Some industrial activity could soon resume in N.B. woods if rain persists: DNR

A wildfire burns near Miramichi, N.B., in this Wednesday, Aug. 13, 2025, handout photo. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Handout - Government of New Brunswick, Stephen MacGillivray (Mandatory credit)

Some industries in New Brunswick might soon be able to resume work in the forests if the province continues to see steady rain.

Natural Resources Minister John Herron made the remarks during a news conference about New Brunswick’s wildfire situation Monday afternoon.

The province has banned industrial and recreational activities in the woods due to the tinder-dry conditions and high wildfire risk. There is also a provincewide ban on burning.

Herron noted New Brunswick saw some rain over the weekend and said it would likely need to see two to five more days of sustained rain to allow some commercial activity to resume.

“The rain that we did receive – and I want to be very, very cautious with my remarks here on what this means in our forest and what opportunities or new opportunities may exist – but because of that rain that we have received, there may be opportunities for us to be able to put people back to work, largely on an area-specific or regional basis,” he said.

Herron said tree-planting operations and sawmills are two industries that could see some restrictions lifted. He noted time is running out for the province’s tree-planting exercises, which he said are “not that heavy from an industrial perspective.”

He also said some mills in New Brunswick are running low on wood, so the province may allow some of those operations to resume in some areas, if conditions improve.

“Any process, industry that we begin to restart has to be done through a very balanced and considered process,” said Herron. “I do not envision a provincewide lifting of recreational activities, commercial activities sort of all at once.”

Herron said any industrial activity would be first be allowed at night, when the wildfire risk is lower.

“We will not put New Brunswick families and communities at risk,” he said.

Economic losses

While no structures have been lost due to the wildfires, Herron said there have been substantial economic losses.

“Those fires do represent a very significant amount of our inventory from a forest perspective that we are paying attention to,” he said.

Herron said roughly 2,500 hectares of land have been lost, or are at risk, which translates to about $4 million in royalty revenue.

He said timber would represent about $10.5 million in direct and indirect tax revenue to the government from the forest sector value chain.

“That timber would represent roughly $42.5 million in lumber revenue to sawmills and overall, from a GDP perspective, it would be about $77.5 million,” said Herron, noting those figures are on the higher end as they assume every hectare is comprised of merchantable wood.

As of 3:15 p.m. Monday, there were 35 active wildfires in New Brunswick, including six considered out of control.

The province’s largest fire, the Oldfield Road fire in the Miramichi area, is now considered contained.

For more New Brunswick news, visit our dedicated provincial page.