The investigation into last month’s explosion that rocked the WestPine MDF facility in Quesnel, British Columbia, is ongoing, with WorkSafeBC reporting that it may be months before a conclusion is reached. News sources report that no one was injured in the March 9 blast. Approximately 100 people worked at the mill, which produced MDF panels…
Large old trees are among the largest and longest-living organisms on earth. They occupy a revered position in the human psyche, appearing often in iconography, art, books, films, and other cultural expressions [1]. Large old trees also play key ecological and ecosystem roles, having major influences on hydrological regimes, nutrient cycles, disturbance regimes, and the…
Certifying a forest to a sustainable forest management standard is an important way for managers to assure their markets and the general public of the sustainable forestry they practice on their lands. It also helps indigenous communities ensure our values are reflected in the management of those forests. Beyond defining sustainable forest management practices, forest…
Median Salary: $104,000 Salary Growth (2009–2015): +19% Total Employees: 11,700 Change in Employees (2009–2015): +44% Job Description: This group of managers work in Canada’s natural resources sector, overseeing the operations of facilities like mines, lumber mills and fisheries. Mining and forestry managers spend some of their time outdoors inspecting ground operations. They’re responsible for hiring…
Public concern about the state of Nova Scotia’s forests is driving the government to look at cutting back on clearing trees as a means to generate electricity. While the department of natural resources laments that the general public doesn’t understand clear-cutting, the department is committing to a recommendation from the provincial auditor general to more…
Large swaths of red — meaning extreme risk — cover Alberta and Saskatchewan on the latest fire danger map from Natural Resources Canada. Many other areas are considered high or very high risk in the two Prairie provinces, where there’s been below average snowfall and above normal temperatures in much of Western Canada. Kerry Anderson, a…
Community Forests International has named a winner in its second annual backwoods cabin of the future contest. The Sackville-based organization asked people to design a cabin that will be built on its farm this summer. The contest drew entries from 62 designers and architects from 24 countries, but it was a German design firm that won the…
The Ontario Forest Industries Association (OFIA) supports the U.S. Green Building Council (USGBC) decision that would expand the Council’s definition of a certified source to match ASTM D7612-10. As a result of this decision, the Sustainable Forestry Initiative, the Canadian Standards Association Sustainable Forest Management Standard and the Programme for the Endorsement of Forest Certification,…
Ten years after the Prince Albert pulp and paper mill shut down, a British Columbia-based company plans to reopen the mill by 2020. This month 10 years ago, Weyerhaeuser closed the Prince Albert Pulp Mill, costing 700 people their jobs. But after acquiring the old mill in 2011, Paper Excellence Canada told CBC News they…
With dry conditions and dozens of blazes already burning across Alberta, Premier Rachel Notley said Tuesday her government’s decision to slash the wildfire budget by $15 million this year won’t impact the province’s firefighting efforts. The province was criticized this week after its budget showed cuts to tanker contracts by $5.1 million and its base wildfire management budget by…