Canada formally notified the US and Mexico that it wants CUSMA renewed. In related news: Ontario municipal leaders discuss impending closure of Interfor’s Nairn mill; Canfor’s former Fort St. John sawmill has officially been sold; Robbins Lumber resumes production following deadly explosion; Fibre Excellence submits a bid to take over its mills in France; and Russia’s lumber industry struggles with weak demand. Meanwhile: mass timber legislation is reintroduced to Congress; Trump modifies some tariffs on steel, aluminum and copper; and pulp and paper educator and pioneer Dr. Michael Kocurek is dead at 83.
In Forestry news: the Syilx Okanagan Nation seeks protection for caribou habitat; a new analysis examines the economics of caribou recovery; questions are raised about the future of BC logging licences; Oregon forestry groups promote collaboration through Private Forest Accord; and former Australian scientists challenge the science behind native forest harvesting bans. Meanwhile: perspectives on Prime Minister Carney’s change of course on climate change; and Canada Wood reports market progress in Asia and Europe.
Finally, why Procter & Gamble, maker of Bounty and Charmin, hired a forester.
Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog News Editor
Canada has given the US and Mexico official notice that it wants the free trade deal between the three countries to be renewed. In a letter to his American and Mexican counterparts, Canada-US Trade Minister Dominic LeBlanc said the country is seeking renewal of CUSMA when it comes up for review on July 1. LeBlanc is in Washington Tuesday for a meeting with U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. All the signals from the White House over the past year and a half indicate that the Trump administration does not want a straightforward renewal of CUSMA and instead wants significant changes to its terms. …LeBlanc calls CUSMA “highly beneficial to each of our countries and to the integrated North American economy,” but goes on to acknowledge that the other countries may want to propose “improvements.” …Whatever happens on July 1, CUSMA is slated to remain in effect until 2036. 
FORT ST. JOHN, BC — After much speculation, the Canfor sawmill in Fort St. John has officially been sold to outside interests. Canfor media relations representatives confirmed the sale of the sawmill, planer, pellet plant and energy systems to Rocky Mountain Salvage on May 29th. Rocky Mountain Salvage is a scrap metal and garbage recycling company with interests in Hinton and Edson, Alberta. The financial terms of the deal were not disclosed. “Since announcing the closure of the Fort St. John sawmill, Canfor is working to divest the site and assets,” said Canfor. …The sawmill was announced as closing in September 2024, affecting 220 jobs, along with a facility in Chetwynd.
LOS ANGELES – U.S. President \ Trump on Monday signed a proclamation amending his Section 232 national security tariffs on some aluminum, steel and copper imports, the White House said. The proclamation lowers tariffs on some steel and aluminum derivative products, including certain types of agricultural machineryand residential heating, air conditioning and ventilation equipment to 15% from 25% previously. It makes mobile industrial equipment, such as bulldozers and forklifts, subject to a 15% tariff “when imported from trade deal countries that are entitled to such treatment,” the White House said in a statement. The order also allows foreign companies to qualify for a 10% tariff if “their capital equipment includes at least 85% U.S. melted and poured or smelted and cast steel or aluminum by weight.” …The changes will remain in place until Dec. 31, 2027 “to spur near–term investments that will rebuild the Nation’s industrial base,” the White House said.
The US commercial construction and wood products landscape has been undergoing a noticeable geographic realignment. …At the center of this transition are two powerhouse species that help define the market: Douglas Fir and Southern Yellow Pine. Understanding how manufacturers are positioning themselves around these distinct timber baskets might offer valuable insight into where resources are building the critical infrastructure for the next decades of commercial, agricultural, and residential construction in the United States. …While the West Coast navigates these supply bottlenecks, the American South seems to be experiencing a sustained wave of modernization and investment, capitalizing on robust regional resources. …Take for example the recent investments made by companies like Canfor. …The company opened a cutting-edge sawmill complex in Axis, Alabama, an endeavor that highlights the industry’s shift toward high-tech manufacturing.
Russian lumber production is rising despite deteriorating sales and falling exports, driving inventories higher as weak household purchasing power limits the domestic market’s ability to absorb excess supply, according to the monthly Russian Lumber Industry Insights report. Companies are trying to maintain production volumes, the report said, but warehouse stocks are rising because domestic demand is weakening. The ministry in May sharply reduced its growth outlook, revising GDP growth for the current year to 0.4% and to 1.4% in 2027, and reported that the economy contracted by 0.3% in the first quarter. …At the same time, the crisis in China’s construction sector has reduced import demand and intensified price competition. …Logistics costs for Russian suppliers continue to rise, the report said, further reducing the profitability of shipments. Taken together, weakening domestic demand, lost market share in China and higher transport costs are creating pressure on exporters and contributing to a buildup of stocks.
WASHINGTON, D.C. — U.S. Representatives Glenn Thompson (R-PA) and Andrea Salinas (D-OR) introduced the Mass Timber Federal Buildings Act. This marks the third consecutive year that legislation promoting mass timber for federal contracts has been introduced. This bipartisan legislation provides incentives for the use of mass timber building materials in federal contracting, giving timber and other forest products companies the ability to compete for construction, renovation, or acquisition of public buildings, and for military construction. The bill creates a two-tier contracting preference for mass timber and other innovative wood projects. The first-tier preference applies to mass timber that is made within the U.S. and responsibly sourced from state, federal, private, and Tribal forestlands. The optional second tier applies to mass timber products that are sourced from restoration practices, fire mitigation projects, and forest owners. Additionally, this bill contains a reporting requirement for a whole building lifecycle assessment. 
In this edition of Market Insights, you’ll find:
The Syilx Okanagan Nation is calling on the federal government to issue an emergency order protecting critical habitat for Southern Mountain Caribou. In a filing under Section 80 of the federal Species at Risk Act, the Syilx Okanagan Nation is calling for immediate and enforceable protections for habitat used by the Columbia North, Frisby-Boulder and Central Selkirk herds, which occupy areas within Syilx Okanagan territory in southern British Columbia. “The current provincial and federal recovery measures have failed to address ongoing habitat destruction and cumulative effects across caribou ranges,” Chief Dan Wilson of the Okanagan Indian Band said in a media release. … “The continued logging of critical caribou habitat is inconsistent with Syilx Forestry Principles and Standards, yet the province continues to authorize logging in these core areas,” Coun. Jordan Coble, chair of the Syilx Nation Natural Resource Committee said in a media release.
In 2024, the Tsay Keh Dene Nation and McLeod Lake Indian Band bought a logging licence near the town of Mackenzie from Canfor for $69M. …“It’s just a huge step to have some local Indigenous nations who are vested in our community step forward,” Makenzie Mayor Atkinson said. …But what if Canfor and others aren’t logging at rates close to what their licences say they can? If they sell such licences, what should those licences be valued at? And what role should the B.C. government play as the party that issues those licences and must approve any future sales? …Canfor, West Fraser and Western Forest Products alone control 39% of the timber that the government has firmly committed to logging companies. For decades, successive provincial governments granted logging licences to companies on the requirement that the public get something in return. The quid pro quo was that the companies would build mills.
MONTANA — The US Forest Service and the timber industry have effectively lobbied Congress to enact laws based on fire paranoia that cut the public owners of these forests out of the process. They want the government to build roads at taxpayer expense to while compromising the best remaining fish and wildlife habitat and quiet spaces. Upon a molehill of truth they have constructed a mountain of disinformation. Claiming an emergency, the Forest Service is fast-tracking commercial timber sales in ways that severely limit and exempt them from environmental analysis. …They are removing the administrative review and public objection process. The bad stuff for wildlife, fish and people including ugly clearcuts, road construction and reduced water quality are being frontloaded. The good stuff including stream restoration and road reclamation are back ended. If past is prologue, the latter will not be funded or implemented as the Forest Service shifts its priority.
