Domtar to shut Ear Falls sawmill, again

A Domtar Corp. sawmill in Ear Falls, Ont., will shut down in October after reopening just a week ago, the company says.

The move, caused by a major collapse in demand for lumber,will affect about 130 workers.

Domtar said tree harvesting will also be affected by the shutdown.

Company spokeswoman Bonnie Skene said there were a few reasons for pre-announcing the planned October closing in mid-August.

"It has to do with a couple of things. One is to process the existing log inventory that's in the mill yard. The other obviously is to provide appropriate notice to affected employees."

In April, Domtar idled its Dryden, Ont., pulp-making facility. The Ear Falls sawmill was closed forseven weeks at the same time. In all, almost 500 workersreceived temporarily layoff notices. Domtar said the moves were taken in response to continued weak global demand for pulp and the need to manage inventory levels.

The Ear Falls sawmill has an annual production capacity of 190 million board feet of dimensional lumber.

Skene said that there is no restart date for the sawmill after October.

Ear Falls is 400 kilometres east of Winnipeg.