Forestry sector representatives met with the federal and provincial governments today to discuss skilled-labour initiatives and human-resource planning, as part of a series of roundtables being held over coming months with sectors highlighted in the BC Jobs Plan. The roundtables, co-hosted with industry associations and employers, aim to stimulate discussion and create awareness about how…

In light of the global stock market turmoil, the deep dive of the Canadian dollar and the ongoing commodities sell-off, what is the outlook for B.C.’s forest sector? On fundamentals, softwood lumber prices – in U.S. dollars – should not be as low as they are today. B.C.’s northern kraft pulp prices are weak because…

Unifor says it has reached a tentative contract agreement with Resolute Forest Products covering one group of workers in a deal the union hopes will set a pattern across Quebec’s forestry sector. The agreement still needs to be ratified by forestry workers in the Saguenay-Lac-St-Jean region. Talks will then extend to Resolute (TSX:RFP) employees in…

Most people may not realize that a significant reduction on the Annual Allowable Cut (AAC) in the Williams Lake TSA could come in less than five years. If you read the fine print in the latest Chief Forester report there are some circumstances that could force a reduction before the estimated 10-year reduction period identified…

Some time in the new year, the new federal Liberal government will begin consulting Canadians on the Trans-Pacific Partnership (TPP) – a 12-nation trade agreement that is supported by the B.C. forest industry. It will also have to try to fill the vacuum that the expiration of the softwood lumber agreement has left – a…

Nearly lost in the noise of last year’s federal election was the finalization of the historic Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement. The TPP is a sweeping trade agreement between 12 Pacific Rim countries including Canada, the United States, Japan, Australia, Vietnam and Mexico. After seven years of negotiations, the deal phases out countless tariffs and other trade…

John Williams wants to diversify Domtar Corp. from the declining business of making paper, but not too far. Williams, who is based in Fort Mill along with 500 employees of Domtar’s pulp and paper division, wants to move the Montreal-based company toward the personal-care business. John Williams, CEO of Domtar Corp., wants to make acquisitions…

A local cooperative is being recognized for its role making employment accessible. Athol Forestry General Manager Ian Ripley reviews a forestry management plan the cooperative works on. Athol Forestry was recognized with the Lt. Governor’s Persons with Disabilities Employer Partnership regional award this week. Athol Forestry Cooperative received the Lt. Governor’s Persons with Disabilities Employer…

Almost a decade ago, as vice-president of Husby Forest Products, Bob Brash decried a tough new land-use plan for Haida Gwaii as a threat to the viability of commercial logging on the remote B.C. archipelago. Today, as CEO of Haida Enterprise Corporation (HaiCo), Brash insists that the same plan — signed by the Haida and…

The U.S. International Trade Commission has voted to move ahead with a series of costly duties against Canadian mills that produce glossy paper products. The decision, posted today on the commission’s website, was part of the final phase of a countervailing duty investigation concerning supercalendered paper. Under a decision released last month the U.S. said…