Work fast to salvage B.C.'s forest industry

The news doesn't get any better for B.C.'s beleaguered coastal forest industry.

Friday marked another grim day, as the Western Forest Products sawmill in Ladysmith ran its last shift.

The mill's large log line had previously shut down on Nov. 30, resulting in 110 workers receiving pink slips.

A smaller line managed to stay operating for a short time, but 40 more workers received their walking papers on Friday. The closure came on the heels of recent news that, after 97 years of successful operation, Madill Equipment is bankrupt, with at least 100 people losing their jobs.

The latest news was obviously devastating to the workers in Ladysmith, but the news was also bad for employees of Nanaimo's Harmac pulp mill.

Arnie Bercov, vice-president of the Pulp, Paper and Woodworkers of Canada, Local 8 which represents Harmac's 530 workers as well as the 40 laid-off workers in Ladysmith, said the latest closure was another "nail in the coffin" for coastal pulp mills.

Harmac, already playing a waiting game to see what will transpire once Asia Pulp and Paper takes over the operation from Pope and Talbot (slated to happen next week), will now lose another source of wood chips to use as fuel to power operations.

Without enough wood fibre, even with the price of pulp at reasonable levels internationally, it will be even more difficult to keep operations running.

Bercov attributed the wood fibre supply problem directly to government's decision in 2003 to no longer require forest companies to process wood at nearby mills.

This, he claims, has seen raw logs increasingly sent from Vancouver Island to U.S. mills, resulting in local sawmill layoffs and closures.

So far, there are few solutions.

The forestry roundtable that is currently touring the province has been lambasted as "a joke" by critics.

The massive downturn in the industry simply must serve as a wakeup call for our senior politicians. Even Nanaimo-Parksville MLA Ron Cantelon, a member of the roundtable, said the closure of the Ladysmith mill is a "grim example" of what is happening in the forest industry.

Perhaps there can be some hope in Cantelon's statement that: "All the rules around tenures and stumpage fees are on the table. It's clear from the four meetings we've had so far that the rules in forestry have to change."

He is absolutely correct.

But how many reviews on the industry must be undertaken before something is actually accomplished?

It's wonderful in theory to tout the roundtable, which includes representatives from the industry, communities, labour and universities, taking a look at what needs to be fixed. But precious little has come out of previous bureaucratic meetings and pontifications about the forestry sector.

What we need, a sentiment previously espoused in many corners, are firm solutions, not just another round of talks.

And it will take a combined effort.

Gone are the days of constant government bailouts. The forestry companies need to show commitment to a long-term plan for sustainability, through developments like environmentally friendly technology and more cost-effective production. The industry must also do a better job of selling to markets other than the United States.The government must work harder to get rid of unnecessary taxes and the workers must upgrade themselves through training and education - perhaps with significant assistance from the politicians.

But while cities that traditionally relied on resource-based industries are becoming more diverse and better able to withstand the trouble within the forest industry, every effort must nonetheless be made to restore its lustre