As lumber sawmills continue to close across B.C., Premier David Eby said his government will look to connect existing tenures with new users as part of responding to those closures.
"One of the things, we have seen with mills closing is that the companies still own the tenure," he said at an unrelated event in Victoria Tuesday (Sept. 10). "We got companies that need those trees and that are creating jobs and supporting people in the province. Those trees are valuable. We have skilled workers and we are going to find ways to reconnect those trees with the people who are creating jobs and preserving jobs in our province."
When asked by Black Press Media what his message would be to British Columbians living in communities affected by mill closures, Eby acknowledged said the closure announcement was "just one things after another." It was last week Canfor announced it would close its operations in Vanderhoof and Fort St. John, impacting about 500 employees amid higher American tariffs.
In addition to reconnecting existing tenures with new users, Eby also touted government's Manufacturing Jobs Fund.
"A lot of those funds...are going to mass timber producers," he said. "We've got more mass timber buildings in our province now than anywhere else in North America and our goal is to have the most in the world, leading the way with this new technology."
His comments come on the heels of a leading industry group warning of a fundamental decline in the industry.
"Without decisive intervention, the viability of this foundational industry is at risk," Linda Coady, president and chief executive officer of the B.C. Council of Forest Industries.
Coady made the appeal after Canfor announce the closures. It was the latest in a series of hits to the provincial forestry industry, once considered B.C.'s main industry.
She called on the provincial government to advance three priorities: increase the allowable annual cut to approximately 60 million cubic metres amidst concerns that it could be as low as 30 million cubic concerns, speed up new forest management methods to help create a reliable supply of timbre and advance new agreements with First Nations.
Declining timber supply in the face of various factors such climate change coupled with tenure uncertainty co-exist with other factors such as falling demand for wood products because of slowing economic activity and rising tariffs on B.C. lumber. The U.S. government last month announced that it would retroactively raise tariffs on most softwood lumber exports from Canada to 14.54 per cent, up from 8.05 per cent.
Coady's appeal for action calls on the provincial government to work with the federal government to develop what she called a "durable solution" to the decades-long Canada-U.S. softwood lumber trade dispute.
"Urgent action is required to defend B.C. producers, workers, and communities from the disruptive impacts of these unfair and unwarranted tariffs," Coady said.
B.C.'s Forest Minister Bruce Ralston has vowed to do that. Ralston also promised that government would find ways to support workers, families and communities impacted by Canfor's decision while continuing to create opportunities in the forestry sector.
"We will continue to fight unfair duties and stand up for forestry workers," he said.
Appeals for reform and promises of support in the face of closures in the forestry sector are taking place on the eve of an election. The Conservative Party of B.C., whose leader John Rustad worked in the forestry industry and represents the northern riding of Nechako Lakes, said the closures will hurt northern B.C. He also blamed the B.C. NDP.
“These closures are not just statistics," he said. "They represent families losing their livelihoods and communities facing economic devastation. The NDP has failed these workers and their families.”
Rustad specifically signalled out comments from Canfor blaming what CEO Don Kayne called "increasing regulatory complexity" in echoing a familiar criticism.
While Rustad acknowledged the role of tariffs, he said it is "clear that the NDP’s regulatory burdens and lack of strategic vision are compounding the difficulties" faced by the forestry sector.
Dan Davies, the current B.C. United MLA for Peace-River North and future independent, said the struggles of the forest industry represent a larger neglect of the resources industries at large.
"The government has not supported the resource sector, period, across the board in this province."
"We have seen things reeling back on mining, we have seen it within the natural gas sector, we have seen it within forestry. (I'm) not saying we need to sacrifice environmental standards or anything like that, but when you put up barrier after barrier, fees and cost of doing business here in British Columbia, it's little wonder why we are seeing industry move to Alberta or south of the border."
