The Newfoundland and Labrador government says its proposing to cut wood from a former birch reserve near Gander, despite concerns from cabin owners in the region. In a statement, a spokesperson with the Department of Fisheries, Forestry and Agrifoods confirmed the decision to open the area for proposals to harvest trees. “We are aware of concerns expressed by cabin…
The government department responsible for forest roads is replacing two bridges that were a barrier to reopening the mid-island highway route from Burgeo to Badger in central Newfoundland. The scheduled replacement of the two bridges — at Portage Lake and Otter Pond Brook, located on the Lloyds River Resource Road near the Burgeo Highway —…
Protesters at the Muskrat Falls hydroelectric project in Labrador were again blocking access to the work site late Wednesday in violation of an earlier court injunction. Nine people had been arrested early Monday after Nalcor Energy secured an injunction on Sunday forbidding obstruction of its main entrance. RCMP said they each faced one count of…
On Wednesday, National Bioenergy Day, part of National Forest Products Week, is the time the U.S. Forest Service is emphasizing the importance of wood energy to Montana and to the entire country. Regional Wood and Biomass Utilization Coordinator for Regions One and Four of the U.S. Forest Service said the week and the special day…
As a trading nation, Canada has much to lose if protectionism — clearly on the rise in the U.S. and Europe — gains more ground. Protectionist sentiment reflects a misunderstanding of how trade benefits the economy. The benefit does not come from a mercantilist maximizing of the surplus of exports over imports. Treating exports as…
The one-year halt on the United States lumber industry’s ability to take legal action against Canadian softwood lumber producers passed last week, with no agreement struck yet. Last October, the most recent Softwood Lumber Agreement (SLA) of 2006 between the two northern countries expired, granting a one-year peace term for negotiations to take place before…
oday, Canadian Forest Industries published third-party confirmation that BC’s independent timber harvesting contractors are struggling the most compared to their colleagues across Canada. This national survey confirms the advocacy position the Truck Loggers Association (TLA) has taken for more than two years. “More than 25 contractors have had to seek insolvency protection in communities throughout…
The impact of the spruce beetle on Northern B.C. forests continues to grow, with areas impacted by the pest up 35 per cent in the last year. B.C.’s Spruce Beetle Project coordinator Heather Wiebe says the spread of the spruce beetle is concerning, but not as much as the mountain pine beetle’s rise was. “The way…
Just like the cedar they were carved from, new signs have rooted two communities together. Signs proclaiming the Monashee Community Forest were unveiled at the Splatsin First Nation and in Lumby Tuesday. “It’s a visual testament of the partnership between the Splatsin and Lumby,” said Rick Fairbairn, community forest president. The community forest, which began…
An external review of B.C.’s grizzly bear management procedures provided the province with 51 recommendations to enhance the system already in place. According to Minister of Forests and local MLA Steve Thomson, the province is now taking steps to improve its procedures in light of recommendations from the expert panel. The authors of the Scientific Review…