A prolonged commodities downturn has put a crimp on economic growth in the Thompson-Okanagan region, but there’s another, potentially greater challenge waiting in the woods. In its latest economic briefing, B.C. Central 1 Credit Union offers a bright overview of the province’s performance with strong gains in export sales in July. Export volumes were also…
Buried in the middle of the province’s new plan for making the forest industry more competitive is a commitment to make the so-called value-added sector exempt from export duties that might come in a new softwood lumber trade agreement with the U.S. “That’s the thing we’re really, really pleased that (Forests Minister Steve Thomson) is acknowledging,” said Russ Cameron, president of…
The Environment Department has meted out a penalty to Northern Pulp for exceeding the allowable emissions during a June stack test. “As a result of the mill’s non-compliance with the industrial approval, Environment staff conducted an investigation and served a summary offence ticket to the company in the amount of $697.50,” department spokeswoman Krista Higdon…
Ten months after Governor Brown declared an emergency because of the massive tree die-off in the California, the situation has gotten worse. The latest wave of wildfires adds to worry that many of our forests may disappear in the next few decades. Besides burned trees, millions more are being killed by drought and insects. It’s…
Tree lover Ira Sutherland thinks Metro Vancouver should do a lot more to showcase the giant trees in a large North Shore recreational area called the Lower Seymour Conservation Reserve. Sutherland, who has a masters in forest ecology, said he will suggest putting up viewing platforms when the region hosts an open house at Capilano…
Controlled fires could be ignited in Banff National Park later this week in hopes of preserving the long-term health of the forests, experts say. Six fires are planned inside the park this year, some as big as 6,800 hectares and some as small as 25. Erin Tassell, the acting fire and vegetation specialist at Banff…
A spruce budworm outbreak in Quebec could kill off trees spanning an area the size of New Brunswick in the next few years and fuel more forest fires, according to Natural Resources Canada. Yan Boulanger, a research scientist with the Laurentian Forestry Centre, said the impact of the budworm is most severe on Quebec’s North Shore, followed by…
Share on FacebookShare on TwitterCanadian Trade Minister Chrystia Freeland said growing protectionist sentiment in the U.S. risks escalating a trade dispute between the countries over softwood lumber. Freeland, speaking in an interview with Bloomberg TV on the sidelines of the G-20 summit in Hangzhou, China, said there’s a chance the two sides won’t be able…
Canada’s international trade minister says anti-trade sentiment in the U.S., whipped up by Donald Trump and others, has made getting a deal on softwood lumber “fiendishly” complicated. “It’s a tough issue and there are some significant differences between the U.S. and the Canadian position, but we are working very, very hard,” Chrystia Freeland said in an…
Getting better access for value-added wood products in Asia and the U.S. is a big part of a new B.C. government wood industry competition strategy. The strategy includes seeking exemptions from trade quotas for specialty lumber and wood products in a new softwood lumber agreement with the U.S., which expired last fall. A pilot project…