Soaring Lumber Sales Help Nova Scotia Sawmills Overcome Northern Pulp Mill Closure

There were major concerns about the future of the forest industry in the province of Nova Scotia when Northern Pulp shuttered their plant earlier in the year. With the province’s largest buyer of wood chips and other byproducts out of the game, sawmills feared for their future. After all, a log can’t be cut into boards without producing byproducts, and those byproducts need to go somewhere. But with housing starts rising across North America, and millions of Canadians and Americans taking on home renovation projects during COVID-19 lock-downs, lumber sales are soaring. Robin Wilber, president of Elmsdale Lumber was one of those concerned and worried sawmill operators. Today, he is saying that ‘the demand is huge and we can selling everything we make.’ Quite a change from 7 months ago.