Canadian sawmill operations are suffering thanks to the recent downturn in residential construction in the U.S.

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Calling the recent downturn the worst this industry has seen in decades,” Canfor Corporation, Vancouver, BC, Canada, announced it would close its Mackenzie sawmill indefinitely once the remaining log inventory at the facility has been processed.
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The move is part of a program to reduce costs to help the company weather the market downturn. Canfor is a forest products company with 33 facilities in Canada and the U.S. It is a producer of softwood lumber, and produces oriented strand board, plywood, remanufactured lumber products and specialized wood products.
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Home Channel News reported that Federated Co-operatives, which serves its member-owners in western Canada, announced it is shutting down its sawmill and planer operations in Canoe, BC, from June 4 to 29.

The shutdown was attributed to weak market conditions, the 15% softwood lumber export tax imposed under the U.S.-Canada Softwood Lumber Agreement and the rising value of the Canadian dollar.