Bob Brash

Suffice it to say there is an abundance of headlines about the environmental climate challenges facing us. …However, there remains a chore in convincing policy decision- makers… to deal with the current climate of uncertainty, instability, and lack of investment facing our sector. Today’s forestry world in BC is encountering many storm clouds in terms of the volume of policy and legislative changes impacting our sector in such a short period of time. Adding to the concern are the many unknowns about how such changes will actually be implemented across the landscape and how decision-makers will interpret them. …When viewed cumulatively, the effects upon our forest sector and businesses are decidedly negative contrary to the many announcements spun to a different narrative than those working in the woods are dealing with daily. 

Our sector has evolved over time to be one that is highly efficient at ensuring the harvested logs are fully utilized in all the various manufacturing facilities. It is a complex and integrated system requiring all components to be working properly. …Today’s work environment is not functioning as such. Across all components, uncertainty and instability dominate both the discussions and reality. Business decision-makers are typically drifting towards not making or deferring those needed investments to improve their business to the detriment of all in the sector. …Solutions abound to manage our forests for various objectives, mitigate the risks from wildfires, tackle climate change, provide the most sustainable product in the world, and meet the general expectations of both society and government. A good starting point would be government’s recognition of the immediate need for a collaborative and endorsed road map and vision for where BC’s forest sector is headed, including definitive targets for the overall annual harvest and land base in which we can be assured of operating upon.