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Lumber production in the Province has steadily
increased over the past decade, from a low of less than 40 million board feet in
1991 to the present day production of about 125 million board feet. While
softwood lumber production dominates the industry, in recent years hardwood
production has accounted for about 3-4% of total production.
In addition to the commercial licenced sawmills there are about 600 domestic
mills which produce 6000 board feet or less. These
mills have little impact on overall lumber production and generally produce
about 2 million board feet per year. There are six production classes of
sawmills with Class 06, greater than 500,000 board feet, accounting for the
majority of the Province’s lumber production. The larger 11 integrated mills
which are also considered Class 06 mills, account for 80% of the Province’s
total lumber production.
Most of the larger sawmills in the Province have direct or
associated kiln drying capabilities. For most sawmills kiln drying has become
necessary to gain market access and to reduce transportation costs of shipping
wet lumber. The majority of the drying kilns utilized in the Province have a
lumber capacity of between 50,000 to 100,000 board feet. Depending on the type
of lumber, it can take up to seven days to dry lumber to the industry standard
of 19% moisture content.
1998-1999 Lumber Production Report
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(pdf - 241kb)