Sask. company fears closure after government regulation change

A Saskatchewan wood preservation company is supposed to be celebrating its 50th anniversary this year. Instead, the family-owned business might be shutting down.

Perry Vermette, the CEO and president of Vermette Wood Preservers in Prince Albert, said the business was started by his dad in the early 1970s. The plant became pentachlorophenol-based after Canadian regulations over wood preservation changed in the ‘90s.

When Vermette’s father passed away in 2004, Perry and his two brothers bought the company from their uncle to keep running it as a family business. Today, it’s just Perry at the helm to navigate the problems ahead.

Vermette said his company used the oil-based product to preserve their wood and sell it, but last year the Pest Management Regulatory Agency (PMRA) decided to discontinue its licence for the pentachlorophenol product that Vermette’s company uses.

Pentachlorophenol is a chemical that has been used in Canada as a heavy-duty wood preservative and has been regulated only for industrial use. In North America, the chemical is largely used to treat products like utility poles and bridge timbers.

The news wasn’t a complete shock to Vermette, who said he knew the chemical would eventually be replaced. However, the quick timeline for the phasing out took him by surprise.

“It’s not something that happens in a heartbeat,” Vermette said.

The last day of authorized sale of existing pest control products containing the chemical was Oct. 4 of last year, and on Oct. 4 this year, it will no longer be possible for Vermette to use pentachlorophenol in his company’s wood treatment operations.

“It just cannot happen,” Vermette said.

He pointed to the United States, where pentachlorophenol will be completely phased out over a five-year period, giving companies in the industry time to exhaust their existing stock.

The move by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency is meant to ensure stability in the wood preservation industry and allow a transition period to implement a new product to be used in the place of pentachlorophenol.

“That’s a perfect solution,” Vermette said.

He predicted a shortage of utility poles for Canada without willingness on the part of the PMRA to adjust the phase-out timeline for the chemical, which Vermette said would cause major supply chain issues.

“We will literally be short in this province up to 50 per cent of our utility poles that we would normally have,” Vermette said.

He said the change could also mean replacement utility poles needed in disaster and emergency situations might not be available.

Vermette said his company alone would need millions of dollars to make such a rapid switch and continue operations.

“If we cannot produce utility poles in the province of Saskatchewan for Saskatchewan, I’m sorry, there’s no other manufacturers out there that can take on all this volume that Canada uses here,” he said.

An emailed response from Health Canada stated that a special review of pentachlorophenol based on regulatory decisions of other countries led to the chemical being prohibited in any use for human health and environmental reasons.

A 45-day public consultation period on the decision began in July of 2020, during which Health Canada’s statement noted that many stakeholders, including those in the industry, responded.

Health Canada said that last year, prior to a final decision, the sole Canadian registrant of products containing the chemical notified Health Canada of its intention to discontinue the sale of all of its registered products. A one-year phase-out period was requested by the registrant.

Health Canada’s statement also noted there are a number of registered alternatives to the chemical that affected companies could make use of instead.

“Health Canada takes the supply challenges that stakeholders and users of products treated with pentachlorophenol could face seriously,” the statement read. “Health Canada is currently reviewing an application to register pentachlorophenol-treated wood poles and cross-arms.

“Given the concerns from stakeholders, this application is being reviewed on a priority basis.”

Vermette said he doesn’t want to see his family’s business closed down, and worries about his employees, who he calls his family. He said many lack education and have struggled with issues like addiction — himself included.

“We are an Indigenous business and we have 96 per cent Indigenous people,” Vermette said. “If all of a sudden we take away their job, what happens to these kids?”

“That’s what makes me proud and that’s what hurts me about what’s happening here.”

Vermette said he wants to see a solution very similar to the one happening in the U.S., where a period of time is allowed by the government for companies to exhaust their supplies and transition to a new product. That extra time can also be used to apply for permits and make orders.