Aspen Planer Mill in BC Resumes Operations Processing Cedar Logs, but Cutting Permit Issues Remain Unresolved

Representatives of AP Group, the parent company of the Aspen Planer Mill located in Merrit, BC, told the Merritt Herald on Friday (2-3-23) that the mill was restarted on Wednesday, February 1, 2023. The facility has been closed since early December (for an undetermined amount of time) due to a lack of approved cutting permits.

According to the AP Group representative and the Merrit Herald, the mill will be processing coastal cedar logs rather than its typical interior fiber. The cedar logs are coming from northern Vancouver Island, transported first by ocean until the Fraser River, where they are unloaded from the boat and placed on logging trucks that are taking them to the Aspen mill. The company says that it is taking on the expense of transporting the logs to restart the mills and provide the 150 mill employees, who have been laid off since December, with a source of income.

The AP Group noted that the exact length of the reopening is currently unknown, saying that economic impacts on the community could start again at any time if no cutting permits are approved.