On a routine basis, district forest managers raise red flags over forestry practices that pose potential public safety hazards, threaten wildlife and community watersheds, and could trigger landslides, but have no authority to stop it. That’s the conclusion of a special report just released by the Forest Practices Board. The report, which has been submitted…
Despite declarations by special interest environmental groups that there is a caribou crisis in Ontario, a review of Ministry of Natural Resources and Forestry (MNRF) research, scientific evidence, and an assessment of all available and up-to-date data demonstrates that caribou populations are persisting in Ontario. “Caribou are the most abundant ungulate in North America. Woodland…
The Forest Products Association of Canada (FPAC) is pleased with the landmark global climate deal reached in Paris including its recognition of the fundamental role played by the world’s forests. Nearly 200 countries, including Canada, have agreed to hold the increase in global temperature to 2°C above pre-industrial levels to reduce the risks and impacts…
Communities along the West Coast of Vancouver Island say the provincial government needs to step in to save the ancient, massive trees that grow in the Walbran Valley. Business leaders in Port Renfrew, B.C., a community that once thrived on forestry, are calling for a ban on logging the trees — some of which started…
Montana’s congressional delegation is still waiting for answers to letters they sent regarding cross-border issues with Canada, but that could be because Canadians are waiting for answers themselves. “With the election of (Prime Minister Justin) Trudeau, the tone and outlook of the federal government took a pretty big change,” said political science assistant professor Greg…
Lumberjack style has recently come back in vogue, with city slickers and suburbanites donning the flannel shirts of the profession as a way to look rugged. However, a series of photos reveal the grueling work that loggers put in during the 1800s and beginning of the 20th century, toiling through hard lives away from their…
The concrete jungle has a rival: forests. Two urban building projects, in New York City and Portland, Oregon, will be changing their city’s skylines with an environmentally sustainable, cost-competitive building material. The key ingredient? Wood. Called mass timber, the material is an umbrella term for large, solid chunks of panelized wood. When used in…
Ryan Zapisocki swings a leg over his skidoo, fires up the engine and rides into the forest. The snow is melting and a warm breeze is blowing through the pines, causing them to sway slowly against each other. Some needles on the trees are tinged red, others, deep auburn. He slows as he arrives at…
When the holiday season rolls around, it’s easy to forget that without B.C. resources such as wood products and minerals, many of the gifts you see would not be sitting under your Christmas tree. B.C. wood products play a large role in maintaining the joy of the holiday season. From gifts and the environment in…
During the recent climate talks in Paris, Premier Christy Clark struck a pose as one of the belles of the ball – showcasing B.C. as a climate-change leader that had proven greenhouse gases can be reduced by taxing them without ruining the economy. But B.C.’s industrial and extractive sectors are warning that raising the province’s…