CANADA (From news reports) -- A pulp mill in Prince George, B.C., owned by Canfor Pulp Ltd., has been fined almost $500,000 after a worker seriously injured their hand in an unguarded piece of machinery.
WorkSafeBC issued the $489,104 penalty on July 10 following an inspection at the company's Northwood Pulp Mill in April.
According to the inspection report, a worker was injured on the fifth floor by a hydraulic cylinder that cycles every 64 seconds, "dropping rapidly down" into a metal box. This cylinder was part of a system that pumps "black liquor," a mix of toxic chemicals created during the pulping process.
The agency determined the firm failed to ensure its machinery and equipment was fitted with adequate safeguards to protect workers from hazardous points of operation, said a summary of the fine recently posted to the WorkSafeBC database.
"This was a high-risk violation," said the summary.
Canfor spokesperson Mina Laudan said a contract worker sustained a hand injury in the incident.
"We deeply regret that a worker was injured at our site. It is our responsibility to provide a safe working environment," said Laudan in an email. "Following the injury, we took immediate steps to safeguard the equipment that was involved in the incident."
If the WorkSafeBC fine holds, it would be the largest levied against Canfor and its subsidiaries in at least a decade.
The company was penalized more than $172,000 in 2022 after a worker fell from an unguarded work platform at a sawmill in Houston, B.C., and more than $56,000 in 2021 after a worker was injured in a series of repeated high-risk violations at a sawmill in Fort St. John. Canfor has requested an appeal in both cases.
The latest fine comes as Canfor Corp. (TSX: CFP) struggles with losses amid weak market conditions in the U.S. south, rising global economic uncertainty and "punitive" U.S. softwood lumber duties.
Earlier this month, the company said it's lost a net $202.8 million in the second quarter this year, compared to $191.1 million in the same quarter last year.
The North American market is facing sluggish demand and weak pricing, leading the company to permanently close two sawmills in South Carolina, according to chief executive officer Susan Yurkovich.
Net operating losses in the company's pulp division totalled $7 million in the second quarter -- something the company attributed to trade uncertainties, particularly in China.
