Chapleau might be a small northern town, but it’s home to some big industry. On my latest stop, I wandered over to the GreenFirst Forest Products softwood lumber sawmill and biomass cogeneration plant, a place where the hum of machinery and the steady rhythm of industry fill the air.
The first thing I noticed was the tall smokestack, sending a steady plume of white steam into the clear blue sky. It stood like a northern lighthouse, only instead of guiding ships, it was a signal of industry hard at work. The plant doesn’t just cut lumber—it also powers itself with a biomass co generation facility, using bark, sawdust, and other byproducts to create energy. Nothing goes to waste here, and that’s pretty neat to see.
Driving in, I passed stacks of lumber piled high, wrapped and ready to ship out across the country. A loader rumbled by, carrying a fresh bundle of boards, while trucks and trains lined up to take the finished product to market. The place had a rhythm all its own—machines, workers, and nature all playing their part in this northern economy.
What impressed me most was how everything here connects back to the forest. Logs arrive, lumber is cut, waste becomes energy, and the cycle continues. Standing near the rail yard, I watched loaded cars filled with GreenFirst lumber, ready to head down the line. It was a reminder of how towns like Chapleau grew around industries like this, and how they still keep the community going today.
For a visitor like me, it wasn’t just about sawdust and steam—it was about seeing how innovation and tradition come together in northern Ontario. The sawmill is more than just a workplace; it’s a heartbeat of Chapleau, turning forest resources into something that travels far beyond town limits.
And as I walked away with the smell of fresh-cut pine still in the air, I thought: sometimes the story of a town can be told in the sound of a mill whistle and the sight of a railcar loaded with lumber, heading down the tracks to the wider world.
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