Vallée-de-la-Gatineau asks what residents want for the forest's future
Tashi Farmilo
The MRC de La Vallée-de-la-Gatineau and its partners are asking people across the region to fill out a short online survey about the future of the forest and the wood industry, with answers due by August 20. The regional county municipality says it wants to hear how residents see the forest's future and what they expect from it, on the premise that in a region built on the woods, a healthy forest means a healthy community.
The forest has shaped life in the valley for a long time. The region's development began in the second half of the 1800s, driven by the forestry industry and the first steps of agriculture, and the forest and farming still hold a significant place today, alongside cottaging and outfitting. That history is part of why the survey lands the way it does, because the sector now faces one of its hardest stretches in memory.
Much of the strain is close to home. Domtar has been temporarily closing and reopening its sawmill in Maniwaki since the end of 2024, leaving more than 100 workers in limbo. Speaking after a Maniwaki assembly that drew the region's forestry community, Domtar's senior public affairs director, Guillaume Julien, confirmed to Radio-Canada that the company was open to selling the mill, said no restart was foreseen in the short, medium or long term, and suggested a local owner would be the best outcome. Domtar later told Les Affaires that a $120-million provincial aid package for the forestry industry would not lead to a reopening in Maniwaki.
More of the pressure comes from across the border. As of October 14, 2025, a new 10 per cent US tariff pushed the total duty on Canadian softwood lumber to about 45 per cent, a historic high that stacks on top of existing countervailing and antidumping duties. With lumber prices already low, those costs now amount to a straight loss in many cases, leaving companies to choose between producing at a loss, not selling, or closing.
The threats go beyond the market. The MRC is preparing its own climate plan and has been asking residents for their concerns, ideas and priorities so it can build actions suited to the community. Large wildfires that hit several regions in 2023 and 2024 have already reduced the supply of wood on the market. The forest is also under attack from an invasive insect. The emerald ash borer, a beetle that attacks and kills ash trees, has spread through parts of the province including Gatineau, and the Canadian Food Inspection Agency lists the MRC de La Vallée-de-la-Gatineau among the areas it regulates to slow the pest's spread.
Residents have until August 20 to take part at: https://form.jotform.com/PostureInc/mrcvg_sondage_population
The MRC de La Vallée-de-la-Gatineau is asking residents to complete a short online survey by August 20 on the future of the forest and wood industry, as the sector contends with the Domtar mill's uncertain fate, steep US tariffs, climate pressures and an invasive pest. (TF) Photo: Tashi Farmilo