another mill closing

[Lenny_M]

Whats happening here. You would thing the goverment would come to their sences.
  www.ceinfo.unh.edu/common/documents/sawmills.htm
  www.suite101.com/article.cfm/6020/66081/htm

[beenthere]

What kinds of things do you think the Government (State, Federal, Local?) should do to help failing businesses stay in business?  Maybe the demand for white pine isn't like it used to be, and until private enterprise creates a demand for a new of better product that uses white pine, maybe the businesses will have to fold.  I don't know that answer, but curious as to why the thought is that "Govt needs to come to its senses".

Do we do any good in the long run to pick up and hold up failing businesses?  An example might be Chrysler, the Airlines, farmers, etc.   I have personal feelings about it, but I don't know the answers. Only think I might.

[SwampDonkey]

beenthere

Sometimes the government is just as responsible for mills closing as opening or upgrading them through their policies. I've seen government policy create situations which are favorable to large industry while harming small businesses which operated for generations. This includes farming. If large corporations took over farming for instance, you'de see a big increase in the grocery bill. Big Industry does all it can to squash the little guy because they want total control. We see it here with agriculture and forestry giants which aquired land through government deals that small companies were not aware of or couldn't participate in, such as the purchase of public owned New Brunswick railway land for under $1.00 per acre. Most government funded projects have no follow up, or they are not made public. Everytime the government favors one group the other is harmed. ;)

regards

[MrMoo]

Timco actually went out last summer. I was told they were supplying pine to a large retailer and because of the price dictated to them they could not stay in business.

[rebocardo]

> Maybe the demand for white pine isn't like it used to be

I thought 1/3 of all wood that went into a house actually came from Canada and most of it is pine?

[SwampDonkey]

rebocardo

Most of it would be spruce and balsam fir, some markets demand spruce only because fir is weaker and less resilient to decay. Pine would be used by mouldings, windows, doors and furniture manufacturers, not normally in structures. White pine is not all that available or excessible because of past harvesting, distribution and terrain.

[Swede]

Engelskt uppslagsord
fir (även firtree)

Svensk översättning
gran {botaniskt} (substantiv)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Svenskt uppslagsord
gran granen granar subst.
barrträd av släktet Picea


Engelsk översättning
spruce
 ??? ??? ??? ??? ??? What´s the difference?

I use the dictionary at internet from  "Swedish Authority of School Development".

Swede.

[Tim]

Is death by regulation as much of an issue in New Brunswick as it is here in Ontario SwampDonkey?

Here, we have the MOE running around, spouting off that sawdust is having an adverse effect on the environment. It is costing mills $30 to 60 grand to prove themselves innocent... I can only imagine what is coming down the pipe with the Kyoto Accord...

btw... corporate welfare burns my britches something fierce...

[Captain]

With absolutely NOTHING against our Canadian Neighbors (hey I married one! ;D)  You do see truckload after truckload of SPF (Spruce Pine Fir) building materials coming south here in New England every day and headed north on the same trucks that night is a load of Eastern White Pine.  

I've heard some stories about these Canadian softwood mills.....  Any pictures?

Captain

[Tim]

What kind of mills would you like pictures of Captain? There is everything here from 1Mfbm per day mills to 120 Mfbm per shift mills close by...

[Captain]

I guess that I can't fathom how BIG these places are?  How big is the log yard to keep them going?

[Tim]

The bigger ones around here are covering 20 or so acres for thier log yards... most of the mills around here are considerably smaller though.

The largest I've seen is the Domtar mill in Narin Centre. They manufacture studs there on two or three lines with chipping canters. They'll produce a million feet of studs a day there... 'tis a monumental pile of wood... and sustainable to boot