The First Nation Forestry Council (FNFC) and four B.C. pulp and paper companies are pleased to announce they have signed a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) to promote and support the growing role and influence of First Nations in the B.C. forest sector. The four companies include: Catalyst Paper, Nanaimo Forest Products (Harmac), Paper Excellence Canada…
“Cataclysmic” damage to fish habitat on Haida Gwaii has lead to $1.1 million in fines to a now-dissolved company controlled by Campbell River-based Pallan Group Ltd. The fines to Howe Sound Forest Products Ltd. are part of a sentencing by Judge Michael Brecknell in Masset provincial court on Jan. 9 that include fines to two…
The Sudbury-born head of North America’s largest private sector union says many of his members voted for Donald Trump. International Steelworkers president Leo Gerard supported the Democrats in the recent U.S. election, but says many Steelworkers on both sides of the border liked Trump’s focus on the economy and restoring industrial jobs. “I say this…
The federal government has promised action that will deal with Grassy Narrows mercury contamination “once and for all.” Working closely with the province and First Nations leaders, federal officials will address mercury contamination that has plagued the northern community for decades, a spokesperson for Prime Minister Justin Trudeau told the Star late Monday. The vow…
No one will argue Donald Trump is a man of many words. Whether he will follow through on this promises, including settling North American trade disputes, is what has people like TRU Political Science Professor Terry Kading on pins and needles. His concern, B.C’s lumber industry. “I think we’re in a difficult position moving forward,…
The B.C. Liberals are increasingly concerned that the rising threat of lumber tariffs in the United States could generate a punishing fallout for the dozens of B.C. communities and thousands of workers dependent on the forest industry. “I’m worried,” Finance Minister Mike de Jong conceded during a media scrum this week, reacting to news that…
Island Timberlands has begun logging on a parcel of private managed forest land it owns in the upper Lockyer Road area of Roberts Creek, and the group Elphinstone Logging Focus (ELF) is asking the company to protect a section of its cutblock. In a release this week, ELF said it was “in discussions with [Island…
Re: “We must protect waterways,” Stephen Legault, Opinion, Jan. 7. There has been a lot of talk about our headwaters recently – and that’s a good thing. The very lifeblood of our communities deserves the best stewardship we can give it. Alberta’s forestry producers commend MLA Cameron Westhead for his efforts to pass a motion…
The federal government is appealing a decision by a special claims tribunal to award $13.8 million in compensation to a Vancouver Island First Nation over a historic logging dispute. The Huu-ay-aht First Nation, based in Anacla near Bamfield, received notice of appeal on Thursday. The specific-claims tribunal, which hears claims by First Nations against the…
To a casual hiker, one bit of North American forest may seem like any other. But look more closely and a mysterious patchwork of diversity emerges. Some stands of forest are clearly dominated by a single kind of tree. Others are a diverse mix of species. Now, a multiyear effort to understand these differences has…