John Rustad

Last week, the BC Conservatives released a forestry platform that includes the following reforms: Replacing the current stumpage system with a value-added tax on end products; Switching from a sawlog annual allowable cut (AAC) to a fibre-based AAC; Clearly defining timberlands to be prioritized for harvest; Conducting a core review for forestry; and Simplifying cutting permits with a one-permit, one-process model… The BC Conservatives have committed to replacing the stumpage system with a tax on end products that would adjust according to market conditions. The Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples Act (DRIPA), which passed in 2019, essentially invests First Nations with a greater say over land use in their traditional territories and requires the amendment of several B.C. laws to harmonize them with the act. Rustad has vowed to repeal DRIPA.