A wood chip plant on Vancouver Island that's majority-owned by a First Nation in British Columbia and was acquired with help from provincial funding, says it is closing, the latest setback for the province's forestry sector.
Atli Resources chief executive Jonathan Lok says in a statement that the Atli Chip LP facility in Beaver Cove will close in March due to "ongoing structural changes affecting British Columbia's coastal forest sector."
The statement says a major factor was last month's announcement of the closure of Domtar's pulp mill in Crofton, B.C., which Atli says effectively eliminated the demand for wood chips produced at Beaver Cove.
Atli, which is co-owned by the ‘Namgis First Nation, says it and its partners on the Beaver Cove plant including Domtar are looking at alternative uses for the site, calling the plant's closure "a necessary pause" but "not an exit" from Vancouver Island's forestry sector.
North Island-Powell River Conservative member of Parliament Aaron Gunn says on social media that the news of the closure is "heartbreaking," adding that he is "angry" about the job losses while criticizing the B.C. New Democrat government's forestry policies.
The provincial Ministry of Forests did not immediately provide a response to the plant closure, which was acquired by Atli in 2021 with help from provincial funding, then expanded with federal support.
Lok says Atli remains focused on a "responsible transition" of the forestry industry on north Vancouver Island.
“The North Island matters deeply to us,” Lok says in the statement. “Forestry still matters too — but the system is changing. Our responsibility now is to manage this transition properly and to work with the ‘Namgis First Nation, communities, and local leaders to help shape what comes next.”
Domtar said in 2024 that operations at the Atli plant and related salvaging activities had created 25 to 30 full-time jobs. The Crofton mill had about 350 workers.
Picture Courtesy: THE CANADIAN PRESS/Darryl Dyck
