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Timber supply shortfall revealed in report

Changes need to be made to sustain forest industry
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John Rustad

Forests make up nearly two-thirds of the land base in British Columbia and are an important economic, social and environmental resource in the province, affecting the lives of a great many of its residents.

The outbreak of mountain pine beetle has affected an estimated 18.1 million hectares of forestland throughout B.C. over the last 13 years.

The all-party Special Committee on Timber Supply highlighted this in its report to the Legislative Assembly of B.C., which had appointed it in May to make recommendations to address the loss of mid-term timber supply in the Central Interior.

After a series of 15 public hearings conducted in the Interior, three days of hearings in Vancouver and consideration of more than 650 written submissions, it has heard the voices of First Nations, local governments, industry stakeholders and the public.

The report identified a significant shortage in timber expected in the province and put forward numerous recommendations to effectively deal with the problem within the broad context of future forest management.

Committee chair John Rustad says managing the supply in the long term is part of the committee's mandate, but it also needed to ensure whatever is done is sustainable for the mid-term supply, as well as the overall health of the forest industry.

"It's not just about keeping it open for 10 or 15 years; it's about 'what is it that we can do to minimize the impact in the mid-term harvest supply,' but making it sustainable for the communities and the industry."

Prior to the pine-beetle infestation, the annual allowable cut (AAC) for the 100 Mile House Timber Supply Area (TSA) was at about 1.5 million cubic metres (m3) a year, Rustad notes.

The current uplift is about two million m3, he explains, but it's projected to decrease to about 670,000 cu3 when the mid-term supply point is reached.

"That means a drop of about 50 per cent from where it was pre-pine beetle. That 670,000 c3 represent just the green wood, [not] using any of the dead pine."

Rustad explains the short-term timber supply includes the remaining cleanup of the pine beetle-killed trees, while preserving as much green wood as possible for the mid-term.

Then the mid-term timber supply must support the industry for about the next 35-55 years, until forest regeneration kicks in with marketable, new growth timber and the AAC begins to increase again for the long-term supply.

"In the [hardest hit] Lakes TSA, we're looking at two or three years before we're going down in the pine. In the Quesnel area, and similar areas ... it might be a little longer shelf life. Here [in 100 Mile House], I think the projection is for 10 years.

"But that could happen a little bit quicker if companies say, 'we no longer can operate there,' or it could happen quite a bit later if we find the wood is still standing and companies can still operate in it."

Rustad says he remains "optimistic" about the future of the forest industry.