British Columbia is known for its natural beauty: mountains, ocean, forests and wildlife. In fact, the province’s official slogan is Super, Natural British Columbia. BC is home to some of the largest, oldest and most impressive trees in the world, and some of them are found right inside the old growth sections of the UBC…
A group of more than 40 alumni of Hungary’s Sopron Forestry School, who first landed as immigrants in Powell River before attending University of BC, recently returned to the place where they were welcomed to Canada nearly 60 years ago. Nearly 250 students and faculty from the forestry school fled Hungary in 1957 to escape…
Top environment ministry officials had serious concerns that a plan to clear-cut log a swath of the boreal forest near Grassy Narrows, Ont., would release mercury into the already contaminated area, according to internal government emails in recent years. “Yes, logging introduces Hg (mercury)!” one scientist wrote to a colleague. In another email, the former…
Ancient logs dated at 5,500 years old have been uncovered in Sechelt and the district is now considering what to do with them. Tony Greenfield of the Sunshine Coast Natural History Society (SCNHS) was before council on Sept. 7 asking the district to take ownership of one or more of the logs for display, along…
It stands 18 storeys tall and is now the tallest wood building in the world. University of British Columbia’s Brock Commons student residence is the first mass wood, steel and concrete hybrid project taller than 14 storeys in the world. It will provide additional housing for students, and, the provincial government hopes, will show new applications for…
Nova Scotia’s natural resources minister says the province will not place restrictions on the amount of clearcutting private woodlot owners can do on their land. “That’s up to the private landowners as to how they harvest their property,” Lloyd Hines said following the weekly cabinet meeting Thursday in Halifax. “Clearcutting is a recognized technique that…
While the rise of protectionism dominated the discussions among world leaders during the latest G20 summit, aViewpoint published today by the MEI shows among other things that the tariff barriers imposed on Canadian softwood lumber threaten nearly 22,000 jobs throughout the country. The tariffs applied following the latest deal allowed American producers to register additional net…
Despite multiple legal setbacks before World Trade Organization and NAFTA tribunals, American softwood lumber producers are still calling for the imposition of limits and tariffs on Canadian imports, arguing that they represent unfair competition because they’re subsidized. If no new agreement is ratified by the deadline of Oct. 12, imports from Canada could be subject…
Bill Gates has thrown his weight behind a small U.S. firm that hopes to licence its innovative biomass energy technology in Alberta and worldwide. The billionaire co-founder of Microsoft, who has backed several other U.S. biofuel startups over the years, is the lead investor in a $14-million-US financing round announced Thursday by Pennsylvania-based Renmatix. The private company’s…
Gull Bay First Nation member have voted in favour of an $8-million settlement offer from the federal government. The settlement relates to a timber royalties claim dating back to the 1800’s. The band says it was never paid for timber and other resources taken from the land meant for them in the Robinson Treaty. “I think it sets…