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The Tree Frog Forestry News
September 18, 2026
Category: Today's Takeaway
Hello early bird! We just want you to know that the news team is busy adding stories to this page. Be sure to check back at 9:00 am (PST) for the full line up of articles.
Province bets $5.1 million on a new future in biomass for former Espanola Domtar mill
By Jacqueline St. Pierre
The Peterborough Examiner
September 17, 2026
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada East
ESPANOLA—Three years after the machinery fell to silence at Espanola’s pulp and paper mill, the province is putting $5.1 million behind an effort to determine whether it can be brought back to life. …For Espanola and communities across the North Shore and Manitoulin, the stakes are considerable. …The province says a successful restart could restore 400 direct and 2,000 indirect jobs. Those jobs, however, do not exist yet. The current investment pays for the work needed to determine what reopening the mill would actually cost and what a modernized operation would look like. …What is being contemplated is no simple return to the past. Bioveld proposes restarting production at approximately 800 air-dried metric tonnes of pulp per day, alongside about 180 tonnes of specialty paper for medical and food applications. That would form the foundation of what the company calls “Pulp+”—an integrated forest bioproducts hub producing pulp alongside biocarbon, renewable fuels and clean power.
Ontario Investing More Than $2.5 Million to Protect Good-Paying Forestry Jobs in Thunder Bay
By Ministry of Forest and Forest Products
Government of Ontario
September 17, 2026
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada East
THUNDER BAY — The Ontario government is investing more than $2.5 million to advance major upgrades at Thunder Bay Pulp and Paper, as well as two additional projects in Northwestern Ontario that will increase the industry’s use of mill by-products and underused forest biomass. The upgrades will help increase the forest sector’s production and capacity, protecting over 700 direct jobs and more than 3,350 indirect jobs. This Forest Biomass Program funding is part of the government’s plan to protect Ontario forestry workers. …Ontario is investing more than $2.4 million to plan boiler and chemical plant upgrades at Thunder Bay Pulp and Paper, a critical anchor mill in Northwestern Ontario’s forest economy. …AUX Energy is receiving $92,500 to develop plans for a biomass-powered generator project that will increase energy security in Fort Frances. …Weyerhaeuser is receiving $32,650 for a study of production line upgrades to reduce costs while improving efficiency and product quality.
New Brunswick pulp mill ‘temporarily’ closing operations due to market issues
By Sean Mott
CTV News
September 17, 2026
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada East
A New Brunswick pulp mill that employs roughly 350 people is “temporarily idling” its operations due to market conditions. AV Group NB said the Nackawic facility will pause its operations by the end of October amid “continuing challenges presented by prevailing market conditions and broader macroeconomic factors.” …“The Atholville pulp mill facility of AV Group NB Inc. is not affected by this decision.” Unifor, which represents workers at the Nackawic facility through Local 219, says the decision will put 228 members out of work. …“This is a devastating day for our AV Nackawic members and their families who have built their lives around this mill, and for an entire community that has depended on this operation for generations,” said Unifor national president Lana Payne in a statement. Natural Resources Minister John Herron said he was “disappointed and saddened” by the news.
U.S. International Trade Commission Issues Final Report On Hardwood Plywood
The Decorative Hardwood’s Association
September 17, 2026
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States
On August 19, the U.S. International Trade Commission determined that the U.S. industry is materially injured by imports of hardwood and decorative plywood from China, Indonesia, and Vietnam. Now, the official report has been published. Next, the Department of Commerce will impose final duties. …Views of the Commission: Based on the record in the final phase of these investigations, we determine that an industry in the United States is materially injured by reason of imports of hardwood and decorative plywood from China, Indonesia, and Vietnam found by the U.S. Department of Commerce to be sold in the United States at less than fair value and subsidized by the governments of China, Indonesia, and Vietnam. We find that imports of softwood structural plywood downfall and in- scope stamped and certified softwood structural plywood from China, Indonesia, and Vietnam that are sold in the United States… are negligible and terminate those investigations.
US housing starts outlook turns negative through 2027 as costs rise
By Tyler Williams
Housing Wire
September 17, 2026
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: United States
Single-family housing starts rose in August but are down for the year and are expected to weaken even further, as homebuilders slow production in the face of higher construction costs and hesitant consumer demand. While total new residential construction fell 2.6% in August, this monthly decline came amid a steep 21.7% pullback in multifamily starts, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Housing starts, when accounting for both single-family and multifamily, slipped to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.275 million units, 1.2% below the August 2025 rate of 1.291 million units. On the other hand, the seasonally adjusted annual rate of single-family starts in August grew 7.6% to 918,000. At first glance, this monthly growth may seem to signal strength, but single-family starts between January and August were 4.9% below the rate experienced during the same period in 2025, reflecting a slowing construction pipeline.
Tallest mass timber student housing development in U.S. tops out
By Peter Fabris
Building Design + Construction
September 16, 2026
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: United States, US East
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The tallest mass timber student housing structure in the U.S. in Columbus, Ohio, recently topped out. The 13-story, 186-unit off-campus development, located near the Ohio State University, stands at 158 feet. INTRO Columbus spans 242,000 sf and will accommodate 493 beds. It marks the first mass timber project in Columbus. Mass timber construction using prefabricated glulam columns and beams, and cross-laminated timber panels enabled an accelerated project delivery schedule. Construction proceeded at speeds of two and a half floors every two to three weeks. Topping out occurred roughly 10 weeks ahead of the original November target, a gain the building team attributes to prefabrication and tight field coordination. …When completed, the building is on track to save 1,128 metric tons of carbon compared to an equivalent concrete and steel structure. The mass timber structure was manufactured and sourced by SmartLam North America in Alabama, cutting transport-related carbon emissions by about 55%.
B.C. expediting forestry reviews in Fort St. John, Fort Nelson after ‘catastrophic’ wildfire losses
By Matt Preprost
CBC News
September 17, 2026
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West
The B.C. government is expediting reviews of wood supplies in the province’s northeast, saying years of “catastrophic wildfires” and new Indigenous land and wildlife protections have caused “significant changes” to the region’s forests. Reviews of the Fort St. John and Fort Nelson areas will determine how much Crown timber is left for companies operating in the Fort St. John and Fort Nelson areas, and how much they’ll be able to cut each year. While the reviews come amid an escalating trade war with the United States and ongoing mill closures and job losses across the province, including the northeast, a local mayor and mill operator are welcoming their timing — even as they brace for potential cuts to existing timber licences. “We’re looking for certainty,” said Northern Rockies Mayor Rob Fraser, who says he has been asking for the province for review for at least four years.
Webinar series to explore big topics in B.C.’s forestry sector
By Josh Fischlin
The Kelowna Capital News
September 17, 2026
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West
Anyone with an interest in the forestry sector may be intrigued to learn that a free webinar series is coming up that will take a deep dive into the subject. The FESBC said in a press release that it is teaming up with the BC Rural Centre to launch a new four-part webinar series this fall, running from September to December. The series will be bringing together voices from across the province for practical, community-focused conversations about forestry and its connection to the communities directly experiencing changes in the sector, the FESBC explained. The free series will explore the subject through Indigenous perspectives, community experience, sector knowledge and personal stories. …Jason Fisher, a registered professional forester and executive director with FESBC, said forest management is closely connected to the economic, environmental and social well-being of rural communities across the province. …participants will be able to register for individual webinars or take all four in the series.
Workers take transit and forestry campaigns to the Union of B.C. Municipalities
By Ian Boyko
Unifor Canada
September 17, 2026
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West
VANCOUVER—Unifor members campaigning for stronger public transit and rebuilding the province’s forestry industry are seeking support from the thousands of delegates attending the annual Union of B.C. Municipalities meeting this week in downtown Vancouver. Unifor Locals 111, 114, 333-BC, 592, and 1119 are staffing a table in the exhibitors’ hall with research and proposals aimed at recruiting elected civic leaders into the fight for good jobs and stronger resource communities. “Small- and medium-sized communities are the backbone of B.C.’s natural resources economy. Rural communities in every corner of the province have felt the pain of mill closures and curtailments,” said Unifor National President Lana Payne. “We want to remind the elected officials in these regions that they have a partner in labour when it comes to revitalizing their local economy.”
College of New Caledonia, Lheidli T’enneh build forestry technology skills through hands-on boot camp
Prince George Daily News
September 17, 2026
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West
The College of New Caledonia (CNC) and Lheidli T’enneh First Nation are building on a growing partnership through hands-on training in emerging technologies used in forestry and natural resource management. CNC’s Natural Resources and Forest Technology team recently delivered the first portion of a remote sensing boot camp for members of the Lheidli T’enneh forestry department. The training introduced participants to tools and techniques including drones, LiDAR, geographic information systems (GIS), satellite and multispectral technology, GPS data collection and forest inventory. The boot camp was developed following a LiDAR workshop held at CNC earlier this year. After participating in that session, the Lheidli T’enneh forestry team approached CNC about an opportunity to explore the technology and its applications in greater depth.
Killing endangered wildlife is legal if they aren’t the target, new Trump rule says
By Matthew Brown
Associated Press in the Oskaloosa Herald
September 17, 2026
Category: Forestry
Region: United States
BILLINGS, Mont. — Killing endangered animals while logging a forest or building a dam would not be considered illegal unless the animals were specifically targeted, under a new interpretation of the Endangered Species Act by President Donald Trump’s administration that marks a sea change in how the landmark environmental law is enforced. A directive sent to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees this week says imperiled animals or plants must be intentionally targeted for their killing to be considered illegal. That’s a sharp turnaround from past practice at the wildlife service… Experts said the change would allow timber companies to log forests in the Pacific Northwest even if they knew that doing so could kill imperiled birds nesting in the trees…. …Under the new law, only people acting directly against animals, such as hunters, trappers, anglers and perhaps pesticide users would need permits, said Sandi Snodgrass, an attorney with Holland and Hart in Denver…
As the planet warms and forests burn, can we replant them with new trees that will thrive in the decades ahead?
By Katie Langin
Science
September 17, 2026
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West
COLORADO—Six years ago, forest ecologist Marin Chambers looked toward the mountains with trepidation as a massive plume of smoke filled the sky above the largest wildfire in Colorado’s history. In June, she looked for clues to what the future forest might look like. …There is no guarantee that this high-elevation forest will come back as it was before. Many of the spruce trees were dead well before the fire hit, victims of an earlier beetle outbreak. The massive blaze killed much of what remained, burning so fiercely that vast swaths of land within the 845-square-kilometer burn scar were left with no living trees, limiting the cone crop needed to seed the next generation. A changing climate could pose a further obstacle to recovery. …Already there are signs that forest managers can’t count on natural recovery. …To prevent that transformation, some ecologists have proposed employing a forceful intervention called assisted migration.
Governor Reeves Signs Shared Stewardship Agreement To Strengthen Mississippi Forests
By Tate Reeves, Governor
State of Mississippi
September 17, 2026
Category: Forestry
Region: US East
JACKSON, Miss. – Governor Tate Reeves signed an updated Shared Stewardship Memorandum of Understanding (MOU), bringing together the State of Mississippi with the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service, the Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS), and the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS). The Mississippi Forestry Commission (MFC) served as the lead state agency in developing the agreement. The MOU establishes a framework for state and federal agencies to coordinate forest management, align resources, and support locally driven priorities across Mississippi. By working across ownership boundaries, the partnership will help improve forest resilience, strengthen rural economies, and ensure the long-term sustainability of Mississippi’s forest resources. …Under the MOU, the USDA Forest Service will work with Mississippi to expand active forest management through prescribed fire, invasive species control, wildlife habitat improvement, forest product market development, Good Neighbor Authority (GNA) projects, wildfire risk reduction, and coordinated planning for natural disasters, research, and cultural resource protection.
Hello early bird! We just want you to know that the news team is busy adding stories to this page. Be sure to check back at 9:00 am (PST) for the full line up of articles.
THUNDER BAY — The Ontario government is investing more than $2.5 million to advance major upgrades at Thunder Bay Pulp and Paper, as well as two additional projects in Northwestern Ontario that will increase the industry’s use of mill by-products and underused forest biomass. The upgrades will help increase the forest sector’s production and capacity, protecting over 700 direct jobs and more than 3,350 indirect jobs. This Forest Biomass Program funding is part of the government’s plan to protect Ontario forestry workers. …Ontario is investing more than $2.4 million to plan boiler and chemical plant upgrades at Thunder Bay Pulp and Paper, a critical anchor mill in Northwestern Ontario’s forest economy. …AUX Energy is receiving $92,500 to develop plans for a biomass-powered generator project that will increase energy security in Fort Frances. …Weyerhaeuser is receiving $32,650 for a study of production line upgrades to reduce costs while improving efficiency and product quality.
Single-family housing starts rose in August but are down for the year and are expected to weaken even further, as homebuilders slow production in the face of higher construction costs and hesitant consumer demand. While total new residential construction fell 2.6% in August, this monthly decline came amid a steep 21.7% pullback in multifamily starts, according to data released Thursday by the U.S. Census Bureau and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development (HUD). Housing starts, when accounting for both single-family and multifamily, slipped to a seasonally adjusted annual rate of 1.275 million units, 1.2% below the August 2025 rate of 1.291 million units. On the other hand, the seasonally adjusted annual rate of single-family starts in August grew 7.6% to 918,000. At first glance, this monthly growth may seem to signal strength, but single-family starts between January and August were 4.9% below the rate experienced during the same period in 2025, reflecting a slowing construction pipeline.
COLUMBUS, Ohio — The tallest mass timber student housing structure in the U.S. in Columbus, Ohio, recently topped out. The 13-story, 186-unit off-campus development, located near the Ohio State University, stands at 158 feet. 
BILLINGS, Mont. — Killing endangered animals while logging a forest or building a dam would not be considered illegal unless the animals were specifically targeted, under a new interpretation of the Endangered Species Act by President Donald Trump’s administration that marks a sea change in how the landmark environmental law is enforced. A directive sent to U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service employees this week says imperiled animals or plants must be intentionally targeted for their killing to be considered illegal. That’s a sharp turnaround from past practice at the wildlife service… Experts said the change would allow timber companies to log forests in the Pacific Northwest even if they knew that doing so could kill imperiled birds nesting in the trees…. …Under the new law, only people acting directly against animals, such as hunters, trappers, anglers and perhaps pesticide users would need permits, said Sandi Snodgrass, an attorney with Holland and Hart in Denver…
COLORADO—Six years ago, forest ecologist Marin Chambers looked toward the mountains with trepidation as a massive plume of smoke filled the sky above the largest wildfire in Colorado’s history. In June, she looked for clues to what the future forest might look like. …There is no guarantee that this high-elevation forest will come back as it was before. Many of the spruce trees were dead well before the fire hit, victims of an earlier beetle outbreak. The massive blaze killed much of what remained, burning so fiercely that vast swaths of land within the 845-square-kilometer burn scar were left with no living trees, limiting the cone crop needed to seed the next generation. A changing climate could pose a further obstacle to recovery. …Already there are signs that forest managers can’t count on natural recovery. …To prevent that transformation, some ecologists have proposed employing a forceful intervention called assisted migration. 