By Rob King, Owner of Fraser Lake Supplies
Describing the situation as “death by a thousand cuts” doesn’t quite capture it. The shutdown of Plateau Sawmill in Vanderhoof is more like losing a foot. This follows the closure of Fraser Lake Sawmills, a permanent curtailment of one shift at Nechako Lumber and temporary curtailments at both the Hampton and Appollo mills in Fort St. James. For those of you trying to keep count, that means that at least 435 good paying mill jobs have been permanently lost within 100km of Fraser Lake in less than a year. We’re well past a thousand cuts and deep into amputations.
Economists estimate that for each mill job lost, up to three additional jobs are affected in related industries, including trucking, logging, timber cruising, retail, and services. With a regional population of around 14,000, this means over 10% of the Nechako Valley’s population could face job losses as the full impact unfolds. That’s 1500 jobs that raised families, donated to charities and spent money at the local hardware store, these losses are decimating our economy.
If its clear to a lowly Hardware Store owner like me, then why isn’t there any action from the smart and talented people that have the power to do something about this?
The mills blame the government for a lack of fiber access, but the impact of the Pine Beetle on allowable cuts has been known for 20 years, with no action taken to right size their operations. Their policy has been “cut and run,” closing mills and moving operations elsewhere when profits fall.
The government, in turn, blames the mills for not investing in their operations, yet their red tape creates delays for permits. If policy changes were necessary, why aren’t more of our tax dollars from the forest industry being reinvested into our communities to support the transition?
Don’t just blame David Eby and the NDP either, remember that John Rustad was part of the BC Liberal Government scrapped the Appurtenancy clauses that forced the mills to operate in the nearest town to harvesting, instead of shipping logs hundreds as kilometers down the highway.
In reality, they are both to blame, greedy mills who only care about next quarters revenue and self-aggrandizing politicians who only care about next months election. While the Mill Executives and Politicians in Victoria and Vancouver hurl blame at each other from atop their fancy skyscrapers, it’s us, the people of Fraser Lake, Vanderhoof and Fort St. James that are left on their own to stop the bleeding ourselves.
