By Staff  The Canadian Press LYTTON, B.C. – British Columbia’s Wildfire Service says an out-of-control blaze in the Fraser Canyon has grown further, burning 350 hectares (3.5 square kilometres) of bush south of Lytton, B.C. The service says the George Road wildfire is scattered across steep and rocky terrain, creating “different fingers and spots.” It says crews took advantage of cooler temperatures Saturday, but will focus on long-term management and control since the weather is forecast to get hotter and drier this week. read more >> ..read more

By Robert Dalheim Lumber prices have fallen below $1,000 per thousand board feet for the first time since March. Prices have now dropped 40 percent since May’s record high. Prices peaked on May 10 at a little over $1,700 per thousand board feet. Prices are still way up historically – around 175 percent over the past year. They are expected to remain elevated, at least for the near future. read more >> ..read more

The company looks at Skeena Industrial Park to set up a sawmill manufacturing unit By / Binny Paul The Langley-based forestry company San Group says it wants to expand its northwest presence, just weeks after announcing it is spending $100 million in Port Alberni. In a visit to Terrace June 9, San Group president Suki Sanghera said it wants to build a sawmill to process wood it already acquires here and ships out for processing and has plans to acquire more. Sanghera and John Langstroth, the company’s vice president of sales operations, met with City of Terrace officials, keying on the prospec ..read more

By / James McCarten, The Canadian Press WASHINGTON — Canada’s international trade minister says she got no warning from her American counterpart before the United States proposed doubling its duties on Canadian softwood lumber. Mary Ng told a House of Commons committee hearing that U.S. Trade Representative Katherine Tai did not mention the possibility during last month’s Free Trade Commission meetings. The U.S. Commerce Department’s preliminary increase in softwood lumber duties to 18.32 per cent, up from 8.99 per cent, emerged three days later. Because it’s a preliminary tariff rate, cu ..read more

By Carey L. Biron HALIFAX, North Carolina, June 7 (Thomson Reuters Foundation) – A s a young man, James Baker left his hometown in North Carolina and forgot about the small farm and patch of woodland he and his seven brothers would later inherit. “After high school and college, I left, and I never had any intentions of coming back to the farm or doing anything with it,” said Baker, who now lives on the property with one of his siblings, all of whom are in their 70s and 80s. But a regional forestry program that aims to tackle a century of dramatic land loss among Black Americans helped Baker an ..read more

By: Tyler Orton The provincial government is promising to boost Indigenous engagement in forestry as it sets out on the largest series of policy updates for the sector since the early 2000s. Victoria’s plans would see it double the amount of replaceable forest tenure held by Indigenous nations from the current levels of 10%, according to the strategy unveiled on Tuesday. “It’s absolutely vital we do not repeat the colonial activities of the past and dictate to First Nations what they do in their territories,” B.C. Premier John Horgan said during a media briefing, later invoking last week ..read more

By / Reinhard Becker Supply bottlenecks with timber, steel and insulating material are causing construction stoppages in Germany and threatening to slow the country’s recovery from the coronavirus slump, building associations said on Friday. The German economy, Europe’s largest, shrank more than expected in the first quarter due to COVID-19 restrictions, but upbeat business sentiment surveys are now heralding a swift summer recovery. read more The strength of the rebound depends on how much consumers will splash out once curbs are lifted and how much manufacturers will be able to overcome ..read more

By Emily Cureton (OPB) The United States Forest Service is seeking a major budget increase this year. President Joe Biden’s preliminary budget blueprint includes a $1.7 billion increase for the federal agency managing public lands, around 35% above what it got last year, according to a spokesperson for Democratic U.S. Senator Jeff Merkley of Oregon. Merkley serves as chair for the Senate subcommittee considering the budget request. The subcommittee put questions to Forest Service Chief Vicki Christiansen at a hearing on Wednesday. Merkley opened the proceeding by recalling scene ..read more

[Richmond, BC] – Paper Excellence is pleased to announce the first barge has been successfully loaded with chips produced by Atli Chip Limited Partnership which is a new First Nations partnership for the Company (see photo above). The Atli Chip Limited Partnership, situated in Beaver Cove, is majority owned by Atli Resources LP with minority stakes owned by Paper Excellence and Wahkash Contracting Ltd. Atli Resources LP is the forestry arm of the ‘Namgis First Nation. Wahkash Contracting Ltd. is a stump-to-dump logging contractor specializing in remote logging in coastal BC. “As part of this p ..read more

By / John Bleasby  Mass Timber Construction (MTC) is touted as construction’s wonder material. It’s sustainable, renewable, light and easy to assemble, and attractive, say its promoters. Life Cycle Analyses (LCA) investigating GHG emissions appear to overwhelmingly favour wood over concrete and steel. Even the recent doubling of wood prices has not dampened enthusiasm for its use in ever-larger construction projects. Wood is good and many MTC claims are true to a certain degree. However, perhaps it’s time to dial down some of MTC’s exuberant rhetoric.  First, let’s take a look at MTC ..read more