Kurt Niquidet

For nearly four decades, Canada’s forest sector has been caught in a recurring cycle of US trade actions, litigation and uncertainty. Duties are imposed, legal challenges follow, some decisions are overturned, and yet the dispute persists. The names of the cases change, but the outcome is largely the same: uncertainty for businesses, workers and communities that depend on forestry. The upcoming review of the Canada-US-Mexico Agreement (CUSMA) presents a rare opportunity to change that. Trade agreement reviews are not simply technical exercises. They are moments when governments step back, reassess priorities and address issues that conventional trade processes have failed to resolve. Softwood lumber should be at the top of Canada’s agenda. …The US does not produce enough lumber to meet its domestic housing needs. Canadian lumber has long helped fill that gap. …After four decades of conflict, it is time to move beyond litigation and focus on a lasting solution.