National

B.C. sets aside some timber supply for value-added

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 24 Jan, 2023 06:06 PM

DELTA, B.C. - The British Columbia government is launching a new program that will ensure dedicated access to the provincial timber supply for secondary manufacturers that make value-added products.

Forests Minister Bruce Ralston says the goal is to build a stronger, more resilient forest industry with value-added products such as mass timber, plywood, veneer, panelling and flooring.

Thank you @CoastlandWood for the tour and for hosting many industry leaders today. It is great to see a #BC business growing and expanding. @ILAlogger @IWPABC @JakePowerWood @BrendaBaileyBC (3/3) pic.twitter.com/8iqmsr23P7
— Bruce Ralston (@BruceRalston) January 24, 2023

The government says in a statement that those products are increasingly in demand as alternatives to carbon-intensive construction products such as cement, resulting in steady job growth in the province.

The statement says the program will be restricted to those facilities that have minimal or no forestry tenure and are approved as a value-added manufacturer.

Figures show overall harvest levels in the forest industry in B.C. have decreased in the past decade, but employment in the value-added sector has grown by about 35 per cent since 2012.

Paul Rasmussen, with the Interior Lumber Manufacturers' Association, says they're encouraged to see the government recognize that a dedicated fibre allocation for the value-added sector is required.

Prev Next

MORE National ARTICLES

Ottawa protesters not donors had accounts frozen

Hundreds of demonstrators blockaded roads in Ottawa for more than three weeks last month, and similar demonstrations blocked four major border crossings in Ontario, Manitoba, Alberta and British Columbia.

Ottawa protesters not donors had accounts frozen

B.C. pledges $18.4 million to Lytton recovery work

Public Safety Minister Mike Farnworth says $18.4 million will cover much of the costs of debris removal, archeological work and soil remediation for municipal, uninsured and underinsured properties in Lytton.

B.C. pledges $18.4 million to Lytton recovery work

B.C. has no plans to cut gas taxes, Farnworth

Alberta has responded by reducing its tax by 13-cents per litre on both gasoline and diesel. Farnworth says there's no simple solution to the rising fuel price situation as the cost rose above $2 a litre in Metro Vancouver.

B.C. has no plans to cut gas taxes, Farnworth

Group opposes forced health transfers in B.C.

Dying With Dignity says the service is being restricted because of an agreement that allows facilities covered by the Denominational Health Association to collect taxpayer dollars but refuse to perform services they oppose on religious or moral grounds.

Group opposes forced health transfers in B.C.

Surrey's Vaisakhi parade cancelled third year in a row due to COVID19 concerns

The magnitude and planning of this event takes a full year to complete and given the tight turnaround between the constantly changing public health order restrictions being lifted and the scheduled date of the parade, organizers did not feel they could responsibly honour the importance and magnitude of the event in this timeline.

Surrey's Vaisakhi parade cancelled third year in a row due to COVID19 concerns

Not all fleeing Ukraine offered Canadian haven

The Canadian government is allowing Ukrainians who have fled Russian aggression to come to Canada temporarily for a period of two years "for those who need a safe haven while the war ravages their homeland," Immigration Minister Sean Fraser announced last week.