Skeena Sawmills in Terrace, BC is closing down temporarily due to a lack of fibre and weak markets. In other Company news: Canfor wins right to use fingerprint technology; Resolute joins the Working Forests Initiative; Hampton sounds alarm on Oregon Conservation Plan; Domtar celebrates 175 years of manufacturing; and Simpson Manufacturing reports positive Q4, full-year results. Meanwhile; the aging housing stock is good news for US remodellers; and Russia all but cedes its eastern forests to China.
In Forestry/Climate news: Canada urged to double down on biodiversity agreement; the US Forest Service invests to lower fire risk; California researchers test wildfire fuel management; Maine to study the drought resilience of western forests; and the future of flight in a net-zero world means lots of biofuels. Meanwhile, SFI’s Black Faces in Green Spaces publication, and the CIF search for the Forest Capital of Canada 2024.
Finally, frozen frogs and butt-breathing turtles — how Ontario wildlife survive winter.
Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog Editor
The forestry industry is seeking a boost in funding provided for the maintenance of forest access roads. Ian Dunn, President of the Ontario Forest Industries Association, presented their case during a pre-budget meeting this week in Timmins. Dunns says the current allocation of $54 million is no longer adequate “Using inflation calculators, the program needs to be increased to $64 million annually to keep pace with inflation,” says Dunn. Dunn adds forest companies estimate an additional need of $20 million in unfunded forest road liabilities. He says this would include annual road maintenance, the replacement of aging bridges and water crossings, and the replacement of certain roads at the end of their lifespan.
Washington — Thanks to recent investments, the U.S. Department of Agriculture’s Forest Service is poised to take bigger, broader steps to confront the wildfire crisis and combat the impacts of climate change on the nation’s forests and grasslands, communities and critical infrastructure. In January 2022, the Forest Service released its 10-Year Wildfire Crisis Strategy to treat large landscapes and begin the process of lowering fire risk to communities, critical infrastructure and natural resources. This science-based strategy for confronting the wildfire crisis focuses on the 250 highest-risk firesheds for communities in the western U.S. and serves as the anchor for the more than $10 billion provided by Congress through President Biden’s Bipartisan Infrastructure Law and the Inflation Reduction Act. The agency also released a Climate Adaptation Plan, identifying risks and critical adaptation actions to incorporate climate change into its operations and decisions to support communities and forests nationwide. 
Resolute is pleased to join the 
UK – A shortage of foresters has prompted the government to launch free courses as it rushes to meet targets for tree planting. There will be training in chainsaw maintenance, coppicing, woodland management, hedge laying and the sale and marketing of timber. The Institute of Chartered Foresters said in November 2021 that the industry faced a shortfall of 10,000 trained workers. Without those positions being filled, the government will not be able to meet its climate goals of increasing woodland cover. The government has promised to increase England’s woodland cover from 14.5% to 16.5% by 2050, and tree-planting across the UK to 30,000 hectares a year by the end of parliament. The government hopes the courses will prompt people to consider a career in forestry, so the sector can grow and woodland goals can be met.
Several major airlines have pledged to reach net-zero carbon emissions by midcentury. It’s an ambitious goal that will require an enormous ramp-up in sustainable aviation fuels, but that alone won’t be enough, our latest research shows. …Several airlines are already experimenting with sustainable aviation fuels. These include biofuels made from agriculture residues, trees, corn and used cooking oil. Other fuels are synthetic, made by combining captured carbon from the air and green hydrogen, made with renewable energy. …Replacing fossil jet fuel with sustainable aviation fuels will be crucial, but the industry will still need to invest in direct-air carbon capture and storage to offset emissions that can’t be cut. …It could require as much as 1.2 million square miles of dedicated land to grow corps to turn into fuel – roughly 19% of global cropland today. …Efficiency improvements will help decrease the amount of energy needed to power aviation, but it won’t eliminate it.
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