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Canadian Institute of Forestry
N.S. Section
Truro, N.S.
Recently the Nova Scotia Section of the Canadian Institute of
Forestry hosted a gathering in Truro to celebrate the 100th anniversary
of two fine forestry institutions the UNB forestry degree
program and the Canadian Institute of Forestry. Although much
has changed over the years in the forestry sector and society
in general, both organizations have met the challenges, resulting
in outstanding leadership in forestry worldwide.
The day, which was also supported by the Registered Professional
Foresters Association, started off appropriately with a state-of-the-art
forestry field day on a woodlot located in Old Barns, owned by
Paul Geense. Participants learned from Rebecca Aggas of the Association
for Sustainable Forestry how the woodlot owner incentive program
works to encourage uneven-aged forest treatments such as selection
harvesting.
Peter Neily, forester with the Nova Scotia Department of Natural
Resources, then met the group in the woods, around a soil pit,
to talk about how the provincial Forest Ecosystem Classification
system works. This new forest management planning mechanism
which incorporates soils, exposure, slope, and vegetation types
will have a significant impact on future forestry operations.
Tim McGrath, forester with the Department of Natural Resources,
then demonstrated how the recently published softwood and mixedwood
commercial thinning guide works. This created much lively discussion
amongst the well-versed group.
The field event was followed by a tree planting ceremony at the
Truro Welcome Centre in Victoria Square. In attendance was long-term
CIF member, UNB forestry graduate, and former Chief Forester
and Deputy Minister of Lands and Forests Bob Burgess. The current
Dean of the UNB Forestry program, Dr. David MacLean, led the
honor of planting the Sweet chestnut tree.
Following a wine and cheese reception, guests gathered at the
Truro Holiday Inn for a fine meal, followed by a presentation
by MacLean on the past, present, and future of the well-known
and respected forestry program. One of the important points from
a student recruitment perspective is that the program has moved
from a five to four-year program and now offers an environmental
management option.
After MacLean, our forestry guru, 104-year-old Dr. Wilfrid Creighton,
was invited to the stage. Creighton helped bring the evening
to a close with some forestry advice along with an old humorous
poem that brought the house down.
Don Cameron, CIF information officer
(Contact number 902-893-5629)
New Brunswick Federation of
Woodlot Owners
Fredericton, N.B.
Since I reported last time on the cuts to the provincial silviculture
program our government has had a change of position. In meetings
with woodlot owner representatives there was a decision to move
to a $6 million program (from $4 million) and to change the woodlot
owner contribution to 30 percent (70-30 versus original 50-50
position).
Woodlot owners are still feeling taken advantage of in these
difficult circumstances. With markets still in major downturns
and no changes in the near future, we still believe it is a time
to invest, not pull back from silviculture. Recent reports released
by Don Floyd from the Canadian Institute for Forest Policy and
Communication at UNB and a report of the House of Commons Standing
Committee on Natural Resource both echo the feeling that we need
promotion and support of silviculture activities.
Most of the seven Boards have completed their annual general
meetings for their organizations. Key items of discussion were
the cuts to silviculture and the outlook to sell forest products
in the upcoming year. With the continued decline in wood sales,
most of our member Boards are making continued adjustments to
their budgets to get through the next year. Woodlot owners also
are forced to make difficult management decisions for their woodlots
with such a major decline. There are many questions as to who
will be left in the contracting and trucking business when things
do turn around.
There continues to be a lot of buzz on the energy side, with
regards to using wood/biomass to generate heat and power. In
any given week there is a conference or seminar taking place
somewhere in Canada on the subject. The Standing Committee on
Natural Resources report, mentioned earlier, encourages the Government
of Canada to consider putting additional funds into the EcoEnergy
for Renewable Power program and consider extending its scope
to cover the production of thermal energy from renewable sources
such as biomass. Pellets continue to be another potential market
getting much attention.
We could only wish for some evidence of vision and action from
our legislators on these options.
Representatives from the Federation recently had the opportunity
to meet with Don Roberts from CIBC World Markets. Roberts will
be producing one of the often-referenced reports to be released
soon regarding the future direction in forestry in New Brunswick.
The other is the report on wood supply from Dr. Thom Erdle from
UNB.
It remains a little unclear what influence these reports will
have on private woodlots, yet they have certainly been brought
up on numerous occasions by the Minister of Natural Resources
as key documents that will shape the future of forestry here
in New Brunswick. We will have to watch the outcomes of these
reports closely. We certainly hope there will be a message of
optimism in these reports, as we believe that woodlots have a
key role in the environmental sustainability of New Brunswick
and will certainly contribute to the economy of the province
with the application of appropriate policy from our government.
Ken Hardie, NBFWO manager
(Contact number 506-459-2990)
Nova Forest Alliance
Stewiacke, N.S.
The Forest Communities Program will co-sponsor a unique event
on July 8-9, hosted by the Unama'ki Institute of Natural Resources
in Membertou, Nova Scotia. Forestry management guru Ralph D.
Nyland will be the featured presenter at "Sustainable Hardwood
Management in Today's Acadian Forests," a conference on
best management practices for sustainable forest communities.
The two-day conference, to be held at Membertou's Trade and Convention
Centre, will feature presentations by experts in the hardwood
forestry and sustainability fields. Its objective is to enhance
the hardwood forests of Cape Breton by educating our forest industry
and communities.
Ralph Nyland specializes in northern hardwood silviculture and
is a Distinguished Service ProfessorSilviculture at the
State University of New York, College of Environmental Science
of Forestry. He studies reproduction methods for both even- and
uneven-aged stands, the dynamics and tending of immature stands
and age classes, and the production potential of alternate management
strategies. Recent work includes the effects of silviculture
on wildlife habitat and other non-commodity values. His selection
system research and studies of even-aged reproduction methods
date back to the early 1970s. It includes permanently-documented
stands, with some into the second cutting cycle. He has authored
or co-authored more than 135 technical publications, written
two books, and edited another.
At this conference, Nyland will present five different sessions
on a broad range of topics including silviculture and ecosystem
management, even-aged and uneven-aged management, disadvantages
of diameter cutting, and restoration silvicultural practices.
Other presenters include Elder Albert Marshall of Eskasoni who
will look at the First Nations' perspective on forest management;
Brendan Hemens on the historic and present use of hardwoods in
the province; Muskie Sockabasin on the First Nations' management
of Black ash and hardwoods in New Brunswick; Patricia Amero on
growing high-value trees and her uneven-aged management outreach
project; Steve Bédard on research and hardwood management
in Quebec; Jean-Martin Lussier on the economic objectives in
optimizing selection harvesting prescriptions; Tim McGrath on
Nova Scotia silviculture management keys and the development
and use of hardwood models in Nova Scotia; and Gary Schneider,
a strong advocate for the importance of biodiversity, on hardwood
ecosystem management in the Acadian Forest.
The conference is sponsored by the Unama'ki Institute of Natural
Resources with assistance from Nova Forest Alliance and the Canadian
Forest Service's First Nations Forestry Program and Canadian
Wood Fibre Centre. The registration fee of $50 will include all
luncheons and nutrition breaks for the two-day session. Pre-registration
is recommended, as space is limited. Attendees can register by
following the Unama'ki Institute of Natural Resources link at
www.AtlanticFarmer.com.
Staff
(Contact number 902-639-2921)
Fundy Model Forest
Sussex, N.B.
A recent study supported by the Fundy Model Forest has found
that January's temperature is a key element in determining whether
the Balsam woolly adelgid (BWA) will threaten your woodlot. As
a result, the authors of the report, Drs. Dan Quiring, UNB Fredericton,
and Don Ostaff, CFS Atlantic, were able to make a management
recommendation to reduce the damage caused by this pest. Insect
predators and chemicals have been tried with only limited success.
The researchers suggest, "Woodlot owners and the forest
industry can minimize damage by BWA by limiting, as much as possible,
stands with high Balsam fir content to cold micro-climatic regions
(eg., on the north sides of slopes or at high altitude) and to
high-quality (with respect to growth) sites."
BWA, a pest imported from Europe, has caused extensive damage
to Balsam fir stands in Atlantic Canada. Data was gathered for
the study from Newfoundland and Nova Scotia as well as New Brunswick.
Two years of field surveys revealed that trees visibly damaged
by BWA occurred in areas where mean January temperatures were
greater than -11 degrees C. BWA does not occur in plant hardiness
zones colder than Zone 4a. More than 75 percent of the variation
in the incidence of gouting (branch distortion) by BWA during
the past 10 years in the seven plant hardiness zones in New Brunswick
was explained by mean January temperature, site, shoot growth
(estimated by the square of shoot length), and whether the trees
were in the overstory or understory. Understory trees contained
much higher levels of gout than overstory trees. The incidence
of gouting was parabolically related to shoot length, suggesting
that BWA will not damage the most vigorously growing shoots and
trees.
If winter temperatures continue to increase, BWA infestations
should increase westward and northward.
The study also examined the damage in managed and unmanaged stands
and determined that precommercial thinning does not have a large
effect on BWA damage. Slightly increased levels of BWA damage
following thinning may have resulted from the concentration of
BWA onto a reduced number of trees or to slower tree growth rates
resulting from post-thinning shock. Trees in thinned stands should
have had higher growth rates than trees in adjacent unthinned
stands from five to 10 years after thinning, when differences
in BWA damage decreased. Trees in thinned and unthinned stands
probably had similar growth rates 15 years after thinning, when
BWA damage levels were similar.
Copies of this report are available by contacting Fundy Model
Forest at info@fundymodelforest.net or calling 506-432-7565 or
1-800-546-4838 (Maritimes only).
This study is an example of the on-the-ground applications that
derive from the scientific research supported by Fundy Model
Forest. A large three-year project, involving three universities
and 11 graduate students has recently concluded. Results and
management implications from this silviculture research will
be presented during the Canadian Institute of Forestry's 100th
anniversary celebrations in Fredericton this September. Fundy
Model Forest is working with the CIF to host an afternoon session
on Sept. 9. Continuing education credits will be assigned to
these presentations. Details will be available on the Fundy Model
Forest website in August.
Barb Scott, communications coordinator
(Contact number 506-432-7575)
Federation of Nova Scotia
Woodland Owners
Stewiacke, N.S.
The Federation of Nova Scotia Woodland Owners' annual general
meeting was successfully held in Bridgewater on May 31. Elections
yielded some significant changes to our board of directors this
year. Interim Director Mike Hutchinson stepped down from his
position representing the Digby-/Yarmouth/Clare region. He was
appointed when our friend John Sullivan passed on earlier this
year. Hutchinson will remain an active member of the Federation
on our projects committee. Officially filling the Digby/Yarmouth/Clare
seat is Arcade Comeau. Comeau has managed the woodlot owner co-op,
La Foret Acadienne Limited, for some time now. He has an intimate
knowledge of both the region and the forest industry welcome
aboard.
Richard Wentzell was elected as the new South Shore representative,
replacing long-time board member Brady Hennigar, who was instrumental
in helping to keep the Chester Grant Fire Depot open and has
been an asset to the Federation. We are certain Hennigar will
remain active with the Federation in the future. Wentzell has
been involved with forest management for the better part of his
life as both a practitioner and an instructor.
Harlen Redden was elected in place of Don Parker as the Hants-Halifax
board representative. Redden is one of the original founders
of the Federation and the past manager of Conform Ltd. Thank
you Don for your efforts over the last few years; welcome back
Harlen.
Following the official AGM business, speakers were on hand to
give information on a wide range of topics. Canadian Federation
of Woodlot Owners Chair Peter deMarsh gave an eye-opening presentation
on developing carbon sequestration markets. Landowners in attendance
were interested in the possibilities of carbon credit trading
and generating revenue from their property without cutting trees.
Patricia Amero was on hand to inform landowners about the Association
for Sustainable Forestry's uneven-aged management program. She
is spearheading the educational component of the program. There
is no shortage of landowners interested in learning more about
the program and seeking assistance.
Richard Freeman gave an honest and practical presentation on
current primary forest product markets. Freeman is one of the
rare people who can give you some of the worst news while at
the same time keep you smiling and optimistic.
Nova Scotia Maple Producers Association President Brian Allaway
enlightened the crowd on maple production in the Maritimes. There
is a great deal of untapped potential (sorry for the bad pun)
when it comes to maple production in Nova Scotia.
The day ended with some closing remarks from our Chair Terry
Pearson and a draw for prizes. Congratulations to the winner
of our grand prize, Stewart Cooper from the Halifax area. Cooper
will receive a free woodlot management plan for his property
in Tangier. Thank you to everyone who took the time out of his
or her Saturday to support our organization.
Andrew Fedora, executive director
(Contact number 902-639-2041)
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