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The Tree Frog Forestry News
March 2, 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.
Canada built its forest industry for one customer. Northern Ontario knows the cost — and the way forward
By Jordan Solomon, president-CEO of Ecostrat
Northern Ontario Business
February 27, 2026
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada East
Jordan Solomon
Northern Ontario has lived the consequences of a forest sector built around a single customer and a narrow set of commodity products. From Kapuskasing to Dryden, mill closures and curtailments have forced communities into a cycle of reaction rather than renewal — responding to external shocks rather than shaping their own economic futures. … For decades, Canada built its forest economy around a single export market and a narrow set of commodity products. That strategy has now been exposed as dangerously fragile. …Ironically, today’s global uncertainty has created a once-in-a-generation opportunity. … Capital is mobile, and companies across the biofuels, biopower, renewable chemicals, and advanced materials sectors are actively looking for stable jurisdictions in which to build new production facilities. …Canada, and Northern Ontario in particular, should be well positioned to compete. …One of the most overlooked pieces of industrial infrastructure is investment-grade data and intelligence.
Where are Lumber Prices Heading into the 2026 Construction Season?
By Andrew Hecht
Barchart
February 27, 2026
Category: Finance & Economics
Region: Canada, United States
Lumber is a critical ingredient in new home construction, so interest rates influence the path of least resistance for wood prices. …Changes at the Fed favor lumber futures… the new Chairman, with the administration’s support, will likely favor reducing the rate from the current 3.625% over the coming months. Two factors favor lower rates. Inflation is currently below 3%, and the most recent Supreme Court ruling on tariffs could push inflation indicators even lower. …If the long-term rate follows short-term rates in 2026, demand for new 30-year mortgages and new homebuilding could increase, driving higher lumber demand and higher wood prices. …The daily continuous physical lumber futures contract chart highlights the bearish trend of lower highs. …I am bullish on lumber prices and expect them to break above the first resistance at $618.50, driven by seasonality and the prospects of falling U.S. interest rates.
BURNABY, BC — Taiga Building Products reported its financial results for the year ended December 31, 2025. …The Company’s consolidated net sales for the quarter ended December 31, 2025 were $359.6 million compared to $389.0 million in the same quarter last year. The decrease in sales was largely due to lower average lumber prices and a decline in sales volume during the quarter. Net earnings for the quarter ended December 31, 2025 decreased to a loss of $9.1 million, compared to net income of $6.6 million in the same period last year, primarily due to a $20.5 million non-cash write-off of goodwill and intangible assets related to Taiga’s subsidiary in Washington State. …The Company’s consolidated net sales for the year ended December 31, 2025 were $1,631.8 million compared to $1,634.4 million last fiscal year. Net earnings for the year ended December 31, 2025 decreased to $28.6 million from $47.6 million last fiscal year.
BC Wildfire Service staff welcomed home from Australia
By the Ministry of Forests
Government of British Columbia
March 1, 2026
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada West
BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) staff have returned to B.C. after supporting Forest Fire Management Victoria in Australia for the past month with wildfire-fighting efforts. “Our world-class BC Wildfire Service has once again stepped up on the global stage,” said Ravi Parmar, Minister of Forests. “As we prepare for the 2026 wildfire season, our BCWS crews consistently demonstrate exceptional skills, courage and professionalism wherever they’re called to serve.” On Jan. 25, 2026, BCWS deployed 37 people to the state of Victoria to help respond to the Walwa River Road fire and provide support in the Tallangatta Incident Control Centre. The team consisted of a 15-person incident management team, a 20-person fire crew and two agency representatives. …Ahead of this year’s wildfire season, B.C. continues work to keep people and communities safe by focusing on all four pillars of emergency management: prevention, preparedness, response and recovery.
University of Montana names first female dean of College of Forestry and Conservation
NBC Montana
February 28, 2026
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West
Libby Metcalf
MISSOULA, Mont. — The University of Montana has named Libby Metcalf as the new dean of the W.A. Franke College of Forestry and Conservation, marking the first time a woman has led the college in its 112-year history. Metcalf, a longtime UM professor, had been serving as interim dean. She also takes on the role of director of the Montana Forest and Conservation Experiment Station, a state agency focused on research and education tied to Montana’s forests, water and working lands. …Metcalf will oversee six academic departments and major research and education sites, including Lubrecht Experimental Forest northeast of Missoula and Bandy Ranch near Ovando. She joined UM in 2010 and is widely recognized for her work in natural resource management, student education and community resilience.
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.
BC Wildfire Service (BCWS) staff have returned to B.C. after supporting Forest Fire Management Victoria in Australia for the past month with wildfire-fighting efforts. “Our world-class BC Wildfire Service has once again stepped up on the global stage,” said Ravi Parmar, Minister of Forests. “As we prepare for the 2026 wildfire season, our BCWS crews consistently demonstrate exceptional skills, courage and professionalism wherever they’re called to serve.” On Jan. 25, 2026, BCWS deployed 37 people to the state of Victoria to help respond to the Walwa River Road fire and provide support in the Tallangatta Incident Control Centre. The team consisted of a 15-person incident management team, a 20-person fire crew and two agency representatives. …Ahead of this year’s wildfire season, B.C. continues work to keep people and communities safe by focusing on all four pillars of emergency management: prevention, preparedness, response and recovery.