RUSTAD -- by 2025 rural forestry communities in British Columbia could have tumbleweeds rolling down the main street
More forestry
curtailments and extensions ...
Coastal
production going down ...
Interior
production taking a serious hit and all the while NO response from government
...
The
real challenge is that the problem is growing, and a turnaround is not in sight
yet.
I've
been trying to figure out just why John Horgan's NDP government won't step up
to help the forest sector, workers and communities. I can only come up with
three reasons, but I don't know which is right:
1)
Simple incompetence ... they don't realize the difficulties, and they also
don't realize that this isn't a short-term problem.
One company I spoke with thinks that 2020 could be a write off, and are hoping for a turnaround in 2021. One analyst I've read is suggesting there won't be a significant improvement in USA housing starts until 2025.
One company I spoke with thinks that 2020 could be a write off, and are hoping for a turnaround in 2021. One analyst I've read is suggesting there won't be a significant improvement in USA housing starts until 2025.
2)
Don't extend help, and blame the former government in a perverted attempt to
gain support for the next election.
3) They
simply don't care because the majority of the impact is in BC Liberal ridings.
Many
forestry families I know can’t wait until 2020, never mind 2021, and by 2025
rural forestry communities in British Columbia could have tumbleweeds rolling
down the main street.
Mr.
Horgan, the time for action is now!
John
Rustad worked in the forest industry in logging and forest management.
He started and operated Western Geographic Information
Systems Inc. from 1995 to 2002 where he was engaged in forestry
consulting.
John was first elected to the BC Legislature in 2005 and was
re-elected in 2009, 2013 and 2017. He served in various capacities
including parliamentary secretary for Silviculture,
parliamentary secretary for Forests, Minister of Aboriginal Relations
and Reconciliation and Minister of Forests, Lands and Natural Resource
Operations.
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