Over $850,000 in federal money is supporting the Canadian Wood Council Wood WORKS! program in Northern Ontario.
In North Bay on Thursday, MP Anthony Rota announced the FedNor funding to help create jobs and opportunities for forestry and wood-related industries across the region.
Rota says the investment will help strengthen the forestry and wood-related industries.
“Over the next two years, Wood WORKS! is expected to support 115 construction projects, create 750 jobs and generate increased wood sales by nearly $75 million,” he says. “This is great news for families and businesses in Nipissing-Timiskaming and communities all across northern Ontario that rely on the success of these key industries.”
The program looks to facilitate the use of wood in the construction of everything from commercial and residential buildings to bridges.
“The announcement will help us drive economic development and jobs in Northern Ontario,” says Rick Jeffery, President and CEO, Canadian Wood Council. “It will help us build safe, affordable housing across the province and it will also help us decarbonize the world.”
He also says they drive demand for wood.
“If there’s demand for wood, a mill like in Kapuskasing will then have demand for its products,” Jeffery says. “It’ll make sure that those jobs are there. It creates the jobs and makes sure those jobs are sustainable and are going to be there for a long time.”
The funding is being provided through FedNor’s Regional Growth Through Innovation Fund
(REGI), which supports the growth of Northern Ontario businesses, their expansion into new markets and their adoption of new technologies and processes.
**With files from Bradley Aubin
