Category Archives: Special Feature

Rob Kozak

UNIVERSITY OF BC FORESTRY — With nearly 8,000 Forestry alumni around the world affecting change and making impacts in ways that are incalculable, we are most certainly one of the most successful Forestry schools globally. As well, our leading-edge, innovative research continues to make waves in positive and meaningful ways. …That as the backdrop to this issue on Future Forests, the reality is that the future of forests – and, by association, forestry – is in all of our hands. Looming large are the challenges of climate change, biodiversity loss, the decline of forest-dependent communities and an expanding – and increasingly voracious – human population. …Forests, as we all know, play a vital role in contributing solutions to address some of these pressing issues. Technological innovations are part of the answer, certainly, but what we need now – more than ever – is to put forward bold, courageous, conservation-based strategies, even if it sometimes means bucking the status quo.

 …We have attempted to do this in the current issue of Branchlines by summarizing viewpoints shared in our recent webinars on the contentious issue of old growth forests and by providing some potential paths forward for all. In the end, we find ourselves in a maelstrom of wicked problems related to the sustainability of our planet, and we owe it to future generations to do whatever we possibly can to tackle this dizzying array of issues head-on. We also recognize that forests and the nature-based solutions that they provide are a big part of the solution, but that this may require disruptive, transformative change. The Faculty of Forestry is responding to this clarion call by providing intellectual space for informed dialogue and by imparting knowledge to the next generation of natural resources managers and change-makers. Together, we can make a difference in creating a healthier, more resilient and sustainable future.

It is with a heavy heart that I announce—after more than 30 years—the Canadian Women in Timber are dissolving our organization. Since 1989 we have enthusiastically championed the forestry and logging sectors in British Columbia. We’ve collectively touched the lives of hundreds of thousands of school children, parents, teachers and community members – fostering an interest and passion for the natural science of forestry, management and operations/harvesting. Our educational materials have been re-published many times (with support from our sponsors) and are part of classroom sets and family bookshelves around the province and across Canada.

We would like to thank our members – your contributions are so important and valued. We would also like to thank our supporters and friends: forestry companies; industry associations like the ILA, the TLA, the Vancouver Hoo-Hoo Club; all levels of government and forest ministers who have participated in our events and programs; all the post-secondary forestry programs; and all of the many schools around the province who have welcomed us into their classrooms. Our partnership with the Interior Logging Association and the Forest Education Van was a key part of our program… Thank you to Wayne Lintott who was always our champion!

John Brink

John Brink was four-and-a-half years old when Canadian troops liberated his part of Holland. Nearly eight decades later, Brink’s memories remain vivid of seeing those friendly faces arrive in the final days of Second World War. …The Canadians came on May 12, 1945, right after the ‘hunger winter’ that brought brutal cold and starvation to parts of the country where food and fuel supplies were blocked by the retreating German army. …For Brink and his family, the war brought ever-present anxiety, malnutrition and the misery of separation that divided them. As he writes in his autobiography, Against All Odds, “It was a life without luxuries, but it was bearable – after all, it was all I knew. What was infinitely more difficult was the worry generated by living under occupation.  

…The impact the Canadians made on Brink never left him. He wanted to immigrate to Canada as a 17-year-old but his parents denied permission. He was then drafted and served two years in the Dutch Air Force as part of the special forces military police before coming to Canada at age 24. Driven by his ambition to own his own sawmill, Brink arrived in Prince George in 1965 with $25.47 in his pocket and worked his way to the point where he could start his business. Ten years later he opened Brink Forest Products in Prince George and its finger-jointed lumber mill, which, with the addition of value-added mills in Vanderhoof and Houston, he’s turned into one of the largest forestry companies in the province. Brink, who celebrated his 82nd birthday Nov. 1, realizes the importance of Remembrance Day, especially to remind the younger generation of the sacrifices our soldiers made to preserve the freedoms we often take for granted. 

David Elstone

With NDP MLA David Eby taking over as the next premier of British Columbia, it’s an opportune time to baseline the state of BC’s forest industry. …Natural factors including the mountain pine beetle and spruce beetle epidemics, wildfires etc are taking their toll on timber supply. So too have policy changes introduced by the NDP government under the banner of Modernizing Forest Policy in BC, including the old growth deferral initiative. …The consequences of such are starting to appear. Given this made in BC recipe for gridlock, I had projected (almost a year ago) the future provincial timber harvest would decrease between 10% and 40% by the time of the next election in 2024. Almost a year later, the provincial harvest is down 5.3 million m3 or 12.6% ytd as of September..

What have been the downstream effects of the reduced timber harvest? Lumber production province wide is down 12.7% ytd (July). Coast production is down 6.8% ytd. And interior production is down by 13.5% ytd to levels not seen in many decades. Timber supply issues have been a large part of that decline, especially for the interior. Other contributing factors include the collapse in lumber prices as well as transportation issues. …The following is a list of manufacturing facilities which have either permanently closed or temporary curtailed since Q4 2021. …No other provinces are reporting closures to the same magnitude. Conversely, there is relatively little new capacity being added. This is where things are at for British Columbia’s forest sector, and it’s not good. Unfortunately, Eby has already said his 100- day plan includes a pledge to accelerate the old growth plan.

VANCOUVER, BC – A new study confirms that wood pellets in BC are sourced entirely from sawmill and harvest residuals or from low-quality logs and bush grind rejected by other industries. The study was commissioned by the Wood Pellet Association of Canada. Respected forest experts Professor Gary Bull, Dr. Jeremy Williams, Dr. Jim Thrower and Mr. Brad Bennett. …“We reviewed the data for virtually every truckload of fibre for each pellet mill in the province and were able to source forest-based residuals down to the forest harvesting block for each mill,” said Bull.

“The findings were clear: 85% of the fibre for pellets comes from the by-products of the sawmills and allied industries, and the remaining 15% comes from bush grind and low-quality logs where the only other option is to burn the low-grade logs and brush piles on site in order to reduce fire risk.” In addition, almost all the pellets produced in B.C. are certified under the international recognized Sustainable Biomass Program and the fibre is from sustainably managed forests in B.C. certified under the Canadian Standards Association, the Forest Stewardship Council or the Sustainable Forestry Initiative “The notion of harvesting whole stands of timber or displacing higher value forest products for the purpose of producing wood pellets is counter to the overall economic and environmental objectives of using wood pellets,” added Thrower.

Joe Aquino

British Columbians of a certain age may remember beehive burners. Most towns in B.C. with a sawmill had one. In the late 1990s, the B.C. government began phasing them out, and in their wake a wood pellet industry began to grow to deal with sawmill waste. It seemed like a win-win situation for the environment and forest industry – one that reduced air pollution, addressed the sawmill waste problem and provided a renewable, carbon-neutral energy source that was starting to displace coal. As countries like Japan and the U.K. began displacing coal in thermal power plants with biomass, a market for wood pellets began to grow. About 60 per cent of Europe’s renewable energy is bioenergy, mostly wood biomass. But as the demand for wood pellets has grown over the last two decades, so too have concerns about the wood pellet industry and its impact on forests. 

Environmental groups like Stand.earth and the Natural Resources Defense Council in the U.S. have been stepping up campaigns against the industry, questioning the climate calculus that deems biomass to be carbon neutral. Forests are important carbon sinks, after all. If living trees are cut down to produce energy, the carbon neutrality of biomass may be called into question. That’s especially true if more trees are harvested than regrown. Currently, most of the inputs used in B.C. pellet mills come from sawmills and harvest residuals such as slash,  which is typically burned anyway. On average, about 80 per cent of the inputs in Drax’s seven wood pellet mills in B.C. is sawmill waste, Drax’s Joe Aquino said. About 20 per cent is harvest residuals – branches, treetops and low-value logs that sawmills don’t want. …Drax insists that it is not harvesting trees in Canada to make wood pellets and that doing so would make no economic sense. Trees are valuable, after all, and wood pellets are at the bottom of the forestry value chain. 

As of 2020, 22 per cent of Europe’s energy came from renewables. But 60 per cent of that is bioenergy – much of it wood biomass. It’s an industry that has come under intense scrutiny and criticism of late from environmentalists. …Despite what IPCC scientists say about bioenergy’s role in shifting the world’s energy generation away from fossil fuels like coal and natural gas, environmentalists say bioenergy’s climate benefits no longer add up. …As biomass energy demand grows, they say the industry is running out of wood waste and increasingly resorting to harvesting forests. BIV put that question to five scientists:

• Generally, biomass as an energy source is much better than coal, said Joana Portugal Pereira, senior scientist for the IPCC’s Working Group 3 on Mitigation of Climate Change.  …However, there may be genuine concerns about the carbon deficit – the time it takes for regrowing trees to absorb the CO2 released on combustion. The deficit may widen the more whole lives trees are used, instead of wood waste that is already being generated through forestry anyway, especially if the forests are not sustainably managed. 
• As long as wood waste that is already being generated is used to make wood pellets, the carbon deficit is less of an issue, said Chris Bataille, adjunct professor at Simon Fraser University and a lead author for the IPCC Working Group 3’s sixth assessment.
• Mark Jaccard, an SFU sustainable energy economist and contributor to the sixth assessment of the IPCC Working Group 3, says, “… even if it was dedicated biomass plantations managed for soil conservation and sustained annual allowable cut, it would still be fine to use bioenergy and it would still be net-zero emission.” 

APSEY, Thomas Michael (Mike) April 1, 1938 – September 1, 2022

Mike Apsey passed away peacefully in his sleep, September 1, after a lengthy struggle with dementia. Happily, Mike never lost his ability to recognize his beloved wife, Sharon, who was with him the day he passed. Born in Vernon. BC, Mike graduated from the University of British Columbia’s Forestry Department in 1961 and over the next four decades became one of Canada’s most influential and respected forestry professionals. He began his career in the provincial government’s Department of Industrial Development, Trade and Commerce, before being recruited as an analyst for Vancouver based forestry company Macmillan Bloedel. …Returning to B.C. [from Turkey] in 1970, he served as a vice president of the Council of Forest Industries. In 1978, Mike became the Deputy Minister of Forests for British Columbia, a position he held until 1984. Leaving that post, he took on the role of President and Chief Executive Officer of the Council of Forest Industries of B.C, a position he held until his retirement in 1998.

In retirement, Mike remained active, attending numerous speaking engagements and serving on various committees… During this period, with the encouragement and collaboration of Ken Drushka, a distinguished author, Mike published his memoir, titled “What’s All This Got To Do With The Price of 2 X 4’s?” Mike’s dedicated service to BC’s forest services earned him several honours, including the Rielle Thomson Award, the Chevalier de l”Ordre du Merite Agricole from the Government of France, a Certificate of Appreciation from the Government of Canada, and an Honorary Doctor of Laws from UBC. In 2002 he was appointed as a Member of the Order of Canada.

Misha Sergyeyev & Emre Şenay

Misha Sergyeyev was safely out at sea when Russia invaded Ukraine. His wife, youngest daughter and mother-in-law weren’t so fortunate. …Twice the women reached a checkpoint only to be turned back by Ukrainian soldiers. On their third try, they escaped to Romania and moved on to Turkey. …Emre and Oksana (Misha’s eldest daughter) had immigrated to Canada years earlier. Oksana began working to bring her family to Canada as refugees, a process complicated by the fact that her grandmother didn’t have a passport or other personal identification. Meanwhile Emre wondered if there might be a place for Misha at Kalesnikoff. He was a skilled professional with 25 years as an electrical and technical officer on ships. “I just made Chris Kalesnikoff aware of it, and then he gave us a chance,” says Emre. 

Misha is now an electrical assistant on Kalesnikoff’s resource team. …While other relatives escaped to Poland, the family still has cousins and friends in Ukraine. Most are in rural areas where it’s safer, but some remain in the cities. “They’re not afraid,” Misha says. His brother-in-law tells him, “If we die, we die. If we live, we live.” Emre explains: “If fear is preventing you from living your life, you stop being afraid … They just live with that fact. It’s unbelievable to me too but I can kind of relate.” …Misha expects the war to drag on for another year or two, with recovery efforts stretching well into the future, so the family is settling in the Kootenays for the long haul.

Our 2021 Sustainability report was released on July 27, 2022. It outlines our environmental, social and governance (ESG) performance for the past year. Sustainability has been a central principle at West Fraser since our company was founded more than 65 years ago. Over the years, our approach has continued to evolve to reflect who we are and what we value as an organization.  “In 2021, we took important steps toward becoming a sustainability leader, and today we are sharing our progress with the release of our 2021 Sustainability Report,”  said Ray Ferris, West Fraser’s President & CEO. “We understand the importance, and necessity, of doing the right thing for the environment, our communities and our employees while sustainably and profitably growing our business.  We are proud of our past, but even more excited about our future.” We welcome you to view the report and the progress we’ve made toward our goal of becoming a leader in sustainability.

Our 2021 Sustainability Report tells the story of a pivotal year of growth for West Fraser. We worked to embed a shared culture of sustainability and credible elevation of environmental and social considerations in our business decisions across a newly formed organization. It was a year in which we learned from new colleagues, established new goals, and developed and implemented strategies to achieve our sustainability ambitions. Looking ahead, we will continue to focus on climate action, our people, our communities, safety performance, meaningful Indigenous relations and sustainable forest management.

In November 2021, the Provincial Government announced its intention to work in partnership with indigenous communities to temporarily defer the harvest of British Columbia most rare, unique, and at-risk old growth forests. …Unfortunately, though well intended, the roll-out of the old growth deferral strategy has been poor and has left Indigenous groups, our community and the local forest industry in a state of flux with uncertainty and some unrealistic short-term expectations by some. Over the past six months, the forest industry has been working hard to limit or completely avoid its impacts to the proposed old growth deferral areas. These changes have not been insignificant and have led to major disruption to operations, shutdowns for contractors, and the loss of a number of well-paying industry jobs in our community.

It is not a case of ‘talk and log’ but a case of identifying clearly understood time periods and objectives and developing a plan together to get to where we collectively want to get to. It is about balance. …We believe this community, working in collaboration with the Indigenous title holders, can show how complex planning processes can be done together. Respect and trust will be critical. To get it wrong will have a long-lasting negative impact on our environment and our community.

Biophilic design is proven to provide substantial therapeutic benefits that expedite healing and recovery. Wood, such as Real Cedar, is essential when it comes to designing health care facilities. The BC Cancer design team is building a new Supportive Care Centre that will include Real Cedar features, providing the calming effects of warm, soothing cedar throughout the building, creating an environment where patients will be more receptive to the many healing services the centre has to offer. From the time of diagnosis and up to 18 months after treatment, patients can receive support by the center’s dedicated healthcare professionals. The Western Red Cedar Lumber Association (WRCLA) is proud to provide the materials to help make this vision of holistic healing a reality. WRCLA invites our partners to join us in this initiative. All funds raised through this initiative will support the establishment of a stand-alone Supportive Care Clinic at BC Cancer – Vancouver. DONATE TODAY!

Nick Arkle

Arkle said that Downie has adapted to many changes since it was purchased in 1990, including pivoting to different markets over the years, such as the Middle East, Europe and Japan, and the U.S. The change has affected the species of trees they milled. Arkle said the current challenge to adapt to is changes to B.C. old growth policy and also changes brought by the B.C. government’s work to implement the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples in the province. “This is where the impact is on Downie Timber. It’s what does the future look like, what kind of volumes are going to be available to us? What’s going to be the cost of accessing those volumes?” Arkle asked, saying there is a need for predictability, which they don’t have now. 

Arkle said the planning process for harvesting takes about two years, making it challenging to adapt to sudden policy changes. …Arkle said Downie is working on bringing together an Indigenous and community-led effort. “It really is about getting First Nations with us, looking at the local data, using Indigenous knowledge, getting the experts, sitting down together and figuring out how we can identify what really are meaningful deferrals, and not just a blanket deferral on anything that has a colour on a map.” …Arkle acknowledge changes in “social license” around old growth harvesting, saying the company wants to work with parties involved to come up with a plan. “We have to work with our communities, we have to work with our Indigenous leadership and communities to come up with that balanced plan for the future, because it’s too important not to get right.”

Canfor was selected by Parks Canada through a competitive bid process to undertake a large-scale mechanical fuel reduction program on Pyramid Bench in Jasper National Park over winter 2018 – 2019. The project was designed to reduce the risk of severe wildfire impacting the town of Jasper, which had increased substantially due to the recent mountain pine beetle outbreak in the surrounding forest. The program demonstrated that mechanical harvesting can be successfully used as a tool to reduce forest fuels in environmentally sensitive locations with high recreational use adjacent to communities.

Parks Canada contracted Canfor to reduce the amount of dead and dying trees in mountain pine beetle affected forest at Pyramid Beach, watch a video about the Jasper National Park Fuel Reduction Program.

The Tree Frog News is pleased to present the full transcript of Susan Yurkovich’s Wrap Up at the 2021/22 COFI Conference. Susan is in a class of her own when it comes to putting on a major conference and simultaneously capturing the key highlights and lessons learned. As is past years, Susan’s summary is sure to be the most read story in Today’s Tree Frog News.

It has been so great to be back in person at the COFI Convention and we have had a fantastic couple of days with tons of food for thought. After a wonderful warm welcome from Elder Dennis Joseph, Minister Conroy opened our program and reiterated the hopes the Province has for the future of forestry here – one that is sustainable, inclusive and committed to reconciliation. She underscored the importance of working together because in her words, “no one knows better how this industry works than the folks in this room” and I’m sure we will all want to take her up on this invitation as we chart our path forward. We were SO pleased to have Tracy Robinson here in here first public address. The new leader of CN, she described the railroad as ‘the spine of steel that connects the North American economy’ and that spine is under pressure.  She acknowledged that in her words, the “business relationship with CN has been strained…”

This week, almost 800 business, government, First Nations and community leaders have gathered in Vancouver for the B.C. Council of Forest Industries (COFI) annual convention—the first in-person version of the annual event since 2019. Susan Yurkovich, President and CEO of COFI opened the conference noting her delight to be in a (real) room connecting with so many provincial, municipal and First Nation and industry leaders. Noting the many issues the sector faces as it emerges from the pandemic, Yurkovich said, “there are lots of good people here with big ideas on how to build a strong economy and brighter future for our planet, where B.C.’s globally leading sustainable forestry practices and low-carbon forest products can play an outsized role.” 

Yurkovich introduced Squamish Nation Elder Dennis Joseph, who welcomed the delegates, and Vancouver Councillor Lisa Dominato, who spoke of the importance of the sector to city and the province. Katrine Conroy, Minister of Forests, provided an overview of her deep roots in the industry and the government’s vision for a “high value,” not “high-volume” forest sector. Recognizing that BC needs a “strong primary industry for secondary manufacturers to survive”, Conroy challenge the primary and value-added producers to get together on their own proposals for how government can provide more reliable access to timber and “get the right log to the right mill”.

Dennis Joseph

Lisa Dominato

Katrine Conroy

Susan Yurkovich & John Desjardins

The BC Council of Forest Industries (COFI) kicked off their annual forestry conference—the first in-person version of the annual event since 2019— with a sold-out Ice Breaker in Vancouver. The two-day conference promises to be an outstanding event given the expected attendance of more than 750 delegates and high profile speakers such as Tracy Robinson, President and CEO of CN, BC Premier John Horgan and BC Minister of Forests Kristine Conroy. Susan Yurkovich, President and CEO of COFI opened the conference noting her delight to be in a (real) room connecting with so many provincial, municipal and First Nation leaders as well as the many firms and individuals that service and supply our mills. The event sponsor, John Desjardins, National Sector Leader, Forest Products at KPMG shared the stage, emphasizing the importance of the sector to KPMG—as auditors, tax advisors, forest certifiers and GHG reporters, and the importance of the conference as a place to create dialogue on the many issues facing the sector.

VANCOUVER, BC─Made from one of the most plentiful and renewable species in the province, www.PacificHemFir.com introduces a renewed commitment by the provincial and federal governments and industry to market BC Pacific HemFir products as a local, sustainable, carbon friendly building material. “There’s a reason why Pacific HemFir is called wood that works,” explains industry expert Rick Jeffery. “It’s strong, dense and durable, all-important attributes that make Pacific HemFir a high value wood with superior technical performance.” Pacific HemFir is 100% renewable. Grown and harvested within the context of British Columbia’s leading sustainable forest management regime, Pacific HemFir is a natural solution that helps mitigate climate change, locking in carbon over the wood product’s lifetime. Its cachet is only just beginning to be appreciated by professionals, looking for a low carbon solution in new applications and building projects, but together these qualities make Pacific HemFir an exceptional fit for most structural, appearance and industrial uses.

Western white pine is an important conifer species that produces highly prized straight-grained, non-resinous wood used in lumber and value-added products. Once prevalent in BC’s forests, this white pine species almost vanished when, in the early 20th century, an exotic pathogen called Cronartium ribicola was introduced into North America from Europe — killing up to ninety-five percent of Canada’s wild stands of western white pine. “This situation may become worse because climate change makes the race between trees and pathogens even more unpredictable,” said Dr. Jun-Jun Liu, a molecular forest pathologist working to save the threatened pines.

The disease caused by this fungal invader is commonly called white pine blister rust (WPBR), it attacks and kills white pines of all ages. The impact of the fungus has led the federal government to declare one native white or five-needle pines (whitebark pine) endangered in accordance with the Species at Rick Act. …Liu and his team at Natural Resources Canada’s Pacific Forestry Centre in Victoria, British Columbia are engaged in long-term research to identify and enhance a genetic resistance road-map. They screen trees with disease resistance in order to develop genomics-based breeding tools.