By Pete McIntyre

‘It’s big, big numbers:’ MLA urges action on forestry slowdown

Aug 26, 2019 | 5:30 AM

The MLA For Vernon-Monashee fears the slowdown in the forest industry is only going to get worse.

“The trickle down effect is going to become the flow-down effect,” Eric Foster told Vernon Matters.

Foster says shift curtailments and mill shutdowns, such as the ones impacting local Tolko operations, will be felt across the economy.

“It has to when you get that much curtailment in an industry as large and important as the forest indistry is to B.C.”

The Liberal MLA says while all the blame can’t be put on the NDP government, he does feel John Horgan’s team should look at lowering stumpage fees and the carbon tax, to help forest companies.

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“We can lay a lot of the blame on the price of logs because they set the price of logs, the stumpage that is collected. There is an opportunity for the ministry to step in an say, based on what’s going on, with the price of lumber way down, ‘we’re prepared to lower the price of stumpage until such time as the market picks up.'”

Foster says the mills are losing a tremendous amount of money every day.

“It’s big, big numbers. It costs them millions of dollars to shut a mill down for a month,”so that gives you an idea of how much they are losing by operating.”

The B.C. government has said softwood tariffs, low lumber prices and a lack of timber are the main reasons for the slowdown.

Forests Minister Doug Donaldson has cautioned reducing stumpage would likely lead to further trade actions from U.S. lumber producers.

Donaldson said the province is working on efforts including job fairs, skills training and career counselling for laid-off workers.

He has estimated more than 3,900 workers have been affected by sawmill closures and curtailments.

by Pete McIntyre

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