North American housing starts fell in July with US starts down 12.4%—including a 9.9% decline in single-family; while US builder confidence remained low; and Canadian starts fell 5%. In other Business news: Canada and the US continue tariff negotiations; while a BC plywood producer, and a Michigan furniture maker say US tariffs threaten their businesses. Meanwhile: Jock Finlayson says tariffs aren’t BC’s biggest problem; Prince George wants a bridging to retirement program for Canfor workers; Northwest Ontario mayors lobby for forest competitiveness; and Louisiana’s timber industry is looking for a new path.

In Forestry/Wildfire news: Canada and Quebec invest $22M in wildfire resilience; the David Suzuki Foundation says forest management in Canada makes wildfires worse; Parks Canada released captive-bred caribou into Jasper’s wild herd; researchers say deer overabundance has changed BC’s Gulf Islands; Australia delays a key vote on its native forest carbon credits; concerns grow over biomass power in Japan; and researchers find small species remain missing from restored forests for decades. Meanwhile: major wildfire updates from Summerland and Revelstoke, BC, California, and Utah.

Finally, Vaagen Bros. Lumber tells the story of its Small Log Revolution.

Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog News Editor