Alberta forestry rebounds

The Alberta forestry industry is rebounding as the price for lumber increases.

The price jump is being driven byhigher demand in the United States.

"It's one of the sectors of the province that's kind of on fire," says Todd Hirsch, Senior Economist with ATB Financial.

"Lumber prices have almost doubled from where they were a couple of years ago. We're finally starting to see the housing market in the United States pick up some steam again."

Along with the housing market crash in the U.S., theAlberta lumber businessalso took adownturn as the mountain pine beetle spread through the province. Spray Lakes Sawmills in Cochranecut its staff of 265workers in half and scaled down to one shift instead of two, during the recession.

Company spokesperson Gordon Lehn says business is starting to turnaround.

"We're going to be going back to a double shift operation, hopefully by the end of the calendar year."

Lehn says Spray Lakes Sawmills' next challenge will be finding skilled workers.

"We're competing with the oil patch and everyone else to try to find that manpower we need as well," says Lehn.

The company expects the rebound in the industry will also meanmore general business activity in the area as more contractors and more trucks are put into service.