A bright future in forest sector
Despite the many uncertainties in today’s modern world, one thing that seems certain is that our population in Canada is going to continue to increase as the global population increases.
In fact, with our aging population and need for more workers, we need to continue to grow our population, mostly via immigration.
Those thousands of new Canadians every year require homes and everyday items to provide a good quality of life. This includes a large quantity of forest products that are required to build the homes, schools, and furniture, as well as firewood for heating, and everyday paper and cardboard products, among many others.
From an economical perspective, is it not better for we Nova Scotians to produce the finished products from our own natural resources? Most might agree that this is a good idea, as long as the natural resources are managed and conserved in a sustainable long-term manner.
DIFFICULT TIMES
Over the last several years, the forest industry sector has been through difficult times.
The closing of the large kraft pulp mill in Abercrombie meant that a market that once purchased 30 to 60 per cent of many forest contractors production of poorer quality, small suppressed, and dead and dying timber, was suddenly gone. In speaking with a third generation forestry contractor recently, I learned that overnight he lost 40 per cent of his market and had to layoff half of his workers, many of whom had been with the family business for many years. He still had millions of dollars of heavy machinery, and those bills to pay, but much more challenging prospects of making a profit, especially as the price of fuel and taxes increased.
Not surprisingly, a number of forestry contracting companies have closed down or switched directions to other sectors. In the interim, there have been programs designed to soften the negative impacts and help build alternative entrepreneurial opportunities.
The COVID pandemic also threw a wrench into the forestry spokes, as the markets, supplies and costs fluctuated wildly. Unfortunately, it also resulted in fewer people looking for work. And forestry work is not like any other work. Usually, to work in some aspect of forestry where one is in the forest all the time, or most of the time, one should have a genuine interest and passion for nature and being in the woods. It is certainly not a standard nineto-five office job. One has to be hearty and flexible in many ways.
WORKING IN NATURE
But for those that like being in the outdoors, working in nature, and making a difference on the ground, forestry can provide a wide variety of interesting and rewarding jobs and career paths. The independent feeling and challenge provided by working in the outdoors is quite unique and adds greatly to the quality of life one enjoys.
There are so many different types of jobs related to forests such as: forest planners and managers, forest harvesting machine operator, silviculture worker, wildlife biologists, forest technicians, conservation enforcement officers, fish and wildlife technicians, outreach officers, educators, mechanics, forest surveyors, forest researchers, environmental inspectors, GIS specialists, modellers, and urban forest practitioners.
Forestry jobs can take one around the world to the most remote place imaginable, or, all the way to the other extreme in large cities, managing the invaluable urban forest.
Unlike when I started in the sector more than 30 years ago, things have changed dramatically. The sector is much more high-tech; from million-dollar forest harvesting machines, to onboard GIS and Lidar mapping availability, use of drones, watercourse protection laws, and the legal requirement to retain standing a specified portion of the trees in a harvest block based on stand and soil conditions. One of the goals of the Lahey Report on Crown land forest management is to ensure that society conserves a sustainable forest resource for the long term. We have learned this from our Indigenous neighbours, the Mi’kmaw people, who consider seven generations into the future when making land use decisions.
For youth that like the idea of working in the forest, there are many options available. After high school, there are various directions one can choose. For example, here in Nova Scotia, we have three NSCC campuses; in Truro,
Lunenburg and Port Hawkesbury, offering two-year programs in Natural Resources Environmental Technology. In Fredericton, N.B., there are two well-known forestry schools – Maritime College of Forest Technology (formerly known as Ranger School) – two year program; and the University of New Brunswick – Forestry and Environmental Management – four year program. There are information services available at all schools and most organizations, such as DNRR, where students and parents can request useful information about potential careers.
It is well worth the time and effort to look into various possibilities, meet people doing various jobs, and maybe find a job shadow or summer job opportunity. I recall with pleasure the time in my Grade Nine school year, arranging to go visit the well-known Department of Lands and Forests extension forester extraordinaire Gary Saunders. After that fateful meeting, I not only made a life-long mentoring friend, but it sealed the deal on forestry as a career choice for me, and there was no turning back.
Students, best of luck in your search…