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The Tree Frog Forestry News
November 24, 2025
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 8:30 am (PST) for the full line up of articles.
Dairy, whiskey, wine and steel: American industries weigh in on trade pact review
By Kelly Geraldine Malone
The Canadian Press in National Newswatch
November 21, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, United States
WASHINGTON — American industries ranging from whiskey makers and Wisconsin dairy producers to steel and automobile associations are weighing in on the future of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade. The continental trade pact, known as CUSMA, is up for mandatory review next year and the Office of the United States Trade Representative has been collecting input on the changes it should consider. CUSMA has been rattled by U.S. President Trump’s massive tariff agenda and many of the submissions urged the administration to restore duty-free trade. The Can Manufacturers Institute wrote to the Trump administration saying steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada are making their products more expensive and causing prices in grocery stores to increase. …The United States Steel Corporation said tariffs on that metal should remain indefinitely. The submissions provide insight into areas that could become irritants in looming negotiations on the critical trilateral trade pact.
BC Distinguished Professional Forester Bruce Devitt dies at 92
Victoria Times Colonist
November 22, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada West
Bruce Devitt
Shy of his 93rd birthday, Bruce Devitt passed away peacefully on Nov 8, 2025 surrounded by family. Born in Burnaby BC, Bruce grew up in Bridge River near Lillooet. Bruce graduated from the University of BC with a Bachelor of Science degree in Forestry in 1957. He was Forester in charge of Seed & Nurseries for the Province; he joined Pacific Logging in 1972; he was Chief Forester for Canadian Pacific Forest Products and executive VP of the BC Professional Foresters Association. …Bruce served as a director of Pacific Regeneration Technologies Management, and worked for the Provincial Forest Appeals Board and the Environmental Appeals Board. …Bruce received recognition from his fellow foresters in 1983 when he received the Distinguished Foresters Award. Bruce holds the Western Forestry Lifetime Achievement Award (1991) and the Canadian Forestry Achievement Award (1995). …In lieu of flowers donations to: Vancouver Island Prostate Cancer.
If I was PM, we’d have a tariff-free softwood lumber deal
By Andrew Waugh
The Telegraph-Journal
November 23, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada East
Pierre Poilievre says he’d succeed where Prime Minister Mark Carney has failed, and that New Brunswick’s softwood lumber sector would quickly get a “tariff-free” deal with the US if he was in charge. …Ottawa responded by releasing a financial aid package for the industry that includes up to $700 million in federal loans, “$500 million to supercharge product and market diversification. …Poilievre said that “one of my top priorities as prime minister will be to go down to Washington, get a deal on lumber, make the pitch that they will get more affordable homes if we can get tariff-free access to their market.” …MP Dominic LeBlanc sent a statement…. “In the coming weeks, we will take further urgent action, building on the significant support for the sector announced on August 5, 2025. In addition, Build Canada Homes, a new federal agency that will build affordable housing at scale, will prioritize the use of Canadian-made materials.
‘Cultural break’: U.S. senators say relations with Canadian neighbours are suffering
By Michael MacDonald
CBC News
November 23, 2025
Category: Business & Politics
Region: Canada, Canada East, United States
Angus King
The tariffs imposed on Canada by US President Trump have clearly caused economic pain for Canada, but a US senator from Maine says he’s more worried about how Canadians are reacting on a personal level. “Like any neighbours, there’s always going to be issues back and forth, and we’ve been fighting about softwood lumber for as long as I could remember,” Angus King told an international security conference in Halifax on Saturday. “But the deeper problem is the cultural break; the idea that Canadians don’t think of Americans as their friends and neighbours, but as adversaries.” The annual Halifax International Security Forum that opened Friday has attracted more than 300 delegates from around the world, including politicians, academics, government officials, military leaders and non-government organizations. …King said the lingering rift between Canadians and Americans is particularly troubling in a state that borders on New Brunswick and Quebec.
How building codes shaped material, social, and environmental landscapes in American cities
By Benjamin Schneider
The Architect’s Newspaper
November 21, 2025
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: United States
The Type V City by Jeana Ripple, a professor of architecture at the University of Virginia. Ripple examines how the spread of wood-frame “Type V” buildings shaped the economies, social relations, and well-being of five American cities: Chicago, New York, Philadelphia, Tampa, and Seattle. …Almost every American city contains neighborhoods dominated by wood frame construction–light, cheap, combustible, and requiring the lowest upfront investment of labor and material in the building industry. Known as a Type V (five) construction in the terminology of building codes, these buildings became ubiquitous in the American urban landscape thanks to the abundance of timber, housing affordability aspirations, and the adoption of a uniform code. …By examining the development of building materials and codes alongside the environmental, social, economic, and political context of each city’s development, Ripple reveals previously overlooked connections between the power structures underpinning regulatory evolution and the impacts that lay just beyond the frame of city builders’ priorities.
Invest in Visibility and Connection: The Value of Sponsoring or Exhibiting at the TLA Convention
By Sarah O’Dea, director of events
BC Truck Loggers Association
November 21, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West
For more than 80 years, the annual TLA Convention + Trade Show has been the premier gathering place for forestry’s top decision-makers. Whether you choose to sponsor the convention or exhibit at the trade show, your participation offers unmatched opportunities to connect, showcase, and grow your business. Unparalleled Networking: The TLA Convention + Trade Show brings together the leaders who shape the future of BC’s forest industry. As a sponsor or exhibitor, you’ll gain direct access to influential professionals—contractors, suppliers, government representatives, and business owners—all in one place. …Premium Brand Exposure: Visibility at the TLA Convention & Trade Show extends well beyond the event.Sponsors enjoy high-profile recognition before, during, and after the convention, ensuring your brand stays top of mind among key industry players. Tracey Russell, Vice President-Equipment, Inland Truck & Equipment Ltd. is a regular at the Convention, “We sponsor the TLA Convention + Trade Show every year because it’s one of the best opportunities for exposure and relationship building – connections that have made a lasting impact on our business and our brand.”
Return to sustainable levels key behind Annual Allowable Cut reduction near Vernon, BC
By Roger Knox
Vernon Morning Star
November 21, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West
The new allowable annual cut (AAC) for Tree Farm Licence (TFL) 49 near Vernon has been chopped. The cut, which is the maximum amount of timber that can be harvested each year, is now 150,500 cubic metres, and takes effect immediately. That’s a 26.2% reduction from the previous AAC. “That decision reflects a return to sustainable harvest levels following wildfire impacts in 2021 and 2023,” said the Ministry of Forests. “It considers updated land base and ecological considerations, including the removal of the Brown’s Creek area from the TFL, and reflects adjustments for increased riparian reserve buffers.” TFL 49 is held in the name of Tolko Industries of Vernon. BC Timber Sales also has volume apportioned. …“The new AAC considers current forest-management practices being implemented on the TFL for enhanced riparian buffers and retention of areas containing cultural heritage resources,” said the ministry. The chief forester’s AAC determination is an independent, professional judgment.
Pecking with power: How tiny woodpeckers deliver devastating strikes to drill into wood
Brown University
November 6, 2025
Category: Forestry
Region: US East
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — It’s one of nature’s mysteries: How can woodpeckers, the smallest of which weigh less than an ounce, drill permanent holes into massive trees using only their tiny heads? New research shows that there’s much more at play, anatomically: When a woodpecker bores into wood, it uses not only its head but its entire body, as well as its breathing. In a study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, a team led by biologists at Brown University reveals how woodpeckers combine breathing and whole-body coordination to drill into trees with extraordinary force. “These findings expand our understanding of the links between respiration, muscle physiology and behavior to perform extreme motor feats and meet ecological challenges,” said lead author Nicholas Antonson… The team studied downy woodpeckers, the smallest species of woodpeckers in North America, which populate forested areas throughout the United States and Canada.
EUROPE — Secure raw material availability is one of the biggest concerns facing the wood industries in the coming years against a backdrop of growing demand. With this in mind, the European Panel Federation has created a policy paper – Strategic Wood Availability, which charts ‘The growing gap between strategic need and ecological reality’. It is an important document that should elevate this important topic to a wide range of stakeholders, particularly policy makers in Europe. It’s a complex subject…and it is incumbent on the industry to have a good grasp of the issue and campaign effectively to ensure enough wood will be available in future decades. With wood-based panels being so necessary for uses in construction, furniture and design, while also having a great sustainability profile, it therefore follows that the industry needs to be supported with policies that are going to help it thrive.
Takeaways from the outcome of UN climate talks in Brazil
By Melina Walling, Anton Delgado and Seth Borenstein
The Associated Press
November 22, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: Canada, International
BELEM, Brazil — After two weeks of negotiations, this year’s UN climate talks ended Saturday with a compromise that some criticized as weak and others called progress. The deal finalized at the COP30 conference pledges more money to help countries adapt to climate change, but lacks explicit plans to transition away from the fossil fuels that heat the planet. …Leaders have been working on how to fight the impacts of climate change for a decade. To do that, every country had the homework of writing up their own national climate plans and then reconvened this month to see if it was enough. Most didn’t get a good grade and some haven’t even turned it in. …More than 80 countries tried to introduce a detailed guide to phase out fossil fuels. There were other to-do items on topics including deforestation, gender and farming. …”We started with a bang, but we ended with a whimper of disappointment,” said one negotiator.
Prince Edward Island’s $170M waste processing facility a North American energy marvel
By Grant Cameron
The Daily Commercial News
November 24, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: Canada East
A design team of more than 100 engineers and personnel is putting the finishing touches on plans for a new, $170-million waste processing facility on Prince Edward Island that will convert municipal solid waste and scrap wood into power for the province’s district energy network. The facility will be capable of processing 90 per cent of the province’s total black cart residential waste, diverting up to 49,000 tonnes of solid waste from going to the landfill annually. Energy from the plant and an attached wood biomass facility will provide power to connected customers. It’s an approach that has not yet been taken by any other energy-from-waste facilities in North America, with most incorporating either turbines or small hot water heating systems. …Using solid waste instead of sending it to landfill will lead to a savings of up to 908,000 tonnes of CO2 by 2052.
COP30 was expected to deliver a historic commitment to halt deforestation
Forests News, Center for International Forestry Research
November 22, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: International
While the summit launched new financial instruments and strengthened the recognition of Indigenous rights, the final binding text is conspicuously silent on the one commitment that matters most right now: a concrete, mandatory roadmap to halt deforestation. …The Brazilian Presidency pushed hard for two ambitious roadmaps: one to phase out fossil fuels and one to halt deforestation. The strategy was to link them, acknowledging the obvious: we cannot save the Amazon if the world keeps warming. …The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change process proved unable to digest the complexity of the forest–climate nexus. We have effectively moved from a consensus-based approach to a plurilateral one, where progress rests on voluntary clubs of nations rather than global law. …If the political outcome disappointed, the financial and rights-based elements provide a measure of hope: The Tropical Forests Forever Faculty—a mechanism that pays nations for standing forests as an asset class, not just for avoided deforestation.
COP30 pushes through uneasy climate deal that sidesteps fossil fuel concerns
Reuters in CBC News
November 22, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: International
Brazil’s COP30 presidency pushed through a compromise climate deal on Saturday that would boost finances for poor nations coping with global warming but omitted any mention of the fossil fuels driving it. In securing the accord, Brazil had attempted to demonstrate global unity in addressing climate change impacts even after the world’s biggest historic emitter, the United States, declined to send an official delegation. But the agreement, which landed in overtime after two weeks of contentious negotiations in the Amazon city of Belém, exposed deep rifts over how future climate action should be pursued. …After tense overnight negotiations, the EU agreed on Saturday morning not to block a final deal but said it did not agree with the conclusion. …Panama’s climate negotiator, Juan Carlos Monterrey Gómez, said “A climate decision that cannot even say ‘fossil fuels’ is not neutrality, it is complicity. And what is happening here transcends incompetence,” he said.
Indonesia’s BJA Group Plants 20 Millionth Gliricidia Tree in Push for Deforestation-Free Biomass
By Biomasa Jaya Abadi Group
EIN Presswire
November 21, 2025
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: International
POHUWATO, GORONTALO, INDONESIA — Biomasa Jaya Abadi (BJA) Group, Indonesia’s largest licensed integrated wood pellet producer, on Friday planted its 20 millionth Gliricidia (gamal) tree as part of its effort to expand renewable energy feedstock while maintaining legal and deforestation-free operations. The milestone reflects the company’s commitment to sustainable biomass production and highlights the role of the sector in supporting local livelihoods in Gorontalo Province. BJA Group consists of PT Biomasa Jaya Abadi (BJA), PT Banyan Tumbuh Lestari (BTL), and PT Inti Global Laksana (IGL). The tree-planting event was held at BTL’s planting block in East Popayato, Pohuwato Regency. BTL began planting Gliricidia in May 2022 and has since grown an estimated 20.4 million trees across roughly 4,080 hectares. The earliest plantings have reached about 8 meters in height with trunk diameters of around 8 centimeters.
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 8:30 am (PST) for the full line up of articles.
WASHINGTON — American industries ranging from whiskey makers and Wisconsin dairy producers to steel and automobile associations are weighing in on the future of the Canada-U.S.-Mexico Agreement on trade. The continental trade pact, known as CUSMA, is up for mandatory review next year and the Office of the United States Trade Representative has been collecting input on the changes it should consider. CUSMA has been rattled by U.S. President Trump’s massive tariff agenda and many of the submissions urged the administration to restore duty-free trade. The Can Manufacturers Institute wrote to the Trump administration saying steel and aluminum tariffs on Canada are making their products more expensive and causing prices in grocery stores to increase. …The United States Steel Corporation said tariffs on that metal should remain indefinitely. The submissions provide insight into areas that could become irritants in looming negotiations on the critical trilateral trade pact.
Pierre Poilievre says he’d succeed where Prime Minister Mark Carney has failed, and that New Brunswick’s softwood lumber sector would quickly get a “tariff-free” deal with the US if he was in charge. …Ottawa responded by releasing a financial aid package for the industry that includes up to $700 million in federal loans, “$500 million to supercharge product and market diversification. …Poilievre said that “one of my top priorities as prime minister will be to go down to Washington, get a deal on lumber, make the pitch that they will get more affordable homes if we can get tariff-free access to their market.” …MP Dominic LeBlanc sent a statement…. “In the coming weeks, we will take further urgent action, building on the significant support for the sector announced on August 5, 2025. In addition, Build Canada Homes, a new federal agency that will build affordable housing at scale, will prioritize the use of Canadian-made materials.
For more than 80 years, the annual 
Sponsors enjoy high-profile recognition before, during, and after the convention, ensuring your brand stays top of mind among key industry players. Tracey Russell, Vice President-Equipment, Inland Truck & Equipment Ltd. is a regular at the Convention, “We sponsor the TLA Convention + Trade Show every year because it’s one of the best opportunities for exposure and relationship building – connections that have made a lasting impact on our business and our brand.”
The new allowable annual cut (AAC) for Tree Farm Licence (TFL) 49 near Vernon has been chopped. The cut, which is the maximum amount of timber that can be harvested each year, is now 150,500 cubic metres, and takes effect immediately. That’s a 26.2% reduction from the previous AAC. “That decision reflects a return to sustainable harvest levels following wildfire impacts in 2021 and 2023,” said the 
PROVIDENCE, R.I. — It’s one of nature’s mysteries: How can woodpeckers, the smallest of which weigh less than an ounce, drill permanent holes into massive trees using only their tiny heads? New research shows that there’s much more at play, anatomically: When a woodpecker bores into wood, it uses not only its head but its entire body, as well as its breathing. In a study published in the Journal of Experimental Biology, a team led by biologists at Brown University reveals how woodpeckers combine breathing and whole-body coordination to drill into trees with extraordinary force. “These findings expand our understanding of the links between respiration, muscle physiology and behavior to perform extreme motor feats and meet ecological challenges,” said lead author Nicholas Antonson… The team studied downy woodpeckers, the smallest species of woodpeckers in North America, which populate forested areas throughout the United States and Canada.
While the summit launched new financial instruments and strengthened the recognition of Indigenous rights, the final binding text is conspicuously silent on the one commitment that matters most right now: a concrete, mandatory roadmap to halt deforestation. …The Brazilian Presidency pushed hard for two ambitious roadmaps: one to phase out fossil fuels and one to halt deforestation. The strategy was to link them, acknowledging the obvious: we cannot save the Amazon if the world keeps warming. …The UN Framework Convention on Climate Change process proved unable to digest the complexity of the forest–climate nexus. We have effectively moved from a consensus-based approach to a plurilateral one, where progress rests on voluntary clubs of nations rather than global law. …If the political outcome disappointed, the financial and rights-based elements provide a measure of hope: The Tropical Forests Forever Faculty—a mechanism that pays nations for standing forests as an asset class, not just for avoided deforestation.
Brazil’s COP30 presidency pushed through a compromise climate deal on Saturday that would boost finances for poor nations coping with global warming but omitted any mention of the fossil fuels driving it. In securing the accord, Brazil had attempted to demonstrate global unity in addressing climate change impacts even after the world’s biggest historic emitter, the United States, declined to send an official delegation. But the agreement, which landed in overtime after two weeks of contentious negotiations in the Amazon city of Belém, exposed deep rifts over how future climate action should be pursued. …After tense overnight negotiations, the EU agreed on Saturday morning not to block a final deal but said it did not agree with the conclusion. …Panama’s climate negotiator, Juan Carlos Monterrey Gómez, said “A climate decision that cannot even say ‘fossil fuels’ is not neutrality, it is complicity. And what is happening here transcends incompetence,” he said.