US Paper makers say the EU deforestation regulation will disrupt markets; FSC seeks to support company compliance. In related news: Clearwater Paper is fined for a chlorine release; Michigan rescinds Billerud’s tax break; Smurfit Westrock makes its debut; and kudos for Louisiana Pacific’s CEO. Meanwhile, Minneapolis enters the biochar business, Russ Taylor opines on lumber markets; and ruminations on BC’s next forest minister.
In other news: Canada’s heat wave raises spectre of campfire bans; BC announces new rules for First Nations’ environmental assessments; USDA focuses on forest restoration, as industry warns of economic risks, and ENGOs call for more of old-growth protection; and creating a state-of-the-art showcase to tell America’s conservation story.
Finally, the wood wide web theory once charmed us. Now it’s the subject of a bitter fight.
Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog Editor
US paper makers are warning the EU that a new law requiring them to trace timber to its origins risks disrupting $3.5 billion of trade and raising prices for diapers, sanitary pads and other hygiene products. It will be impossible to comply with the pending regulation because pulp supply chains are too diffuse to track all trees, and there’s often a two-year lag between the time they’re cut down and when they’re turned into fiber. The US industry is a major exporter of “fluff pulp,” an absorbent material used to make personal products. American suppliers meet about 60% of the EU’s needs, so any interruption would reverberate throughout the 27-nation bloc. “The EUDR as is currently written will raise the costs significantly for US producers, and it will translate into inflationary pressures in the EU,” said Mark Pitts, at AF&PA. There have been some repercussions from the law even before it takes effect, with companies having supply agreements derailed, Pitts said. [to access the full story a Bloomberg subscription is required]
Forsite is excited to announce we are now part of the Barr GeoSpatial Solutions “BGS” group of companies. BGS is a leading provider of analytics and remote sensing to help manage and protect natural resources and critical infrastructure across North America. Other companies in the BGS group include Northwest Management Inc. (NMI) (Moscow, Idaho), Airborne Imaging (Calgary) and Barr Air Patrol (Houston). Forsite, a leading provider of forestry solutions in Canada including digital tree inventories, forest land management, fire modeling, and vegetation management for utilities, is excited to join the Barr group of companies. BGS’s advanced fleet of over 25 sensors and 50 aircraft, coupled with state-of-the-art aerial LiDAR, imaging, surveillance, and Al technologies, delivers invaluable data through sophisticated processing and analytics. Being part of BGS will provide Forsite the resources and market access to allow the expansion of our technology product offerings across North America and around the world.
Recent warm, sunny weather could be the start of a much-longer hot stretch “without a very obvious end to it,” raising concerns about wildfires, says an Environment Canada meteorologist. Victoria-based Armel Castellan told reporters Monday that even with typical July temperatures, residual moisture on the forest floor can be depleted in seven to 10 days. “That is the very strong concern as we go deeper into this week,” said Castellan, who said Environment Canada collaborates closely with the B.C. Wildfire Service at this time of year. …The outlook has changed, however, with recent rising temperatures, along with lack of rain in the immediate forecast. That means a campfire ban is now under consideration, said Coastal Fire Centre information officer Jade Richardson.
New rules for dispute resolution will help support settle conflicts between the Province and First Nations about environmental assessments, a significant milestone in the ongoing commitment to reconciliation and environmental stewardship. The Environmental Assessment Office’s (EAO) dispute resolution regulation offers predictable and clear avenues for First Nations to dispute decisions related to large projects that require an environmental assessment certificate. It provides an alternative to the courts to resolve conflict and support durable decisions, relationship and trust building, and can help avoid lengthy court battles. Access to dispute resolution is affirmed in Article 40 of the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples (UN Declaration) and is a procedural right for First Nations in the Environmental Assessment Act, which provides an opportunity for a qualified third-party facilitator to support the parties in consensus seeking and building good relations between governments.
Washington faces significant social and economic risks if anti-forestry groups succeed in persuading the Board of Natural Resources and candidates for commissioner of public lands to close an additional 77,000 acres of public working forests, including those in Lewis County. These working forests, known as Department of Natural Resources (DNR) state trust lands, are not just sources of timber; they provide clean water, wildlife habitat, climate change mitigation and recreational opportunities. The proposed closure severely impact public schools, local public safety agencies, public health services, universities and other essential community services. Under the state constitution and state law, DNR state trust lands must be managed to generate timber harvest revenues for defined beneficiaries, including public schools, local public safety agencies and various community services. This proposal to shut down working forests not only threatens these critical services, but also jobs throughout Washington, leading to negative impacts for the state’s infrastructure and economy.
SPRINGFIELD, Ill. — The U.S. Department of Agriculture’s (USDA) Farm Service Agency (FSA) announced that Illinois counties Marshall and Putnam are accepting applications for the Emergency Forest Restoration Program (EFRP) to address tornado and severe storm damages. Signup for EFRP will end August 5, 2024. “These programs help private forest landowners clean up and restore their private forests damaged by tornadoes and severe storms,” said Scott Halpin, State Executive Director for FSA in Illinois. “If you haven’t participated in FSA programs, contact your local FSA office as soon as possible to complete the process of establishing customer and farm records and to determine program eligibility.” EFRP provides payments to eligible owners of nonindustrial private forest (NIPF) land to carry out emergency measures to restore land damaged by a natural disaster.
BONN, Germany — The Forest Stewardship Council (FSC) announced the launch of FSC Aligned for EUDR, a new solution designed to support compliance with the European Union Regulation on Deforestation-free Products (EUDR). This offering aims to simplify the complex task of meeting EUDR requirements for businesses trading with forest-based products in Europe. FSC Aligned for EUDR will support companies that need to comply with EUDR through two key components: 1. FSC Aligned Certification for EUDR: Available from July 1, 2024, this add-on module builds upon FSC’s existing rigorous standards, incorporating specific EUDR regulatory expectations around risk assessment, due diligence, and supply chain transparency. 2. FSC Aligned Reporting for EUDR: Launching August 30, 2024, this automated data compilation system will assist companies in generating required due diligence reports and statements, as well as enhance traceability and data management across complex supply chains. For more information visit 
Sweltering temperatures stretching from British Columbia to the Ontario border have prompted hundreds of heat warnings, but it’s not as intense as the deadly 2021 heat dome in B.C., says a national warning preparedness meteorologist. Environment and Climate Change Canada said that while the “epicentre” of the heat is located in Northern California, it is expected to persist over much of British Columbia and into Alberta and Saskatchewan until about mid-week, after which it will move eastward. An unrelated heat wave has meanwhile sent temperatures into the 30s in Atlantic Canada.The weather office has issued more than 40 heat warnings in B.C., when more than 20 daily heat records were broken Sunday across the province. While Environment Canada says some of the heat warnings are expected to be lifted by Tuesday, particularly along the coastline and on Vancouver Island, other regions can expect the heat to continue longer.
