Graham Powell has published a book called Lives of Conifers. It is a full colour large book covering coniferous trees indigenous to northeastern North America. This book would be a wonderful addition to any bookshelf. All you need to do to win the book is answer a simple question.

The question is:

We’ll even give you a hint about the answer. You can find it on our newly designed website. Write Yolanda when you have your answer and you may win the book.

Peggy McDougall (BScF’04), top right, manager of Thulium Farm Ltd. in Little Shemogue near Port Elgin, says the company ships many of its industrial products abroad, mainly to customers in the United States. The farm’s exporting success earned it a nomination for a New Brunswick Export Achievement Award, which will be presented tonight.

On top of the kind of products one might expect to find on a farm—square bales of hay for instance—Thulium also makes custom wood and recycled polyvinyl chloride (PVC) plastic products.

Peggy McDougall, who runs the farm in Little Shemogue, near the bridge to Prince Edward Island, says the company ships many of its industrial products abroad, mainly to customers in the United States.

To stay competitive in international markets with factors such as the high Canadian dollar working against it, Thulium tries to find ways to make products of the same quality at lower prices, McDougall says.

“We just have to work smarter,” she says. “You try to control the things you can control.”

The farm was established in 1967 and McDougall, who is a registered professional forester, took over as manager in 2004. She lives on the farm with her husband, who also has a forestry background, and two children.

The farm, which has more than 5,000 acres of land, still maintains some agricultural interests, primarily in quality hay and a managed private woodlot. But the focus these days is on its industrial operations.

Thulium first started its plastic grinding operation 13 years ago. It buys scrap material – over 300,000 kilograms per year – from local window and fencing plants and grinds it down to create recycled PVC products such as pipes. Higher-quality, cleaner regrind is sold for use in window frames.

The company sells its recycled plastic products in Ontario and Pennsylvania and McDougall says it broke into those markets through networking efforts and its website.

The farm’s industrial operations also include heat-treated pallets and other wood packaging products. About three years ago, Thulium started making plywood panels for RAUPANEL, a radiant in-floor heating system. It exports the panels to Alabama and the systems are sold all over North America.

“This is really taking off because of the green building trend,” says McDougall of Thulium’s panel business, which has more than doubled this year compared to last.

But she admits she was initially hesitant about the idea of expanding into the new area.

“Someone approaches you about an idea and you’re always apprehensive until you see proof,” says McDougall, adding, “It fits well into our operation.”

The regrind operation really took off just a few years before Thulium got into the panel business, she says. In 2006, the farm, which now has between eight and 10 employees, added a night shift.

In January 2009, the farm received $39,900 for new equipment and productivity improvements as part of the province’s New Brunswick Growth Program and McDougall says getting the right equipment in was important.

The farm’s exporting success earned it a nomination for a New Brunswick Export Achievement Award. The awards will be presented tonight as part of the Canadian Manufacturers & Exporters’ annual general meeting at the Delta Fredericton.

Adam Huras/Telegraph-Journal, May 27, 2010

We started in the late fall of 2007 with a large sign in front of the Forestry and Geology Building announcing our anniversary and we ended in December 2008 with a big Christmas tree on the portico of the same building.

In between we took our celebration to a number of places in Canada, we planted trees, we had a corn maze, we had a fantastic gathering during Homecoming, we celebrated one of our own receiving an honorary degree (Gordon Baskerville) and we raised funds for scholarships plus lots more. Check out our website for more details and photos.

We still have some books and clothing for sale at great prices. Don’t forget to have a look at those on our website.

PhD student Eric Labelle is working to develop a set of guidelines for the forest industry that will allow a balance between protecting forest soils and utilizing biomass (tree limbs and tops) as a source of bio-energy.

Eric, along with his supervisor Dirk Jaeger, are in the process of determining the minimum amount of brush that should be left on machine operating trails for effective soil protection, allowing the remaining brush to potentially be used for bio-energy operations.

To read more about Eric’s research, go to our website.

It has been 8 years since we last updated you so without further ado, here is the latest list. We also very proud of a fellow member who was invested with the Order of Canada.

Ying Hei Chui was selected as one of four scientific directors across the country to lead the NSERC Strategic Network on Innovative Wood Products and Building Systems (NEWBuildS) which is hosted at UNB. His role as chief administrator and scientific leader of NEWBuildS will be supported at UNB by the efforts of Fan-Rui Meng and Ian Smith. The sum of $5 million will be invested by NSERC. Our website has full details.

A collaborative research partnership for sustainable forest management

A province-wide forest community made up of wildlife groups, industry, educational institutions and nature trusts and conservancies called Community-University Research Alliances (CURA) has received $1 million to increase the capabilities of environmental non-governmental organizations, forest industry, governments, and universities in New Brunswick to discuss, learn, and collaboratively address forest sustainability issues.

The group will further refine collaborative resource management and consensus-based conservation theories. A detailed description can be found here.

This is info about the new program.

UNB Alumni News, spring 2010

Following graduation he went to work for Ontario Lands and Forest and later called the Ontario Ministry of Natural Resources for over 29 years in a variety of positions and locations throughout Ontario.

He worked as a Unit Forester, Forest Management Supervisor, Regional Forester, District Manager and retired as the Director of the Forest Management Branch in the fall of 1996. He worked in Cochrane, Hearst, Chapleau, Timmins, Thunder Bay and Sault Ste Marie. His career allowed him to be involved in the day to day activities of forestry. In the later years of his career he was very involved in Forest Policy development.

Another major high light of his career in OMNR was being asked to oversee the Relocation project for OMNR. He was given the responsible to relocate all of the Forestry staff (about 350 staff) from Toronto to Sault Ste Marie as well as being evolved in the design of the Ontario Forest Research Centre as well as the (Roberta Bonder) building that currently houses the Ontario Forest policy staff.

He also worked for a 1&1/2 years for Parks Canada as a Resource Advisor for the Atlantic Region.

His work career after OMNR, was the General Manager of Clergue Forest Management Inc., a Sustainable Forest Management (SFL) company in Sault Ste Marie for 51/2 years. Clergue’s responsibilities included forest management and operational activities as well as some of the harvesting for the 6 shareholders mills. His initial responsibility for Clergue was the development of the business management model so Clergue and their shareholders could obtain a Crown Forest Sustainability License (SFL) from the Ontario government.

Currently he is working as a Forestry Consultant and living on Oromocto Lake, in New Brunswick.

Trevor has always believed Forestry students should be given summer work opportunities which would enhance their future career opportunities as well as career choices. He believes Forestry employers need to step up their responsibility in this area even in tough times.

As a Regional Forester in the mid 1980’s he was one of the proponents that helped to initiate the Forester in – training Program (Ontario’s Forester Internship program today). This program provided new graduate Foresters the opportunity to internship in their chosen field as well as being mentored on the job for a 2 year period. The program has operated for over 25 years in Ontario and many of OMNR’s senior managers have come through this program.

New Forestry graduates need to be willing to relocate to locations where forestry is being practiced which very often is in northern remote communities of Canada. Forestry students need to think about this during their under graduate years. 

The faculty has been very grateful to have Trevor volunteer for the past five years. He has been involved with first year students for mock interviews, oral presentations and assisting in employment placement. He also played a role in the 100 year celebrations and was on the Homecoming Reunion Committee! Thank you Trevor for stepping up to the plate!