MINING: Mount Milligan raises cash for construction A4 Friday, August 17, 2012 Should be a great weekend to head out to the lake A3
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Marginal timber stands eyed ■ Pine Beetle
Committee tables 22 recommendations for government to act on to keep cut levels up DeLynda Pilon newsroom@pgfreepress.com
If no steps are taken to mitigate the effects of the mountain pine beetle infestation, the equivalent of eight of approximately 24 mills in the affected areas may be forced to close within the next 20 years. The special committee on timber supply, chaired by MLA John Rustad, was formed late in May to design recommendations to temper the damage being done in affected forests, and shared the 22 measures it feels need to be taken Wednesday. During a press conference later the same day, Forests, Lands and Natural Resource Operations Minister Steve Thomson said the ministry will be working very quickly to outline a number of steps and create an action plan to put the recommendations in motion. He expects there will be a timeline charting the steps to be taken moving forward within the next week. “We’ll have a action plan in response to all the recommendations by September,” Thomson said. The recommendations include maximizing the value of marginal economic stands, creating an inventory of B.C. forests, and looking at the feasibility of rebuilding the Special Committee on Timber Supply committee chair John Rustad releases the sawmill in Burns Lake following August 15. the explosion of the mill, the town’s most affected by the mountain pine beetle that industry was nervous of any dramatic main employer and source of revenue, infestation. shifts springing from the recommendaearlier in the year. Following it is Quesnel then Prince tions within the report. Rustad said that though the future of the George. A reduction in the allowable Thus far the mountain pine beetle has Burns Lake mill was not directly within annual cut in Prince George won’t happen killed 53 per cent of the pine trees in the the committee’s mandate, there was some as quickly as in the other areas, Rustad affected area. If left unchecked it could expectation for them to look at the issue. said, meaning it should be of benefit for destroy 57 to 70 per cent leading to a “We tried to come up with solutions we Sinclar to re-open Lakeland Mills, though reduction of 10 million cubic metres in the thought were reasonable,” he said. there will be other factors the company annual cut. However, with hopes of utilizWithout removing existing timber rights, will likely need to take into consideration. ing marginal forest areas combined with Rustad said there are one million cubic “There will be challenging decisions for innovations within the forest industry and metres of pine in the Lakes area to support industry in the future,” Rustad said. a look at some of the infected forests Burns Lake. The Lakes District is the area Rustad added the committee was aware while touring the various areas during the
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committee’s report in Prince George consultation process, Rustad remains optimistic. He said he was happily surprised to note the amount of green, about 25 per cent, left in forests in the Quesnel area. “It’s encouraging to see how much green is left in those mountain pine beetle infested areas,” he said. He added though there will be changes within the forest industry, he believes it will remain a staple to B.C.’s economy. “I am optimistic about the future of the forest industry,” Rustad said. Reaction page A7
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