SNOW DAMAGE ADDS UP TO MILLIONS  . . . INVENTORY GLUT TURNS LUMBER STOCKS WOODEN . . . FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PROTECTS BAT, ANGERS INDUSTRY . . . ONTARIO FARMS QUARANTINED IN SCRAMBLE TO CONTAIN BIRD FLU . . . WOOD HARVESTING PROJECT CONTINUES . . . OTHER NEWS OF INTEREST...

SNOW DAMAGE ADDS UP TO MILLIONS
Source: FCC
Snow damage to agricultural infrastructure in Nova Scotia is adding up to millions of dollars in losses. The Nova Scotia Federation of Agriculture and Greenhouse Nova Scotia report heavy snowfall amounts during February and March resulted in more than $8.5 million of damage to agricultural structures. More than $3.5 million of that is to greenhouses. The cost of efforts to reduce the amount of damage done by snow, like shoveling snow off roofs, is not included in the $8.5 million tally. (read more)

INVENTORY GLUT TURNS LUMBER STOCKS WOODEN
Source: The WorkingForest.com
Canadian lumber stocks have been in a major tailspin since mid-February, but it may be a while longer until they bottom, says Martin Roberge, portfolio strategist at Canaccord Genuity. “Do not chase down broken lumber stocks,” he said in a note to clients Thursday. “While we have a positive view on the U.S. housing market, U.S. imports of Canadian wood products continue slowing down due to a glut in U.S. wholesale lumber inventories.”
The S&P/TSX forest products index has fallen 23 percent since peaking on Feb. 12 and it now trades below its 40-week average on both absolute and relative terms to the broader TSX composite. (read more)

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT PROTECTS BAT, ANGERS INDUSTRY
Source: NPR
They may not be the most attractive creatures in the world, and they scare the life out of many people, but you have to feel bad for the bat. Millions of them are dying across the Northeast, the Midwest and parts of the South, from a disease called White Nose Syndrome, named for a white fungus that crusts their faces. Seven species of bats are being decimated by White Nose Syndrome; the hardest-hit species is the Northern Long-eared bat. Last week, the federal government listed it as a threatened species under the Endangered Species Act. (read more)

ONTARIO FARMS QUARANTINED IN SCRAMBLE TO CONTAIN BIRD FLU
Source: The Canadian Press
Eight poultry farms in southwestern Ontario have been placed under quarantine as agricultural authorities scramble to contain an outbreak of a bird flu virus found on a turkey farm near Woodstock. The virus, of the H5 subtype, has been found on one farm in an area densely populated with poultry operations. The other farms have been quarantined because of their proximity to the affected farm, officials said Tuesday. Japan and Taiwan have already barred poultry from Ontario in response to this outbreak, Mayers said. Meanwhile, 10 countries continue to ban poultry from Canada because of the H5N2 outbreak that hit British Columbia. (read more)

WOOD HARVESTING PROJECT CONTINUES
Source: The Labradorian.ca
Elders, seniors, and other residents of North West River, Sheshatshiu, and Happy Valley-Goose Bay soon have an easier time accessing wood for domestic use. Vaughn Granter, Minister Responsible for the Forestry and Agrifoods Agency, has announced the province will be seeing wood brought directly into these communities so that it is available to people who have difficulty accessing it near the project’s work sites. (read more)