The annual WoodWORKS! International Wood Symposium this year is all about tall towers. Towers constructed from timbers, that is. Among the themes: Who is building them, what are the latest materials and techniques and how are developers getting them built in a sector still geared toward concrete and steel? Designers of the world’s tallest timber…
Damning reports indicate WorkSafeBC found multiple infractions at a New Westminster lumber yard where two workers were killed last weekend. The accident, which occurred at United Gateway Logistics on January 23, involved lumber falling from a forklift. The two victims were 60 and 65 years old. After the accident, investigators issued a stop work order in…
On the eve of a long-awaited land-use agreement for the Great Bear Rainforest, scientists are decrying the fact that Gribbell Island — the greatest habitat on the coast for B.C.’s official mammal, the Spirit Bear — won’t receive official protected-area status. One of those scientists, veteran bear biologist Wayne McCrory, a director of the Valhalla…
Spray Lake Sawmills (SLS) would like to respond to the Jan. 14 letter to the editor in the Cochrane Eagle regarding the Alberta Forestry model. The assertion by Mr. MacMahon that forest management practices in Alberta are outdated is simply incorrect. Alberta’s forest management regime is based on best practices and takes into consideration the…
In the snowy woods of northern New England and other forested parts of the country, the lumberjack is an endangered species. As high-tech machinery replaces chain saws, which themselves replaced the axe , a generations-old way of life is disappearing, one that historically saw fathers pass on to their sons their love and knowledge of…
Drink beer and throw axes? You’ll soon be able to do both at a new business in Halifax. Darren Hudson, a fifth-generation sawmill operator from Shelburne County, plans to open the Timber Lounge on Agricola Street in March. “Axe throwing has always traditionally been a way to unwind. It’s a way of celebrating one’s hard work…
Baby boomers are reaching the end of their careers but a missing Generation X won’t fill their shoes in Northwestern Ontario’s economy. The stability of the region’s traditional workforce will be left in the hands of Millennials and that worries some who study labour markets west of Thunder Bay. Northwest Training and Adjustment board executive…
Though much of Quebec’s Cree territory has been flooded, razed and clearcut to make way for hydroelectric dams, herds of woodland caribou still roam throughout the Broadback Valley. Local hunters say that the game in this small, densely forested area is noticeably richer than any other place in Quebec’s vast wilderness. Located about 1,000 kilometres north…
P.E.I.’s sixth annual winter woodlot tour will be bigger, with more interactive activities than in previous years, organizers say. The free family-friendly event is hosted this year by the Wheatley River Improvement Group in North Rustico. It features both self-guided and guided interpretive walks, presentations on Island plants and wildlife and winter activities such as…
The Chemainus-based Halalt First Nation and its business partners are suing Catalyst Paper (TSX:CYT), alleging that a 59-year-old mill is trespassing and that the company has disclosed sensitive information, despite signing a confidentiality agreement. The paper and pulp company, based in Richmond, says it denies the allegations contained in two separate civil suits and plans…