Tag Archives: Prince George

Lakeland Mills Ltd. announced today it will build a new sawmill to replace the mill destroyed in a tragic explosion and fire on April 23, 2012.

“Today is a great day for Lakeland, for our employees and for the community of Prince George,” said Greg Stewart, president of , of which Lakeland Mills is a division. “As a company, we believe in this community. Three generations of owners and employees have lived and worked here for 50 years. So this decision is as much about our belief in family and community as it is a good business decision.”

Design development on the new sawmill has not been completed, so details such as its size and production capacity are not yet available.

“I have committed from the start to keep our employees and the community informed as soon as we were able to make a decision,” said Stewart. “I’m following through with that commitment today. We will make further details available about the new mill as we are able.”

The mill will continue to produce stud lumber, with the ability to manufacture metric lengths in addition to the American Lumber Standard. Introducing this flexibility will allow Lakeland to diversify its markets.

The mill will be integrated with the existing planer mill, which is still operational, and the energy system Lakeland operates in partnership with the City of Prince George. It will incorporate the most advanced safety protocols available in all areas of its operations to ensure a safe work environment.

“April 23, 2012 was the worst day in our company’s history, and it began a year of challenge and sorrow for all of us,” said Stewart. “I want to acknowledge the families of Glenn Roche and Al Little, the two employees who lost their lives that night. It is in their memory, and to honour all those impacted by this tragic event, that we will rebuild for the future.”

Construction is expected to begin this spring and be complete by summer 2014.

Source: Lakeland Mills

Snow and ice buildup is being blamed for the collapse of the roof on Canfor‘s J.D. Little Tree Nursery in Prince George, British Columbia this morning.

No one was inside the building when the roof over the cold storage cooler caved in, causing 2 walls to collapse.

16 million tree seedlings, worth about $3 million dollars, were inside.    Canfor was working today to find a safe way to save the seedlings and find a temporary home for them.

The roof was engineered to withstand snow loads, so it is unclear why the roof collapsed.  Another roof in Prince George also collapsed under the weight of snow this week.

WorkSafeBC has given Canfor permission to demolish the building.

Read more, and see photos:
Snow and ice buildup caves in 2 Prince George roofs (CBC)

Also see:
Investigation into tree nursery roof collapse underway (HQPrinceGeorge.com)

Town hall meeting
Thursday February 28, 2013
6pm – Nechako Room, Coast Inn of the North, 770 Brunswick St, Prince George, BC

Organized by the BC Federation of Labour, with the support of the BCGEU, United Steelworkers, CEP and the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives

BC’s unionized forestry workers are inviting concerned Prince George citizens to a town hall meeting on Thursday February 28 starting at 6pm to discuss and find solutions to the ongoing crisis in BC forests.

“The forestry industry in and around Prince George has been hard hit over the last decade by job losses, raw log exports, and the mountain pine beetle devastation. Over the last decade, viable mills were shutdown while raw log exports grew dramatically,” says BCGEU President Darryl Walker. “People in forest communities understand it’s not just about the direct jobs in the forest, or related milling and manufacturing jobs, it’s also about the indirect jobs and benefits to local communities that come from forest workers.”

” British Columbians deserve to know their forests are being managed sustainably and in the public interest—maintaining forest-sector jobs, while preserving ecosystems. But years of government staffing cuts, lack of inventory work and mismanagement have contributed to a real state of crisis in our forests,” says Walker. “We need to work together to demand that government invest in research, reforestation, and compliance and enforcement to ensure healthy forests today, and in the future.”

Prince George community members attending the Thursday’s meeting will have an opportunity to hear from provincial and local forestry experts, and will be engaged in a dialogue about how we work together to draw attention the crisis and develop a community plan of action ahead of the May 14 provincial election.

Pat Bell, British Columbia’s MLA for Prince George-Mackenzie, has released a statement saying he will not be running for another term as MLA.

Bell said he has been diagnosed with a “relatively rare type of aneurism”.  He is seeing a cardiac specialist who is monitoring the size of the aneurism.

“All of this has caused me to re-think my decision to seek another term as the MLA for Prince George-Mackenzie. This is a critical and compelling time for our province and it’s equally critical that our team members are able to focus 100 per cent of their attention on the task at hand. With this diagnosis, I need to turn my mind to my personal health and this would take my attention away from my responsibilities as your MLA. For this reason I am announcing today that I have decided to withdraw my nomination as the BC Liberal candidate in the upcoming provincial election.”

~Pat Bell

Bell is the Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training and Minister Responsible for Labour.  He has also served as Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Innovation; Minister of Forests, Mines and Lands; Minister of Forests and Range; Minister of Agriculture and Lands; and as the first Minister of State for Mining.

Read full statement

An extension of an agreement between British Columbia government and the Central Interior Logging Association (CILA) will allow 30 more students to train as log and chip truck drivers or heavy-equipment operators under the Forest Industry Readiness Skills Training (FIRST) program and place them in permanent positions within the sector.

Minister of Jobs, Tourism and Skills Training Pat Bell and John Rustad, Parliamentary Secretary for Forestry, visited O’Brien Training Ltd., the facility that runs the FIRST program, to announce the additional investment of $494,296 through a Labour Market Sector Solutions (LMSS) agreement.

The FIRST program is operating as a pilot in Prince George where there is the highest demand for this type of training. It consists of in-class training on topics like general forestry operations and safety.

A major highlight of FIRST is the combination of in-class training and in-seat training, which allows students to accumulate many hours of hands-on experience to make them highly employable. As the demand for skilled workers in forest harvesting is rapidly increasing, students who successfully complete the program will have the opportunity to continue employment with one of the project’s industry partners.

Aimed at helping participants to secure permanent employment, the FIRST program is funded through the Canada-British Columbia Labour Market Agreement. In March 2012, government signed its initial LMSS agreement with CILA. The extension of the agreement brings the total investment to $988,592 to train 60 people. To date, 22 people have completed the FIRST program and are now working in the forestry sector.

In 2011, the B.C. forest sector employed more than 53,000 workers. A total of 29,170 job openings are expected in the region between now and 2020, of which an anticipated 4,490 will be new jobs due to economic expansion. In addition to new jobs, as many as 25,000 forestry job openings are projected throughout the province over the next 10 years, as existing workers retire.

Related Links:

• Central Interior Logging Association and FIRST program
• O’Brien Training Ltd.
• Forest Sector Strategy for B.C.
• WorkBC skills training programs
• Industry Training Authority
• Canada-British Columbia Labour Market Agreement information

The idea to build a trades training centre at the former Rustad mill site in Prince George, British Columbia may no longer be in the works.

Canfor and BID Construction were working on a proposal to convert portions of the former Rustad mill site into a trades training centre.

The hope was that a skilled trade training centre would train new workers and allow current workers to upgrade their skills.

Originally Canfor and BID had hoped to start training students in January 2013.  Canfor and BID expected the land and buildings donated to the training centre would be valued at more than $10 million.  They said they needed a matching contribution of $10 million from the government to renovate the buildings to make education and instruction on the site possible.

British Columbia’s Minister for Jobs, Tourism, and Skills Training, Pat Bell, said an assessment is underway to see what post-secondary schools in the North require for facilities.

“The College of New Caledonia is looking at what their space requirements might be. There are some gaps that are necessary, particularly in the heavy duty mechanics program. Other areas there have been significant investments by this government in trades training facilities.”

Read more:
Trades Training Centre May Not Go Ahead (HQ Prince George)
Rustad Training Centre (Canfor’s CEO Don Kayne’s Blog)

Although fall has officially arrived, fire conditions in the Prince George Fire Centre in British Columbia remain volatile and new incidents are being reported daily.

B.C.’s Wildfire Management Branch reminds the public to take precautions when enjoying the backcountry.

Campfires are still permitted throughout the Prince George Fire Centre, but they must be kept smaller than a half-metre high by a half-metre wide. Never leave a campfire unattended and make sure it is fully extinguished and the ashes are cold to the touch before leaving the area.

Open fires larger than a half-metre high by a half-metre wide are currently prohibited across most of the fire centre, with the exception of the Fort Nelson Forest District and the portion of the Prince George Forest District east of Highway 97. (see map of affected areas)

Given the number of large, “modified response” fires currently burning in the northeast part of the province, the Wildfire Management Branch asks members of the public to avoid areas where fires are active. Further information on these incidents and their locations can be found in the “Fires of Note” section of: http://www.bcwildfire.ca

You can follow the latest B.C. wildfire news:
On Twitter: http://twitter.com/BCGovFireInfo
On Facebook: http://facebook.com/BCForestFireInfo

A logging truck driver was injured yesterday when his truck rolled over north of Prince George, British Columbia.

The driver sustained minor injuries in the rollover. His load of logs ended up in the lake.

RCMP have given the driver a violation ticket for Driving Without Due Care and Attention.

Worksafe BC and the Ministry of Environment attended the scene.  It appears that no fluids leaked from the tractor into the lake.

For photos, visit Opinion 250 News:
Logging Truck Dumps Load in Ruby Lake
Driver Receives Minor Injuries in Roll Over

Opinion 250 News is reporting on some of the details of the tentative contract being voted on in Prince George, British Columbia this week.

Some details of the tentative agreement with Canfor Pulp Limited Partnership:

• 5 year contract
• signing bonus of $3750 in 2012, and $3750 in 2013
• no wage increases in the first 2 years
• 2% wage increase in 2014
• 2.5% wage increase in 2015
• 3% wage increase in 2016
• contract, if approved, will be effective as of May 31, 2012

Voting is on this tentative agreement is almost complete.  Local 9 of the Pulp, Paper and Woodworkers of Canada, who has 425 employed aat the Prince George and Intercon Pulp mills, is voting on the offer yesterday and today.  The 450 members of the Communication, Energy and Paperworkers Union Locals 603 and 1133 are also voting on the mirror agreement this week.

Source:
Pulp Industry Contract Terms Revealed (Opinion 250 News)

A 5 year tentative deal has been reached between CEP Locals 603 and 1133 and Canfor Pulp Limited Partnership (CPLP)  in Prince George, British Columbia.

Both Onkar Athwal of Canfor and Don Boucher, CEP Western Region Administrative Vice-President, agreed the hard work they had done together helped them reach a fair and equitable pattern agreement.

The new contract will see increases in wages and benefits while providing labour stability until 2017.

“We are recommending this to our members” says Boucher while emphasizing the importance of achieving an agreement that will serve as a pattern for the industry.

The membership will vote on the deal next week.

Source: CEP