Daily News for June 28, 2024

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Today’s Takeaway

Suzano terminates talks to buy International Paper

The Tree Frog Forestry News
June 28, 2024
Category: Today's Takeaway

International Paper’s stock fell 9% on news that Brazilian pulpmaker Suzano terminated their acquisition talks. In other Business news: Stimson Lumber invests $50M to increase production; Weyerhaeuser sells 600 acres of timberlands; Ontario forest firefighters seek reclassification to increase wages; New Brunswick’s coal-fired Belledune plant may have a future with wood pellets; and severe weather continues to wreak havoc across the US. Meanwhile: the Cabinet Makers Association has a new board; and the Softwood Lumber Board released its Q1, 2024 Report.

In Forestry/Wildfire news: the US Environmental Protection Agency issued wildfire smoke information; Maine secures funds to foster resilient forest communities; the Churchill Falls fire threat diminishes; wildfires continue to ravage the Arctic Circle; Finland seeks to increase the GHG efficiency of its forests; and the list of internationally threatened species is up by 1000. 

Finally, the frogs will be celebrating Canada Day this long weekend. Back on the lillypad Tuesday! 

Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog Editor

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Business & Politics

Suzano terminates talks to buy International Paper

By Andre Romani
Reuters
June 27, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, International

SAO PAULO – Brazilian pulpmaker Suzano said on Wednesday it has terminated talks to buy International Paper (IP), adding the U.S.-based firm did not engage with the highest price it was willing to pay. Suzano, the world’s largest pulp manufacturer, said last month it was interested in assets owned by IP in an all-cash acquisition worth $15 billion. In Wednesday’s filing, Suzano said “it has reached what it believes to be the maximum price for the transaction to generate value” for itself, “without engagement from the other party.” “Therefore, Suzano will not pursue a transaction involving the acquisition of IP,” Suzano said. …A deal between the companies would be conditioned on IP abandoning its recently announced agreement to acquire British packaging firm DS Smith for $7.2 billion. Shares from Suzano are down 14.6% since the day before news of the talks broke until Wednesday’s closing, while IP shares are up 26.2% in the same period.

Related in the WSJ: IP Stock Slides After Suzano Abandons Bid Talks – IP shares fell 9% in early trading. Suzano’s rose nearly 14%.

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Stimson Lumber Invests $50 Million into New, High-Speed Sawline

Stimson Lumber Company
June 26, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US West

GASTON, Oregon – Andrew Miller, the CEO of Stimson Lumber, announced that the company will invest $50 million into a new, highspeed sawmill line at its Forest Grove, Oregon facility. The investment at the 95-year-old sawmill marks a significant upgrade and commitment to future operations at the facility and increased potential for private timber owners seeking new market opportunities for smaller-dimension timber, Miller says. Starting later this year, Stimson will begin preparing the Forest Grove mill for a 350-foot-long HewSaw line made by Veisto-Oy based in Finland. Miller said he expects the new sawline will be operational in early 2026 and that the existing line will continue operating without a lapse in production. …Miller anticipates production will triple when the new mill is fully operational. The current mill employs 90 people, but Miller anticipates the new technology will ultimately require fewer employees once operational.

Related in Oregon Live: Stimson plans upgrade to increase production from younger trees

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Annual election results for Cabinet Makers Association

By Dakota Smith
The Woodworking Network
June 27, 2024
Category: Business & Politics
Region: United States, US East

Hans Parker

GRAND RAPIDS, Michigan — The Cabinet Makers Association (CMA) announced the results of the annual election for the organization’s board of directors and the installment of its officers. The general members of the CMA elected Amy Thrasher Price of D&H Cabinets (Lindale, Texas) and Kolin Veldman of K&S Woodworks (Lynden, Washington) as new board members. …Earlier this year, Hans Parker of Board Foot Co. (Kalamazoo, Michigan) took over the board position from Brian Clancy of Clancy Woodworking (Sherman, Connecticut), who resigned due to other commitments. The following officers will remain in their appointed roles until June 30, 2025: 

•    President: Randy Niewind, Randy’s Cabinets & Woodworks (Grand Rapids, Minnesota) 
•    Vice President: Lois Snyder of Periwinklers (Tarpon Springs, Florida)  
•    Treasurer: Terry Steffey of Dibbleville Woodworks (Fenton, Mchigan) 
•    Secretary: Gregory Paolini of Gregory Paolini Design (Canton, North Carolina)  

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Wood, Paper & Green Building

Lytton, B.C., rebuild continues three years after wildfire destroyed most of town

The Journal of Commerce
June 27, 2024
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: Canada, Canada West

LYTTON, B.C. – Three years after a wildfire destroyed much of the British Columbia village of Lytton, the tiny Fraser Canyon community is still struggling to get back on its feet. Mayor Denise O’Connor told a news conference Tuesday ahead of the anniversary that there’s good news, with the first building permit being issued for a grocery store, but bad news too, with some residents deciding not to return to rebuild their lives. She said the community had about 200 residents before the wildfire destroyed 90 per cent of the structures in the downtown core and it is now home to far fewer people. …But despite the barriers facing Lytton, O’Connor cited rebuilding progress over the past year. That has included 13 residential and two commercial building permits being issued, the opening of a temporary village office, the restoration of municipal water and sewer infrastructure.

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The SLB Q1 Report Highlights Work to Deliver Long-Term, Sustainable Growth in Demand for Softwood Lumber Products

The Softwood Lumber Board
June 27, 2024
Category: Wood, Paper & Green Building
Region: United States

The SLB published its Q1 2024 Report, highlighting how its funded programs delivered strong, measurable results, expanding markets and driving incremental lumber demand. Through its programs and partnerships, the SLB is leading the industry’s efforts to deliver long-term, sustainable growth in demand for softwood lumber products.

Key highlights include:

  • 431 MM BF of incremental demand generated, which has a carbon benefit of 1.1 MM metric tons of CO2 stored and avoided.
  • WoodWorks directly influenced 87 projects and indirectly influenced 332 projects in Q1. 
  • SLB Education continues to play an important role in expanding market share for wood products among the next wave of AEC professionals. 
  • The American Wood Council advocates for code change proposals that would make mass timber more cost-competitive with other materials.
  • Think Wood resources produced 300 new contacts and 20 project leads sent to WoodWorks.
  • The SLB partnership with Super Bowl star-turned-designer Michael Bennett’s firm Studio Kër amplifies messaging.

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Forestry

Expansion of the emerald ash borer regulated areas into British Columbia

By the Canadian Food Inspection Agency
Cision Newswire
June 28, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

OTTAWA, ON – The Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) has updated its regulated areas for emerald ash borer (Agrilus planipennis) to include an area in British Columbia, in an effort to slow the insect’s spread. The regulated area in British Columbia includes the City of Vancouver, the University of British Columbia campus and the University Endowment Lands. This is the first expansion of the EAB regulated area in British Columbia. The emerald ash borer is most commonly spread through the movement of firewood and other infested ash wood products, although it can also spread by flying up to 10 kilometers. Effective immediately, ash material (such as logs, branches and woodchips) and all species of firewood cannot be moved outside of the regulated area without permission from the CFIA. If you need to move ash material, please contact your local CFIA office to request written authorization.

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Forest Enhancement Society of BC project updates

Forest Enhancement Society of BC
June 28, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West
In this newsletter:
  • Minister of Forests, Bruce Ralston, shares insights on why FESBC is crucial to B.C.’s forests. 
  • BC Forest Safety Council – Tips to prepare for emergencies.
  • CFI: Regrowth and Renewal: First Nations and Industry Collaboration. 
  • City of Kimberley makes progress in reducing wildfire risk. 
  • FESBC is accepting funding applications for wildfire risk reduction and fibre utilization projects.
  • FESBC-hosted virtual information session for proponents interested in applying for FESBC funding.
  • Meet our newest team member, Operations Manager, Travis Emsland.
  • FESBC seeks Executive Director.
  • Faces of Forestry – John Massier.

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West Boundary Community Forest opens outdoor classroom

By Karen McKinley
The Grand Forks Gazette
June 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Students in the Boundary Region have a new place to learn about forestry, local ecology, the environment and the history of the region directly from nature. After years of hard work and pandemic-related delays, West Boundary Community Forest (WBCF) held a grand opening for its Outdoor Classroom at its Outdoor Education Centre on the south end of Wilgress Lake on Wednesday afternoon. Dignitaries, teachers and WBCF board partners cut the ribbon on the completed pavilion and toured the centre’s grounds while students were conducting water bug identification and analysis projects. It was a special day for WBCF master forester Dan Macmaster, who said he was a little emotional seeing the classroom being recognized and appreciated. While considered the leader of the education centre, he said there are many members that helped make this classroom and the centre as a whole accessible and a reality for students.

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The Real Reason Tree Planters Work Like Demons

By Alana Lettner
The Tyee
June 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada West

Several weeks ago, early into my seventh tree planting season, I learned that my grandmother was dying. …I got into a work truck, went to the block and started planting. But during my first bag-up, it was clear that I was in no state to work. When my crew boss came to check my trees a few hours later, I told her about what was happening. The first thing she said was that I didn’t need to work; our block was just a seven-minute drive from camp and she could arrange to have me picked up. So that’s what I did. …But even with all this support from management, I still found it difficult to let myself stop working. Part of this stems from the nature of seasonal work. The planting season in interior B.C. is four months long at most so each workday really counts.

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Ontario needs more forest firefighters and Ford is sitting on his hands while fires rage

Ontario NDP
June 26, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada East

QUEEN’S PARK – Wildfires are raging in Ontario, and the province is short-staffed by 25%, but Doug Ford and his government are backing away from an earlier commitment to reclassify Wildland Firefighters to Firefighters. “It’s peak wildfire season and the province doesn’t have enough forest firefighters to send to each burning location. That means we are choosing which fires to put out and which will keep burning, risking nearby communities,” said NDP MPP and critic for Natural Resources and Forestry Guy Bourgouin (Mushkegowuk—James Bay). Along with OPSEU, NDP MPPs Bourgouin, WSIB and Injured Workers critic Lise Vaugeois (Thunder Bay—Superior North), and Labour critic, Jamie West (Sudbury) have repeatedly called on the government for this change. This reclassification will make them eligible for better wages and benefits that match the risks and responsibilities of this essential and dangerous job. 

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Ontario forest firefighters call for new job classification, better pay

CBC News
June 28, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: Canada, Canada East

The union representing Ontario’s forest firefighters wants their job titles reclassified, which they say could result in higher pay and bolster recruitment and retention among their ranks. Noah Freedman, the vice-president of OPSEU Local 703, says the province currently classifies forest firefighters as resource technicians. He says that role does not properly recognize the dangerous work forest firefighters do… nor allow them to recruit and train young firefighters for the long term. “If the government were to reclassify us as wildland firefighters, then we would be compensated appropriately for the dangers we face and toxins we breathe,” he said. The starting pay for resource technicians in Ontario is currently $25 an hour. …Caroline Mulroney, the president of the Treasury Board, said an organizational review of firefighting classification by the Ontario Public Service is currently underway.” No timeline for the review was provided.

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Severe weather wreaks havoc across the US — from Midwest flooding to deadly Northeast storms

By Hannah Fingerhut and Margery Beck
The Associated Press
June 28, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: United States

OMAHA, Nebraska — Severe weather over days has caused havoc and destruction across the U.S. That includes torrential rains and flooding in the Upper Midwest and powerful storms in the Northeast that left a least two people dead from falling trees. The deadly storms that raked parts of the Northeast late Wednesday into early Thursday spun off tornadoes and initially left some 250,000 customers in the region without power. …High winds of up to 70 mph brought down power lines and trees and damaged some homes and other structures in the area. …The storms came on the heels of widespread flooding in parts of the Midwest after days of torrential rains soaked the area. …Flooding is attributed to at least two deaths — one in Iowa and one in South Dakota. …Here is where weather events stand in the U.S. and what’s expected in the coming days.

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From ‘forest by forest’ approach, Forest Service proposal would provide ‘consistent guidance’ for old-growth conservation

By Murphy Woodhouse
Boise State Public Radio News
June 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

…Advocates say there’s currently no national policy to protect mature and old-growth forests on public lands, but a new proposed nationwide forest plan amendment from the U.S. Forest Service would change that. A draft environmental impact statement (EIS) was issued on the proposal last week. A recent federal inventory determined that the Bureau of Land Management and the Forest Service together manage some 32 million acres of old-growth forest, with another 80 million acres of mature forests. …Some say the current approach to old-growth protection is piecemeal, or “forest by forest.” So a number of environmental groups called the Forest Service’s proposal “a step in the right direction.” …The timber industry has also raised issues with the proposal, with the American Forest Resource Council calling it a “politically driven process.” The group said the proposal does little to address the principal threats to old-growth, like wildfires, insect infestations and disease.

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‘Zero tolerance’ for fires at Rainbow Family Gathering in Plumas Nat. Forest

By Kelli Saam
Action News Now
June 26, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

QUINCY, California – Nearly three dozen federal law enforcement officers have been assigned to monitor the Rainbow Family Gathering. This unauthorized gathering could bring thousands to Plumas National Forest in the days leading up to the 4th of July. …This large unauthorized gathering is happening about 5 miles north of Antelope Lake in Plumas County, just west of Janesville. The Plumas National Forest held a virtual meeting Tuesday night sharing photos of this gathering and past gatherings. The Rainbow Family Gathering is a counter-culture group that began in the 1970s and sets up camp in a different national forest each year.  There are currently more than 516 people participating. Between now and July 4th that number could grow to 10,000. Forest Service officials said there are 177 vehicles on site and they expect the impacted area and roads to cover 900 acres. Residents are concerned about the impact on the environment and the fire danger in the forest. 

Additional coverage in SFist, by Jay Barmann: Rainbow Family Gathering Ordered Out of National Forest For First Time, Threatened With Fines

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Weyerhaeuser Sells 600 Acres of Timberlands in King County for $25.6 Million

By Kate Snyder
The Registry – Pacific Northwest Real Estate
June 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US West

WASHINGTON — A swath of timberlands in King County has traded hands, according to public property records. The land was sold by an entity affiliated with the Weyerhaeuser Company for $25.6 million. Industry reports show that the deal appears to have included more than 600 acres of land. The buyer was an entity affiliated with Oregon-based Green Canyon Timberlands LLC, which is affiliated with Chinook Forest Partners… a capital investment management group focused on forestland. The company manages working forestland in the Pacific Northwest. …In 2021, Weyerhaeuser sold 145,000 acres of timberland for $266 million to Hampton Lumber, according to previous reporting from The Registry. The land in that deal consisted of “high-quality” forestlands spread out across Whatcom, Skagit, Snohomish, King, Chelan and Kittitas counties.

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$16 million in grants awarded to strengthen Minnesota’s community forests

Minnesota Department of Natural Resources
June 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US East

The Minnesota Department of Natural Resources has announced that 81 communities will be receiving a collective $16 million through the ReLeaf Community Forestry Grants and the Shade Tree Bonding Grants, marking a significant investment in community forestry. These grants underscore Minnesota’s commitment to addressing emerald ash borer and other invasive pests while fostering climate-resilient communities. …These projects will have a positive impact on community forest health, environmental equity, and overall well-being. They will help replace, diversify, and strengthen Minnesota’s urban tree canopy, increase the urban canopy’s resiliency, and help with climate mitigation through carbon storage and the cooling benefits of shade trees. The $16 million awarded is a significant increase over the past grant cycles, and illustrates the Minnesota Legislature’s and Walz-Flanagan Administration’s commitment to preserving and improving community forests now and into the future.

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Forest-based economy, jobs focus of new university-nonprofit partnership

The University of Maine News
June 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: United States, US East

MAINE — A $7 million grant from the National Science Foundation will fund a four-year statewide collaborative project led by the University of Maine to foster resilient forest communities in Maine. Maine-FOREST, or Forest-based Opportunities for Resilient Economy, Sustainability and Technology, will expand the state’s research and educational capacity to connect human and ecosystem focused innovations and services. The project takes an integrated thematic approach to fuel the state’s forest-based economy and the rural communities it supports. Key foci of the project include artificial intelligence and informatics; wood-derived alternatives to plastic, concrete and more called cellulosic nanofiber bioproducts (CNF); rural and Wabanaki resilience; and economically diverse rural development. Maine-FOREST will ultimately nurture adaptive community resilience and strengthen the capacity of rural communities and the Wabanaki Nations to respond to current and future socio-ecological threats and opportunities.

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Finland’s environment minister calls for more sustainable logging

YLE News
June 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: International

Kai Mykkänen

Finland must initiate new climate measures across all sectors in order to achieve its goal of carbon neutrality by 2035 as stipulated by the Climate Act said Minister of Climate and the Environment Kai Mykkänen in the government’s annual climate report. …The land use sector, which includes forest industries, constituted a small net sink in 2023, meaning that it absorbed slightly more emissions that it produced. However, the pace is insufficient, the report says. …Although greenhouse gas emissions are decreasing, the carbon sink is nowhere near the level required to meet Finland’s target of carbon neutrality — mostly because of increased logging (war has stopped Russian imports). …”according to the current forecast models, the land use sector sink will only recover sufficiently if the level of logging falls significantly from the current level,” the minister said. The minister noted that no government in Finland has so far made decisions on limiting the level of logging. 

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List of threatened species grows by 1,000, but conservation efforts bring hope for some animals

By Taiwo Adebayo
The Associated Press
June 27, 2024
Category: Forestry
Region: International

Over 45,000 species are now threatened with extinction — 1,000 more than last year — according to an international conservation organization that blames pressures from climate change, invasive species and human activity such as illicit trade and infrastructural expansion. The International Union for Conservation of Nature released its latest Red List of Threatened Species on Thursday. …The list now includes 163,040 species. …Copiapoa cacti, native to Chile’s Atacama coastal desert, the Bornean elephant and the Gran Canaria giant lizard are among the threatened species, IUCN revealed. It is estimated that only about 1,000 Bornean elephants remain in the wild, according to IUCN analysis. The population has decreased over the past 75 years primarily due to extensive logging of Borneo’s forests. …In a contrasting tale, conservation efforts have revived the Iberian lynx from the brink of extinction, with the population increasing from 62 mature individuals in 2001 to 648 in 2022 and more than 2,000 now.

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Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy

Belledune likely to survive the end of coal in 2030, N.B. Power hearing told

By Robert Jones
CBC News
June 27, 2024
Category: Carbon, Climate & Bioenergy
Region: Canada, Canada East

NEW BRUNSWICK — Testimony at N.B. Power’s rate hearing suggests the utility believes it will be able to economically repurpose the Belledune coal fired generating station to burn wood pellets and avoid its closure in 2030 under federal carbon policies. On Thursday, Larry Kennedy, a U.S. based expert in utility depreciation issues, testified there is no need to shorten Belledune’s expected useful life for accounting purposes from 2040 to 2030 because it is likely it will be refitted to burn wood, which carries no carbon costs. …Fear the plant might have to be shuttered has hung over the region since Canada announced in 2018 a series of climate policies that include plans to end power generation from coal by 2030. …Brad Coady said the issue is still being evaluated, but converting Belledune to burn wood pellets has emerged as a leading option, largely because it allows the existing plant and infrastructure to continue in service.

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Health & Safety

EPA Recommends that People in the Great Lakes Region Prepare Now to Avoid Potential Exposure this Summer to Wildfire Smoke

The US Environmental Protection Agency
June 24, 2024
Category: Health & Safety
Region: United States, US East

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is encouraging residents in the Great Lakes region to be prepared for wildfire smoke this summer. EPA advises everyone to stay informed about local air quality and put plans in place to reduce their exposure to wildfire smoke and protect their health. …Fine particulate matter from wildfire smoke is the greatest health concern because it can irritate the eyes and the respiratory system worsening worsen symptoms of chronic cardiovascular disease and respiratory diseases such as COPD and asthma. Since poor air quality affects everyone, EPA encourages the public to modify outdoor activities and protect their air quality indoors too. Individuals and businesses can help by driving less, cutting energy usage and avoiding vehicle idling and outdoor fires this summer. …More  tools and information are available on EPA’s website, Air Quality Alerts from EnviroFlash, AirNow and AirNow Fire and Smoke Map.

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Climate change is bringing more ticks and tick-borne disease to Vermont. But it’s not the full story

By Abagael Giles
Vermont Public
June 28, 2024
Category: Health & Safety
Region: United States, US East

Patti Casey and Eliza Doncaster are part of the Vermont Agency of Agriculture’s tick surveillance team. …Over the last 20 years, ticks and the diseases they carry, like Lyme disease, have spread rapidly in Northeastern states, including in Vermont. Scientists say human-caused climate change is one piece of the puzzle, but it’s not the only thing driving their growth here. Blacklegged ticks, also called deer ticks, carry the bacteria that causes Lyme disease. But they also carry a suite of other bacteria, viruses and parasites that cause other illnesses. Natalie Kwit, the state public health veterinarian for the Vermont Department of Health, said people are now contracting these infections in Vermont year-round. …Climate change is one major driving factor of the upward trend in tick-borne diseases, said Rick Ostfeld, with the Cary Institute of Ecosystem Studies. Decrease in the winter freeze period increases egg laying. Suburban sprawl is also to blame. 

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Forest Fires

Hydro employees slowly start return to Churchill Falls, fire threat diminishes

CBC News in the Weather Network
June 28, 2024
Category: Forest Fires
Region: Canada, Canada East

As rainy and humid weather take a favourable turn in fighting raging forest fires threatening Churchill Falls, a Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro crew has been able to return to the plant. “We are turning our attention to planning and preparing for residents to return to the community,” Hydro said in a statement posted on its website early Thursday evening. About 750 people were ordered on June 19 to flee Churchill Falls, a company town that exists to keep Newfoundland and Labrador Hydro’s generating station running. The remaining skeleton staff were forced to leave this Tuesday, after a raging forest fire jumped the Churchill River and moved closer to the town and its power plant. Hydro’s evacuation order remains in effect, but plans are underway for when people could return to the town, the Hydro statement said. 

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Extreme wildfires have doubled in just 20 years – here’s the science

By Víctor Fernández García and Cristina Santín
The Conversation
June 27, 2024
Category: Forest Fires
Region: International

Recently, more than 70 wildfires burned simultaneously in Greece. In early 2024, Chile suffered its worst wildfire season in history. Last year, Canada’s record-breaking wildfires burned from March to November and flames devastated the island of Maui. And the list goes on. A new study published in Nature Ecology & Evolution shows that the number and intensity of the most extreme wildfires on Earth have doubled over the past two decades. Researchers at the University of Tasmania, first calculated the energy released by different fires over 21 years from 2003 to 2023. They did this by using a satellite-based sensor which can identify heat from fires, measuring the energy released as “fire radiative power”. …Importantly, these extreme wildfires are also becoming even more intense. …Burn severity  is also worsening in many regions… This new evidence underscores the urgency of addressing the root causes behind worsening wildfire activity, such as land cover changes, forest policies and management, and, climate change.

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Wildfires ravaging Arctic Circle – EU monitor

By Malu Cursino
BBC News
June 27, 2024
Category: Forest Fires
Region: International

Wildfires are once again ravaging the Arctic Circle, the EU’s climate change monitor – Copernicus – has reported. It is the third time in the past five years that high intensity fires have swept across the region. In a statement released on Thursday, Copernicus reported higher air temperatures and drier conditions in Sakha, Russia, which are rendering the ideal conditions for wildfires once there is a spark. Quoted by Russia state news agency Tass, the region’s deputy minister of ecology, management and forestry said more than 160 wildfires affected nearly 460,000 hectares of land up until 24 June. Scientists are concerned that smoke from the flames will hinder the ability of the Arctic ice to reflect solar radiation – which would mean both the land and sea absorb more heat. Professor Gail Whiteman from the University of Exeter told the BBC that the Arctic region was “ground zero for climate change”.

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Forest History & Archives

The role of animals in Vancouver Island’s early logging and mining history

By Kelly Black
The Discourse
June 27, 2024
Category: Forest History & Archives
Region: Canada, Canada West

Many museums and heritage sites on Vancouver Island feature displays about workers and the technology that aided resource extraction. But don’t forget that there was a time when horses, mules and oxen were worked by people to haul logs and coal. Animals laboured above and below the ground throughout the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries. Eventually, innovations in power generation and extraction methods replaced the need for animals and forced workers to adapt their knowledge and skills, relegating animal labour to old-timer reminiscences and history books. …“Drawing the logs from the bush to the skid-road called for the greatest exertion of ox-power, and a teamster who could common the unified action of 10 or 12 oxen was an animal psychologist of the first rank,” writes Nathan Dougan in his book Cowichan, My Valley, about the complex systems and special skills required for horse and oxen logging.

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