Forestry

Recent funding from the provincial government is allowing the small township of Opasatika to move forward with its efforts to recover from the devastating blow it was dealt following the closure of the local Tembec mill last June.

The push to establish a Sault Ste. Marie-based research institute to fight insect pest control problems is receiving encouraging signs from the federal government.

An award-winning Lakehead University researcher says the forestry sector needs to shift gears into value-added products and better promote itself as something more than a “sunset industry.” Dr. Mathew Leitch was recently given the James M.

White birch is being opened up for use in the Thunder Bay-Atikokan area, marking what could potentially be a financial windfall for some forestry companies in northwestern, Ontario.

For many small cities across Northern Ontario, the recent rash of forestry-related mill closures has proven to be a devastating blow, although Rejeanne Desmeules refuses to let her town pass as just another statistic.

Hard-hit forestry communities now have a practical how-to guide to diversify the industry by going beyond the traditional harvesting of trees into lumber. Three Sault Ste.

Value-added is on the lips of community leaders in many forestry-dependent towns. The town of Dubreuilville in northeastern Ontario is no different with a study underway to determine whether a wood-plastic composite manufacturing facility will work.

I had occasion to take a phone call recently from Kelly Louisieze, who is the managing editor with the Northern Ontario Business publication.

Each year, the Canadian Institute of Forestry (CIF) presents silver rings to post-secondary forestry students as a way of welcoming them into the profession. The ring is regarded as a ‘national bond’ among forestry graduates.

Two forestry giants have come together in a $3.3 billion US deal that will find Domtar Inc. merging with the fine paper arm of Weyerhaeuser Co. to form the second-largest manufacturer and marketer of uncoated freesheet paper in the world.