required to sign at least 40 long-term timber sales contracts involving national forests. Those kinds of long-term sales contracts contributed to the establishment of Southeast Alaska’s pulp mills, which relied on harvests from the Tongass National Forest. Most timber harvests from the Tongass currently are exported internationally without processing in the United States.
The Oregon Department of Forestry and the USDA Forest Service will conduct low-level flights in June to monitor forest health. This survey, which began in the 1940s and paused only during the 2020 pandemic, is the longest continuous annual survey of its kind in the United States. Airborne researchers conduct the survey from fixed-wing aircraft, flying between 1,500 and 2,500 feet above ground level at speeds of 90 to 140 miles per hour. They follow a systematic grid pattern, four miles apart, to identify areas where trees are in distress. “Oregon has about 30 million acres of forest so flying in a grid pattern over it allows us to find problems even in remote areas hard to reach by vehicle or on foot,” said Christine Buhl, an entomologist with the Oregon Department of Forestry.
Sitting in an old-growth spruce fir forest, Doug Smith says he can see first-hand the impact of reintroducing wolves on the larger ecosystem of Yellowstone National Park. Long before Yellowstone became the world’s first national park in 1872, wolves thrived in the U.S. Rocky Mountains. But early Yellowstone rangers killed off the last of the park’s wolves by 1926. Then, in 1995, the U.S. government reintroduced wolves to Idaho and Yellowstone using wolves captured in Canada. Smith helped bring them back to the park and was in charge of Yellowstone’s wolf project for nearly 30 years until he retired in 2022. “Yellowstone is a very different place, with and without wolves,” Smith said. “Wolves definitely have changed this landscape with the help of other predators,” he added. “It’s very different.” And one wolf, in particular, fascinated wolf watchers for longer than almost any other.
It has only been in the past few years that wildfire smoke from Canada has become a persistent risk to the air we all breathe. Why is this? …A vast swath across northern Canada has a subarctic climate. The types of vegetation best adapted to these conditions are conifer forests dominated by black and white spruce with some pine, balsam fir, larch, aspen and birch. Fire has always been an element of this biome. Historically, about 7.3 million acres have burned annually but in 2023, an astonishing 67 million acres burned. This year’s acreage is on pace to meet or exceed the record-breaking year of 2023. …The fire season is changing in Canada because the climate of Canada is changing. …What this means is that large, long-duration wildfires in Canada’s boreal forest and the smoke plumes they produce are likely to be a new and persistent phenomenon going forward. 
A new analysis quantifies 
The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) reaffirms its support for the Green Claims Directive (GCD) and the Empowering Consumers Directive (ECD) and welcomes the European Commission’s recent decision not to withdraw the GCD proposal. These legislations are critical in the fight against greenwashing and ensuring that consumers have access to accurate, reliable, and verifiable information. FSC, together with ISEAL, has contributed concrete feedback into the GCD and ECD discussions since their onset, with the aim of raising the bar for environmental claims and ensuring the provisions will work in practice. Together, the two proposals offer a powerful framework to ensure that environmental claims and labels placed on the EU market are trustworthy and transparent. Labels rooted in robust, independent certifications like FSC, support companies to enhance accountability and consumer trust.
As a forester and now in my role at Grown in Britain, I regularly encounter a range of misconceptions about home-grown timber. …First, let’s address the elephant in the room. The UK imports a significant amount of timber, and these figures are often cited to suggest something isn’t working as it should be. However, increasing timber use in construction is a positive development, as it replaces more carbon-intensive materials. One of the key reasons Grown in Britain was set up – is we import substantial amounts of timber whilst neglecting our own forests and woodlands. Over 10 years ago, when GiB started, the government considered over 60% of our woods were not managed. Our initiative, alongside the efforts of many, has reduced this to nearer 40% today. …With global and UK timber demand increasing, it seems inappropriate to import so much when we’re not fully utilising our resources.