The Peace River Regional District in northern B.C. has declared a state of emergency due to several forest fires in the area. The district said about 48 wildfires were burning in the region Monday night. Evacuation orders and evacuation alerts have been issued for parts of the Baldonnel community near Fort St. John, as well as at Charlie Lake. The…
You’ve got to get an education to have a career in forestry management these days. But it’s still important to see how things work in the “real world”—especially if it’s a different world from the one you’ve been learning about in the classroom for the last two years. That’s why 26 second-year students from Selkirk…
The same day air tankers took to the sky to douse wildfires near Slave Lake, Paul Lane was telling his pilots the grim news that last week’s provincial budget could put them out of work. Despite coming out of what Lane describes as “the busiest fire season in 25 years,” the provincial government has cut its…
Allen Chan, the former CEO of Sino-Forest Corp., was the “controlling mind” behind alleged frauds that robbed shareholders of value, a securities tribunal heard Monday. Closing arguments began in the Ontario Securities Commission case against Sino-Forest executives who are accused of perpetrating a massive fraud before the forestry company collapsed in 2012. Hugh Craig, a lawyer…
BC Wildfire Service crews have responded to 59 wildfires since April 1, including 12 in the Prince George Fire Centre, the British Columbia Ministry of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations said on Friday. Almost all of the wildfires were human-caused, and wildfires caused by people unnecessarily divert firefighting crews and resources from naturally occurring fires, the…
It was no great shock to hear recently that a Leger survey ranked Canada’s forest products companies as having the world’s best reputation for environmental practices. But it was still very gratifying. Canada’s forest products companies have worked extremely hard over the last few years to ensure that our forests are healthy and will remain…
A Mackenzie wood manufacturer is turning into a repeat offender as far as WorkSafeBC is concerned. As of the end of January, East Fraser Fiber Co. Ltd. had been issued five fines over the span of eight months, according to recently-updated posting’s on the agency’s website. The most recent, issued January 25, was a $67,769.10…
For Ontario and Quebec sawmills to prosper they need free, unencumbered access for softwood lumber exports to the U.S. market, Resolute Forest Products president Richard Garneau told Parliament’s Standing Committee on International Trade this week. “We need to be able to sell freely to the U.S. Indeed, that was the whole point of the Canada-U.S….
A long-time forester is lamenting the lack of properly fitted industrial wear available for women, something she says can put women’s safety at risk while out in the field. Catherine Brady, 33, has worked in forestry for the past decade and often works on Vancouver Island. In that time, she’s seen an increase in the number of women…
The province is trying to mitigate the 10 billion dollar budget the best it can and it’s no surprise they’ve had to impact a few areas. One of those areas is the lumber industry, but speaking on the Alberta Morning News, President of the Alberta Forest Products Association Paul Whittaker says it’s nothing to worry…