Tariff plans have raised questions about the West Kootenay’s forest sector preparedness. U.S. President Donald Trump has doubled down on his plans to place tariffs one of the West Kootenay’s most profitable sectors. In an interview with Castanet, Minister of Forests Ravi Parmar said the province plans to respond by instituting regulatory tariffs, speeding up permitting, and diversifying the countries B.C. exports wood to. “Minister of Finance, Brenda Bailey, relayed yesterday what the job and economic impacts of this Trump tariff would be on B.C.. At the same time, he also said that we are much better positioned than other provinces because we have done good work diversifying our economy,” said Parmar. …Some industry experts and opposition MPs argue that … the country has had ample warning time to address trade barriers embedded in the Canadian Free Trade Agreement (CFTA). Other leaders, however, have advised government officials not to impose retaliatory tariffs.