Tree species composition – in particular the ratio of coniferous to deciduous trees – is likely a major evolutionary force shaping biodiversity in the boreal ‘mixedwood’ forest. There are concerns that logging practices are resulting in declines in the amount of old mixedwood stands in Canada’s western boreal forest, which may be having a negative […]

This project targets a major research gap of the recently proposed Sustainable Sites Initiative (SSI), which is a North American green rating system for landscapes; scheduled to be released in 2011. Our research will focus on establishing the characteristics of urban trees that affect their ability to provision habitat to urban biodiversity (insects and birds)- […]

In February 2009, the Ontario Government announced the Feed-In Tariff (FIT)Program which will play a premium for electricity that comes from renewable sources – wind, solar and biomass – to help curb fossil fuel emissions. The goal of this internship is to assess using unmerchantable wood – that which is not useful for traditional forest […]

Mining operations in the Oil Sands area can affect extensive areas of boreal forest. Those forested areas affected by mining are expected to be reclaimed by mining companies to reestablish their natural conditions after the exploitation ends. The long-term success of reclamation plans can be assessed with ecological models that simulate how different environmental factors […]

Ontario is investing $100 Million over 10 years in the process of updating the Provincial Forest Resource Inventory (FRI), which involves the province-wide acquisition of new digital ADS40 aerial imagery to serve as a consistent platform for the photo-interpretation and mapping of forest attributes. Because it is coupled with advanced geographic positioning data, ADS40 imagery […]

This research proposes to investigate spalting (natural wood pigmentation by fungi) as a method for creating value-added wood products.  Specifically, this research will focus on the development of creating naturally colored wood for commercial applications, as well as increasing the value of blue stained pine wood inadvertently produced by the mountain pine beetle.  Industry benefits […]

Ecoatra is applying new developments in nanotechnology to solve the long-standing problem of hazardous substance use in the wood industry- one of our oldest and largest industries. Ecoatra’s formulation uses nanotechnology to enable deeper and more uniform penetration into wood, versatile application,  increased performance and potency at lower material quantities translating to reduced costs, multifunctional […]

  This project targets a major research gap of the recently proposed Sustainable Sites Initiative (SSI), which is a North American “green rating system” for landscapes; scheduled to be released in 2011. Our research will focus on establishing the characteristics of urban trees that affect their ability to “provision habitat” to urban biodiversity (insects and birds) […]

Climate change is becoming a factor to be accounted for in forest planning, especially in reclamation activities where the objective is to create a self-sustaining forest ecosystem in areas degraded by human activities, such as open-pit mining activities in northern Alberta Oil Sands. Oil Sands will produce up to 50% of Canadian oil demand in […]

  One of the most significant screws emerged to connect timber members is the self-tapping wood screw (STS). This screw has primarily been developed to reinforce some of the weakest strength properties of wood. To further extent the application possibility of STS in timber construction, future research needs to address the potential of such screws not just […]

Forest certification is a voluntary market-based instrument to promote sustainable forest management (SFM). Although, large areas of forests have been certified against different certification schemes in British Columbia, there has been a recent slowdown in the uptake of forest certification due to a number of factors, including a lack of awareness. Architects and builders have […]

Recently introduced micronized copper wood preservative system has successfully captured most of the treated wood market in the USA; however, it cannot be acceptable in Canada because the wood surface is mottled and streaky in appearance when it is applied to Canadian wood species (spruce-pine fir). This problem may be solved by partially solubilizing copper […]