The Truck Loggers Association hosted 32 civic leaders from BC’s coastal communities on Tuesday evening to discuss UBCM Resolution B36 Re-Examine Log Export Policy and how the BC coastal forest industry supports their communities.
“We were able to address some of the major ‘myth-conceptions’ around log exports,” said David Elstone, TLA Executive Director.
Access to global log markets sustains local jobs—this was the main message. These exports support 60,700 direct forestry jobs in BC. We know a healthy forest sector requires a balance between meeting domestic manufacturing requirements and logs being exported to higher value markets around the world.
Elstone received enthusiastic feedback during his speech—Mayor Adams of Campbell River stepped forward to express his support of the TLA and the strong and unifying voice the TLA provides for BC’s coastal forest communities.
“Campbell River is the center for the coastal forest industry and we are committed to supporting a strong forest sector in our community and throughout the coast. The TLA is an important component to the industry, providing hundreds of direct and indirect jobs and economic stimulus to our communities,” said Adams. “In the next few months, Councillor Charlie Cornfield will head up our Forestry Task Force to pursue opportunities on how Campbell River can assist in maintaining a healthy forest industry for all the coastal communities.”
Over the evening, discussions around community involvement ranged from how the forest industry could better communicate its successes, to the direction of TLA’s efforts to foster First Nations relationships as well as Mayors’ interest in either developing or strengthening community forest tenures on the coast.
The TLA asked civic leaders to spread the understanding that log exports actually help their local communities and to shout out their support for the working forest when it comes up in community discussion. The TLA’s 450 member companies operate in BC’s 110 coastal communities creating well paid, local jobs.