Town of Cochrane Strategic Plan – Final Report October 2014
4.2.5 Forestry
Over the past decade almost 70 forestry mills have closed across Northern Ontario as the US
economy and housing market crashed. The decline in Cochrane’s forestry sector is similar to that
seen in the rest of Northeastern Ontario. From 2008-2009, employment in this sector declined by
more than 10% in the Cochrane District. Due to the U.S. housing crisis, trade regulation disputes
and the impending Endangered Species Act, forestry is in the process of reinventing itself to meet
new demands, such as the emerging bio-economy.
The forest industry’s potential in the North depends on the availability and renewability of the
forest as well as the demand for Canadian forest products. Forest products supply depends on a
range of conditions, including geographical factors, political decisions, natural environmental
forces, and demographic factors affecting labour availability.
The U.S. continues to be the principal buyer of Canadian forest products. Assuming a U.S. housing
recovery, residential construction could grow at an annual compound rate of 15.4% between
2010 and 2015. Between 2015 and 2030, residential construction is expected to grow at a much
slower compound rate of 1%. This may reduce forestry exports to the U.S. over the long term.43
Environmental regulations on greenhouse gas emissions may also create a setting for a market for
wood residuals and wood pellets. For example, Ontario’s initiative to eliminate coal from Ontarian
power plants may provide an incentive to invest in wood pellets in the province.
The demand for forest products should gradually shift from the U.S. to Asia, but this will also
depend on a number of factors. For example, the Chinese demand for Canadian wood products
will depend on their overall economic growth, the acceptance of wood as a building material, and
the trend in population migration from rural to urban areas.44
Demographics may also constrain industry growth. Forestry workers aged 55 and over make up a
larger proportion of the labour force than ever before.
New areas for market growth are expanding in fields such as biocomposites and nanotechnology,
biofuels from wood pellets, environmentally sustainable products and green building components.
Northern forests also play an increasing global role in carbon sequestration and climate change
mitigation45.
43
Natural Resources Canada, The State of Canada’s Forests. Available at:
http://cfs.nrcan.gc.ca/series/read/90?language_id=1
44
Canadian Council of Forest Ministers. (2008). Forest Sector Innovation Framework. Available at:
http://www.ccfm.org/pdf/FSIF-FINAL_E.pdf
45
Ontario Ministry of Municipal Affairs and Housing. (2011). Growth Plan for Northern Ontario. Available at:
https://www.placestogrow.ca/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=368&Itemid=65
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