The Montreal Economic Institute says financial repercussions of softwood duties are 26 times greater for the US economy. In other Business news: CP Rail ratifies three labour agreements; Cascades wins Best 50 Award; International Paper releases sustainability report; Portland International Airport raises new wood roof; and Sappi North America rolls out a Girl Scouts science patch.
In Forestry/Climate news: Canada funds Indigenous species-at-risk efforts; Ontario fibre study shows potential for biomass facilities; BC’s RCMP remove old-growth logging protest camp; Save Old Growth blockaders pledge not to obstruct traffic; and Australia’s fire season is now 30% longer than 40 years ago.
Finally, the frogs will be celebrating Canada Day this long weekend. Back on the lillypad Monday!
Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog Editor
Sappi North America in partnership with the Girl Scouts of Maine, announced the national rollout of the Paper Scientist Patch program. The patch program teaches girls the science and technology of the pulp and paper industry. The first-of-its-kind program first welcomed Girl Scouts from around the State of Maine in 2017 to attend a paper scientist expo at Sappi’s Technology Center in Westbrook. Girl Scouts participated in activities aimed at teaching the science of paper, ranging from papermaking to recycling, and could earn their Paper Scientist Patch at the conclusion of the expo. With the addition of the Technical Association of Pulp and Paper Industry as a partner in the initiative earlier this year, the Girl Scout patch program has expanded. …The new virtual program is now available and accessible nationwide.
GATINEAU
FORT FRANCES – Ontario — New forestry opportunities have been identified for the Rainy River District, following a recent wood supply study. Boundary Waters Forest Management Corporation in Partnership with Rainy River Future Development Corporation and Atikokan Economic Development Corporation has conducted a Wood Supply Study on the Boundary Waters Forest Sustainable Forest Licence (SFL). The Purpose of the wood supply study was to examine the current harvest and procurement strategies being implemented… and identify where there are potential opportunities for new entrants and users for forest products. This included examining unutilized and uncommitted volumes, as well as opportunities in residual biomass volumes from ongoing harvest activities. As a result of this study, several wood opportunities… could allow for the expansion of existing facilities and the potential for new wood fibre facilities.
It is striking how often fire ecologists and climate scientists, when asked about conditions across the American West, describe half the nation as a “tinderbox.” …California’s spring was the most arid in its recorded history, which stretches back 125 years. These are conditions that fire loves, and much of the flammable West is still months from its seasonal peak. In the Southwest, though, the peak comes sooner, and the most spectacular fire of 2022 so far was sparked by those laboring to prevent fire disaster — via a “controlled” fire. …In its 80-page autopsy, the Forest Service offered a blunt self-assessment: We were blindsided by warming. …That doesn’t mean that climate change has made all prescribed burns unsafe, only that much more care needs to be taken in starting them, and that even then, risk cannot be eliminated entirely. [to access the full story a NYT subscription may be required]
Fire seasons are getting longer around the world – especially in Australia. A new study shows that, between 1979 and 2019, annual fire seasons have become an average of 14 days longer. In Australia, the fire season has increased from 100 days per year to 130 days per year. There’s also been a 56% increase in extreme fire weather days. The study is 
AUSTRALIA — New South Wales’ Forestry Corporation (FCNSW) has been fined $230,000 after destroying a bat habitat in the Dampier State Forest near Bodalla. It brings its total fines this month to more than $500,000. The new fines relate to logging in the area in May 2019, after FCNSW failed to appropriately mark the boundary of a known environmentally sensitive area, which was a roost for the Eastern Horseshoe bat. …Nick Hopkins from the Coastwatchers Association… was frustrating that it often took years for the breaches to be brought before a court. “If it was a private corporation that was proven to be unable to operate compliantly with its licence, it would’ve lost its licences years ago,” he said. …FCNSW senior compliance manager Linda Broekman said non-compliance was not a systemic issue.
As our first line of defence against greenhouse gas emissions, trees are also a powerful natural and proven carbon sequestration technology. With higher temperatures, changes in precipitation, rising sea levels, and intensifying weather-related disasters, the threat of climate change to humanity continues to grow. At the same time, Canadian industries, businesses, and individual households remain among the world’s worst greenhouse gas emitters. In 2020, Canada’s total GHG emissions were 672 megatonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent. To offset these GHG emissions, Canada would need to plant 11.1 billion tree seedlings and grow these trees for 10 years. [The Hill Times is available to subscribers only]
ALBERTA — The founder and CEO of Wild + Pine is building a company to maximize the use of a powerful tool to decrease carbon dioxide and mitigate the effects of climate change: the tree. …Chris Kallal told Faaiza Ramji on 
