Ontario’s lush northern forests could be the next feast for an invasive insect following the path created by the warming climate. A native species in British Columbia, the voracious mountain pine beetle is poised to move into Ontario’s vast boreal forest where researchers fear they could replicate the massive tree die-offs first witnessed in B.C….
Forest fire fighters in Northern Ontario are engaged in a pitched battle with two big fires burning out of control near Hearst, the largest of which is estimated to be 2,574 hectares in size. By mid-afternoon on May 26, there was one new fire burning in the region, the Ministry of Natural and Forestry has…
Millions of tiny wasps that are natural parasites for the emerald ash borer have been released into wooded areas in 24 states as the battle against the tree-killing borer is now biological. The U.S. Department of Agriculture has researched and approved for release four species of parasitic wasps that naturally target the larval and egg…
When the smoke cleared, unbelievably, there was good news. A $1.5-million stockpile of logs harvested over the winter and stored in a gravel pit north of Fort McMurray had caught fire but only about half of it was consumed before the flames burned themselves out. The stacks contained about 40,000 cubic metres, enough wood to…
The fire came in waves at Howard Ewashko’s family business: once on Tuesday afternoon, again in the evening. Both times, Ewashko, his brother Craig, and a small band of workers at the sawmill north of Fort McMurray saw the “beast” of a wildfire threaten their operations, before it turned back. Today, the Northland Forest Products sawmill is still…
Wildfires menacing Fort McMurray for the past two weeks have carved a new path of destruction, levelling an oilsands work camp to the north of the city. Two others were still under threat as of Tuesday night. The fire continues to grow, spreading to more than 355,000 hectares, and it’s not just oil and gas…
When the Mountain Pine Beetle (MPB) arrived in Alberta some nine or 10 years ago it hit hard. Whole areas of pine trees were red with dead or dying trees, and people everywhere were losing trees on private property, golf courses were losing trees, towns were losing trees from boulevards as the beetles which had…
Nova Scotia’s Department of Environment has laid charges in connection with a clear cutting incident inside Long Lake Provincial Park. Charges under the Crown Lands Act were laid Friday against Dexter Construction, Scott and Stewart Forestry Consultants, and a subsidiary of Scott, Resourcetec Inc. The damage was discovered in November inside the 2,095-hectare park. About 3.8…
Massive swaths of burning forest aren’t good news for Alberta’s forestry sector. However, the Alberta Forest Products Association says its members expect several wildfires to burn up forests every year and plan around them. AFPA’s Brock Mulligan tells the Alberta Morning News, it remains to be seen how much this will affect the industry. “We…
Images of the fire-ravaged landscape around Fort McMurray have prompted some nature lovers to question what will become of the area’s wildlife. But specialists across the environmental field say the animals are probably not only fine, but may even thrive in the after-effects of the wildfire. The Alberta Institute for Wildlife Conservation responded to civilian…