Ten days after the Quebec government announced a technical guide on building mass timber buildings up to 12 storeys in height, an institute representing the precast prestressed concrete industry suggested there will be a cost of protecting such buildings from fire, during construction. “We have already heard the insurance industry expressing their concerns of insuring…
Companies in British Columbia’s already struggling commodity sector were dealt another blow Monday in the sell off of stocks that sent global stock markets plunging. The S & P/TSX composite index fell more than 700 points shortly after markets opened, but by mid-morning it had recovered some of those losses and was down by 240…
Opposition critics in Newfoundland and Labrador are asking why the provincial government continues to aerial spray an herbicide flagged as a potential health risk to humans. Health Canada is considering new risk reduction measures for glyphosate, a product the World Health Organization described earlier this year as “probably carcinogenic to humans.” Provincial officials confirmed the…
Commodity prices are tanking and they’re bringing Canadian markets down with them, but experts say some provinces will be feeling the pinch more than others. “It’ll feel like a recession depending on where you live in the country,” said John Stephenson, chief executive of hedge fund Stephenson Co. Capital Management. He said everything from oil…
If the Quebec government further restricts logging activities in order to protect caribou, 2,931 jobs and $367 million of economic activity are threatened, according to an Economic Note published today by the Montreal Economic Institute (MEI). The new boreal caribou recovery plan, which is set to come into effect in 2018, aims to increase and…
Planting trees is back-breaking, repetitive work — but if two University of Victoria students have their way, robots will assist tree planters in the future. Third-year electrical engineering students Nick Birch and Tyler Rhodes have developed a prototype robot that is able to plant tree seedlings. “We’d really like it as something that can supplement…
Conifex Timber Inc. CEO Ken Shields’ rationale for his company’s decision to spend US$21 million to buy a mothballed Arkansas sawmill sounds like a wake up call to a British Columbia forestry sector grappling with mounting challenges. “The U.S. south has overtaken the interior region of B.C. as the dominant, low-cost lumber supply region of…
A Sault Ste. Marie pest management firm received federal funding to search for the next generation of organic tree pesticides. BioForest Technologies and company president Joe Meating want to dive deep into tree chemistry with an eye on producing new pest control tools. The growing 25-employee company has received much media attention for bringing TreeAzin…
A forestry workers union head said there’s a plethora of well-paying mill jobs to be had in northwestern Ontario, but many employers are struggling to find skilled jobs to fill them. “We’re hearing it all across the district that there’s definitely a lack of qualified tradespeople that are available to be hired,” said Stephen Boon,…
When True North Hardwood Plywood closed in 2013, 240 people lost their jobs and Cochrane lost one of its biggest economic generators. But a new company is taking its chances on the facility, bringing with it the promise of employment and long-term potential. Rockshield Plywood Corp., a subsidy of the B.C.-based investment firm Rockshield Capital…