The US ambassador to Canada said Trump’s suggestion that the US may not renew CUSMA should be viewed as an invitation to negotiate. In related news: Senator Tuberville says Canada is undercutting Alabama’s lumber industry; and a hike in US interest rates is possible amid inflation and geopolitical uncertainty. Meanwhile: the cause of death is released at Washington paper mill tank implosion.

In Wood Product news: New Zealand studies prefabricated mass timber modules; and wood is showcased in two award programs: US WoodWorks, and the American Institute of Architects. 

In Forestry/Wildfire news: more debate over old-growth management in BC parks; the Cowichan River braces for another dry summer; US forest and wildfire research programs face funding cuts and relocations; and a new study says low-severity fire can reduce wildfire smoke impacts. 

Finally, scientists map the world’s largest living network—an underground web of fungi.

Kelly McCloskey, Tree Frog News Editor