Truck LoggerBC - Volume 37, Number 4

2015 TLA CONVENTION AND TRADE SHOW ]

www.tla.ca

[ INSIDE

Winter 2015

Tough

Decisions

PM # 40010419

Facing The Logging Sector

First Nations and Licensees: Looking at Today’s Successful Partnerships Breaking the Pattern: Contractors Garnering Influence in USW Negotiations Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 1

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CONTENTS

WINTER 2015 Volume 37 Number 4 www.tla.ca

47

52

59

Columns & Departments 7 8

President’s Message Reflections for 2015 Don Banasky

Executive Director’s Message “What is Really Going on Here?”

Jim Girvan

11 Interior Logging Association’s Message

New Members and New Students: It’s Exciting Times in BC’s Interior Wayne Lintott

12 North West Loggers Association’s Message Honouring Fallen Loggers Bill Sauer

14 Legal Report

The Forestry Service Providers Protection Act: How it Works in Practice John Drayton

16 Business Matters

Considerations for Today...That Maximize Your Wealth Tomorrow James Byrne

18 Safety Report

Remote Worksites are So Much Riskier Without a Solid Emergency Plan Ron Judd

21 Market Report

The Coast Pulp Log Market - Where Is it Headed?

Murray Hall

23 Forestry Service Providers Compensation Fund Makes a Payment Eric van Soeren

24 Investing From The Ground Up : TLA Convention Addresses On-The-Ground Contractor Issues TLA Editorial

27 AAC Certainty - An Intelligent Approach Les Kiss

29 Coastal Log Markets: Making the Case for Cypress Log Exports Bill Markvoort and Duncan Chisholm

Cover photo: Stacie Woodall

31 Message from the Premier

Working Hard, Achieving Together: Supporting BC’s Forest Industry Premier Christy Clark

32 Message from the Minister

BC’s Forest Industry: Connecting Locally, Promoting Globally Minister Steve Thomson

33 72nd Annual TLA Convention & Trade Show 2015 44 Reducing Risks in the Woods: Smart for Business Pam Jorgenson

74 Meeting your Legal Requirement When Harvesting a Timber Sale Dave Clarke

Cover

52 Tough Decisions Facing the Logging Sector TLA Editorial

Features 47 Getting Them When They’re Young: TLA and ILA Education Fund Achievements Sandra Bishop

55 Rate Models and Derivation of Rates: It’s in the Variables Justin Rigsby

59 First Nations and Licensees: Looking at Today’s Successful Partnerships Ian McNeill

64 The Changing Face of Contractor Representation in BC TLA Editorial

68 Breaking the Pattern: Contractors Garnering Influence in USW Negotiations Rob Wood

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 3

A&A TRADING LTD.

Interior Logging Association 2014 – 2015 Board of Directors

Chairman Reid Hedlund Don Banasky First Vice Chairman Randy Spence Jacqui Beban Bill Markvoort Second Vice Chairman Len Gudeit Past Chairman Ed Smith Jim Girvan Directors Terry Brown Ted Beutler Lee Callow Dave McNaught Mike Closs Lukas Olsen Dennis Cook Clint Parcher John Drayton Mike Richardson Randy Durante Barry Simpson Matt Edmondson Doug Sladey Frank Etchart Matt Wealick Scott Horovatin Associate Directors George Lambert Jeff Kineshanko Tim Lloyd Hedley Larson Brian Mulvihill Bill McDonald Editorial Board Don Banasky Burns Thiessen Jacqui Beban Ron Volansky James Byrne General Manager Wayne Lintott Graham Lasure Administration Nancy Hesketh Wayne Lintott Bill Markvoort Interior Logging Association Brenda Martin 3204 - 39th Avenue Brian Mulvihill Vernon, BC V1T 3C8 Bill Sauer

Forestry Management and Marketing

President Vice President Past President Executive Director Industrial Directors

Proven 25 year track record of maximizing timber values 9 Professional Foresters Development capital at attractive rates Strong customer base in domestic and export markets Accurate market price forecasting Detailed planning and budgeting process to ensure performance VANCOUVER 1210 - 1111 Melville Street, Vancouver, BC V6E 3V6 T: 604-684-2107 F: 604-689-0977 E: jmohammed@aatrading.com

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WINTER 2015 / VOLUME 37 / NUMBER 4

Heading down an unhealthy path?

Editor Brenda Martin Contributing Writers Don Banasky

Sandra Bishop James Byrne Duncan Chisholm Christy Clark Dave Clarke John Drayton Jim Girvan Murray Hall Pam Jorgenson

It’s not too late to change direction.

The road to better health

Ron Judd Les Kiss Wayne Lintott Bill Markvoort Ian McNeill Justin Rigsby Bill Sauer Eric van Soeren Steve Thomson Rob Wood

For editorial information, please contact the Truck Loggers Association: Tel: 604.684.4291 Email: trucklogger@tla.ca

We care about the health of your employees. That’s why we’ve introduced a new health resource site called My Good Health.

Full of valuable health information, it will help your employees get on the road to better health.

For advertising, please contact Advertising In Print: Tel: 604.681.1811 Email: info@advertisinginprint.com Truck LoggerBC magazine is published four times a year by the Truck Loggers Association, with content and support from the Interior Logging Association and the North West Loggers Association. Its editorial content seeks to reflect issues facing the industry and to provide readers with current information on B.C.’s forest industry. All rights reserved.

Advertising Sales & Design Layout office:

Advertising In Print 200 - 896 Cambie Street, Vancouver, BC V6B 2P6 Tel: 604.681.1811. Fax: 604.681.0456 Publication Mailing Agreement No. 40010419.

For subscriptions, contact office@tla.ca or 604.684.4291.

Send change of address notices and covers of undeliverable copies to:

0385.007 03/11

4 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

CUPE 1816

The Truck Loggers Association Suite 725-815 West Hastings Street Vancouver, BC V6C 1B4 E-mail: contact@tla.ca

Tel: 604.684.4291 Fax: 604.684.7134 Website: www.tla.ca

from the Editorial Board DESK...

I

’m looking forward to the 72nd TLA Convention & Trade Show later this month in Victoria. It’s going to be a great event with informative panel sessions and exciting keynote speakers. I hope to see many of you there.

This issue is so jam-packed I don’t have space here to touch on every article. So I’m going to pick out a few to highlight and leave you to find the rest as you browse.

First, there are two reports written by convention speakers that tie into their presentations. Take a look at James Byrne’s article, “Considerations for Today…That Maximize Your Wealth Tomorrow” and Eric van Soeren’s article, “Forestry Service Providers Compensation Fund Makes a Payment.” Both articles give you background information that will deepen your understanding of their presentations at the convention.

Next, our cover story looks at the tough decisions facing our industry. Contractor sustainability is front and centre right now. Forest contractors are based in BC’s rural communities and they create secure, well-paying jobs so people can work where they live and contribute to their community. However, when contractor sustainability is threatened, it’s these communities who bear the brunt of the pain when contractors go bankrupt.

There has been much discussion over the last six months about the Tsilhqot’in Decision and what it means for the forest industry in BC. While there are still a lot of unknowns around that question, we thought it would be useful to take a look at existing successful First Nations/ licensee partnerships. This article looks at three different

partnerships; one managed by the Haida, one by the Heiltsuk and the other by the Stó:lō. These are excellent models for our industry as we move forward.

We also gave some space in this issue to the work the logging associations do to promote and support forestry education in BC. There’s a call for funding applications directly below this article. There’s a two-page spread in the convention section highlighting what kind of work the TLA Forestry Education Fund supports. And finally, one of our feature articles, “Getting Them When They’re Young: TLA and ILA Education Fund Achievements,” tells two stories of young men who joined the forest industry because they took part in the TLA supported forestry education programs run in Alberni District Secondary School and Carihi Secondary School. None of this work would be possible if it wasn’t for the generosity of TLA members in making donations and then bringing their cheque books to Suppliers’ Night to take part in the auctions. Thank you for your support.

I wish everyone a happy and prosperous 2015 and I look forward to seeing many of you in person at the 72nd TLA Convention and Trade Show later this month in Victoria.

Jacqui Beban, Nootka Sound Timber Co. Ltd Editorial Board Chair

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Do you have a forestry education program that needs funding?

Find out more about projects we support on pages 38-39 and 47-50 of this magazine.

We are investing in teachers, students and communities, on behalf of TLA members, employees and families.

To find out more or to apply, visit: www.tla.ca/education Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 5

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Don Banasky

TLA President’s MESSAGE

Reflections For 2015

A

s I took time to consider my upcoming second term as TLA President, I reflected on the TLA’s achievement over the past year and the direction we’re now moving in.

In my first term, we completed significant work as part of a cooperative industry task force to address the growing shortage of workers and the need to recruit an estimated 4,700 people to our industry over the next decade.

Identifying where we were at and what we needed were critical steps in the recruitment process. In 2015, we will see continued work to secure funding

the forest industry. Access to natural resources in a cooperative relationship with First Nations and communities is important to our members and we trust that incorporation of the Tsilhqot’in Decision into the regulatory resource management framework will happen in a timely manner so as not to negatively impact the continued operation of our industry.

The TLA and its members continue to work with the BC Forest Safety Council to improve workplace safety and performance. The 2015 work plan addresses the continued need for an industry-led

The TLA and all industry stakeholders need to work together to ensure contractor sustainability in our industry. to build a recruitment and industry promotion infrastructure that, over the next decade, will support the entire forest industry in our recruitment efforts.

We trust that government will also see the need for this work and support us in our efforts.

Despite significant efforts by the TLA to support the protection of BC’s working forest, particularly within the rural urban interface, we were disappointed to see the cancellation of the Gambier Island woodlot process by Minister Thomson, citing community concerns and the need to undertake further consultation with local First Nations in light of the Tsilhqot’in Decision. The successful applicants undertook a great deal of work during the bid process to ensure they could successfully operate on these tenures, co-exist with the Gambier property owners and enhance Gambier’s recreational infrastructure while maintaining BC’s working forest. However the TLA understands the government’s position and fully supports its efforts to assess the implications of this important Supreme Court decision and use it to form a new lens through which to view

approach to improving safety performance of the forest sector, the advisory group approach which gives more leadership around solving issues to regional and industry sector groups, and the continued evolution of the BCFSC governance that will further improve effectiveness in eliminating all injuries by strengthening the role of the advisory and program committees. We trust that 2015 will bring continued improvement across all sectors of our industry.

Markets were not as kind as the analysts had predicted. However, the major public forest products companies on the coast continue to prosper with repeated quarters of positive EBITDA. From the manufacturing perspective, this is good since it means they can use profits to ensure the sustainability of their mills and, by being profitable, they can attract the capital they need to grow, continue to improve productivity and ensure sustainability. Looking into 2015, predictions are for continued growth in forest products demand and, as a result, continued profits on their side and continued need for the services our members provide.

For our contractor members, however, achieving sustainable rates and protection from non-payment for services has been less successful. We look forward to significant progress on both fronts in 2015 because, if we don’t, we fear both the industry and the rural communities that support us may be at risk as contractors continue to leave the sector in the face of an unsustainable business environment.

As we move into 2015, the TLA and all industry stakeholders need to work together on the core issues that will ensure sustainability of our industry. As an association, we will all the while be advocating for the interests of our membership because at the end of the day we need a healthy forest industry where sharing of the rents between stakeholders is accepted and supported so that we all prosper.

As an industry, we are competing against oil and gas, mining and LNG for workers and the ear of government.

Addressing our common objectives of supporting the AAC, protecting the working forest land base and recruitment must come first and all stakeholders must also recognize we will bring the TLA members’ perspective to the solutions table at all times With the support of our members as I continue in my role as TLA President in 2015, I welcome our new Executive Director, David Elstone, to the TLA team. David brings with him over twenty years of both local industry and analytical experience with a can-do reasoned approach that we believe will allow the TLA to meet its varied objectives moving forward. I look forward to a prosperous and successful year in 2015.

Don Banasky, President, TLA Tel: 250.668.7746 Email: Don.tamihilog@shaw.ca

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 7

Jim Girvan

TLA Executive Director’s MESSAGE

“What is Really Going on Here?”

I

resumed the role of TLA Executive Director in an interim capacity having been away for almost a year. This has given me a unique opportunity to review and understand where the TLA is at with respect to the initiatives led by the individual Board committees and the special projects supported by the TLA as a whole, such as the labour market initiative (LMI).

No one is refuting the reality any more that our industry needs new workers—4,700 within a decade according to the research. As detailed in the most recent LMI documentation (www.tla.ca/ hrstrategy), our aging demographic com-

forward as a whole. TLA members are the backbone of many coastal communities and it goes without saying that the forest industry is a key economic driver in each.

As an association, this is why we exist.

During one of the committee meetings I recently attended, the discussion drifted, as it often does, to the underlying issue of recruitment. “We can’t find anyone to fill these jobs,” noted one committee member citing that “the flights from Nanaimo and Comox to the oil patch make it too easy for workers to leave.”

Having flown many times to Alberta in the last year, I can attest to the plethora of

Why can’t logging contractors pay their employees more? It is simple. They can’t afford to despite the profitability of the industry generally. bined with a growing demand for workers globally has led to an urgent need to recruit workers to our industry. The LMI plans to facilitate this recruitment by systematically promoting the industry as sustainable, by increasing youth awareness of the industry as a career option, by supporting skills training programs and ensuring program coordination so graduates have realistic job opportunities with potential for career advancement.

Next steps for the LMI are identification and development of a funding mechanism to support the required work and development of a coast-wide infrastructure. This will include industry, First Nations, community and academic partners and will (hopefully) be successful in recruiting people back to the coastal forest industry.

As I mentioned above, the TLA Board committees individually address industry and association priorities such as pricing and marketing, forest policy, Aboriginal affairs, safety, training and industrial relations. Each committee meets regularly to understand the issues, to discuss and prioritize possible solutions and to identify where and how the TLA can use its influence to support and move the industry

8 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

frequent flyers living on the Island and working in the patch.

I asked a simple question of the committee, “Is it the ease of getting on a flight that is the core of the issue or is it something else?” As part of the discussion, it was noted that many of the training programs developed over the last number of years for equipment operators, scalers and truck drivers, seemed to be well received by potential recruits to the industry since by all accounts, courses are full whenever offered. On top of that, the TLA, with the support of the members, routinely provides financial support to many programs like this in order to encourage students to work in the industry upon graduation.

So what is really going on here? We have a sustainable industry that produces products demanded globally. The industry provides good paying jobs that can support families. And we have a growing demand for workers that would suggest secure careers.

After some discussion, the committee landed on the answer. It was not the ease of air travel at the core of the problem, but that: “The oil patch can afford to pay workers more and we cannot compete.”

It was stated as if it was a fact that we could not influence. So, as a result, we would have to rely on other factors to attract workers like wanting to live on the coast, being close to home or living in a rural setting.

At this point, I had to disagree. Of the 4,700 job vacancies that we are forecast to have over the next decade, a significant number of them are in logging and trucking. Why can’t logging contractors pay their employees more? It is simple. They can’t afford to despite the profitability of the industry generally. As was noted in “When David Meets Goliath” (Truck LoggerBC, Fall 2014), the major companies are all making significant profits while contractors, the ones expected to hire and train new recruits, continue to struggle financially.

At the heart of the LMI strategy has to be a recognition that to compete for workers, pay scales for similar types of work across the resource industries must be at least comparable and hopefully, because we all know that living on the coast is typically seen as more desirable than Fort Mac, the recruits will come.

This will only happen with a more equitable share of the rent generated from the sustainable use of our coastal forest resources than currently exists today. As Premier Christy Clark recently said, “Let’s change the paradigm from winners and losers to partners so we have revenue that we can all share to create wealth.”

This is how we build an industry and a sustainable economy.

The forest industry needs to acknowledge this or we will simply continue preaching to the converted and the recruits we need will simply pass us by.

As I hand over the reigns to Dave Elstone, I look forward to continuing to support the TLA and its advocacy efforts on behalf of the membership.

Jim Girvan, RPF, MBA, Interim Executive Director, TLA Tel: 604.684.4291 ext. 1 Email: jim@tla.ca

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Wayne Lintott

Interior Logging Association’s MESSAGE

New Members and New Students: It’s Exciting Times in BC’s Interior

W

ith the closing of the Central Interior Logging Association earlier this year, the Interior Logging Association has taken an active role in canvassing past CILA members to join the ILA. All new members joining the ILA have had their membership dues honoured to the end of the CILA’s annual membership dues cycle.

We thank all the contractors, trucking companies and associates for joining the ILA and we will continue to work hard with everyone involved on the concerns facing our industry.

hicles (Brutus Boxes), equipment rates, trucking rates, logging rates, cycle times, training workers, road maintenance, permits, safety regulations and requirements, ABS brakes and more. These are topics of concern with all three provincial logging associations and we are all working on solutions together.

Again, the ILA is looking forward to working with our new northern area members and ensuring we are meeting their needs.

Speaking of membership, our 57th Interior Logging Association Annual Conference and Trade show will be held

The ILA is looking forward to working with our new northern area members and ensuring we are meeting their needs.

I have spoken to many of the contractors based in what was the CILA membership area and it is amazing to hear how the concerns we have within the ILA membership area are often identical to those of our northern colleagues.

Topics of concern from the north are steep slope logging regulations, double cutting regulations with the use of feller bunchers, emergency transportation ve-

on May 7, 8 & 9, 2015 in Vernon, BC. Our theme for this year is “Putting Our Membership First.” The rumour going around is that we may have an outside display and there is a good possibility that this will happen. Stay tuned as we have just a couple of meetings left to confirm plans. And be sure to mark your calendar for this event! For more information, check out our website at

www.interiorlogging.org or call the ILA office at 250.503.2199.

Moving on to recruitment, in my last report I talked about our funding grant application made under the Project Based Training Grant Funding Program.

I’m happy to report our application was successful and we received our grant in late October.

With these new funds, we were able to organize two intakes of eight students each into the Thompson Rivers University (TRU) Heavy Equipment Operators program. The first intake (pictured below) started on November 3rd with two weeks of training at TRU and then six weeks of training with ILA member contractors. The second intake started December 8, 2014. With the extra time we had before the second intake, we were able to promote the opportunity and ended up turning students away. That tells me there’s definitely an appetite for this kind of training if we can secure the funding and resources to offer it.

In closing, I wish everyone a successful and prosperous 2015. I look forward to working with members new and old in 2015 to ensure our voice is heard at the table and our goals are achieved.

Photo: Courtesy of Thompson Rivers University

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 11

Bill Sauer

North West Loggers Association’s MESSAGE

Honouring Fallen Loggers

W

orkers’ Memorial Day takes place annually around the world on April 28, an international day of remembrance and action for workers killed, disabled, injured or made unwell by their work. The forest industry, not only in BC but throughout the world, has the dubious distinction of contributing to the list of deaths and injuries of workers on an annual basis.

The BC Forest Safety Council continues to work towards reducing injuries and fatalities in the harvest sector. The primary goal, in my opinion, must be to change the culture employers and employees work in and make safety the number one priority. Make it the expectation that every worker that goes to work will return home safely after his or her shift.

In Terrace, a lifetime resident, Bill McRae, was so moved by the death of one of his longtime friends in a logging accident that he decided to erect a memorial in his friend’s name. Initially, it was only going to be a few trees and a cross-cut saw. However, once the word got out, it mushroomed into what it is today. People began to approach Bill with names of others lost to the industry as well as offers of assistance to help with the project. Bill states, “If you grew up in the Northwest, you were touched in some fashion. You went to funerals of people you knew.”

The memorial is located on Bill’s property at Usk, BC—about 15 kilometres east of Terrace. The memorial consists of hardhats and tools used in the industry as well as two boulders on top of each other and a plaque which reads “In memory of

those who lost their lives in the Forest Industry.” The design of boulders placed on top of each other follows a common practise among loggers in this area. When clearing for roads, crews would pile rocks they’d dug out on nearby stumps. A list of names of people lost to the industry in the Pacific Northwest and a carving of a logger complete the memorial. The site was dedicated on April 27, 2014.

To my knowledge, this is the only memorial of its kind in BC and one of only three in Canada. The two others are in Ontario and Newfoundland. When in the Northwest please take the time to stop and take a moment to remember our fellow workers. With continued diligence, education and awareness of safety we hope we will not need to add names to this memorial in the future.

Tribute to the Loggers Usk Memorial

Just what is a memorial? We will define it as a lasting symbol of remembrance and tribute to lives ended by those who provided value to friends, neighbours, family and country. And that’s what we’ve gathered here to accomplish.

This memorial is also a tribute to those men who survived, having the courage to carry on the work after losing a co-worker and friend, knowing there would be a funeral within days. As well as a tribute to the women who prepared lunch buckets and sent their men off to the bush, most often with silent prayers for their safe return. These women became the backbone of the household, handling many daily chores as well as the finances and family discipline.

This tribute also applies to those widows whose men would never return.

There are many names listed here once so familiar with the bush. To mention a few: Little, Pohle, Sande, Froese, Hobenshield, Adams, Sarich, Long, Houlden, Jackson, Skoglund, Cooper, Williams and McRae. These were followed

by Webber, Munson, Elsworth, Hull, Cutler, Almgren, Wood, Takhar, Penner and many others—even Martin and Ryan and, more currently, Lax k’Walaams and Hoi Choi.

Yes, they were the captains of industry—but check these names and they are also among the community builders we respect today. Of course, there are so many others who supported the logging industry and made similar contributions to our prosperity and development. But we don’t pay sufficient homage to our loggers and therefore this Loggers Memorial is long overdue.

Logging built our roads, schools, public buildings and paid for the infrastructure that allowed our homes and businesses to become reality. Logging provided food on our table, clothes on our backs and shelter from the elements; we are the product of a logging community.

If you’ve spent time in the Northwest—you’ve been touched by logging. FAMILIES OF THE FALLEN HAVE NOT FORGOTTEN—NOR SHOULD WE. Frank Donahue April 27, 2014

12 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 13

John Drayton

Legal REPORT

The Forestry Service Providers Protection Act: How It Works In Practice

T

he Forestry Service Providers Protection Act became law in April 2013. The legislation is unique to British Columbia and the drafters broke new ground when the law was written. With the benefit of 18 months under our belts, we have some understanding about how the law works in practice.

The new law provides a lien over a licensee’s timber. As the law now reads, once a log has been milled into lumber any lien over it is lost. But, if the licensee sells any timber or lumber to a third party, the contractor has a charge over that licensee’s accounts receivable.

An unpaid contractor has an opportunity to register his lien and charge in the Personal Property Registry—the same place that security agreements and repairers liens get registered.

However, registration in the Personal Property Registry has no legal impact.

Registration does not prevent licensees from selling their timber; the lien does not attach to any timber that is sold; nothing prevents licensees from milling their timber into lumber or from selling that lumber; any payment owed to the licensee by a purchaser is not attached by that registration; and the licensee’s lender can lend further money with impunity.

At best, one can say the licensee and its lender might become nervous and the contractor might enjoy a “warm and fuzzy feeling” when registering.

Nor is the failure to register the lien in the Personal Property Registry of any legal consequence. The lien exists regardless.

As I say, registration is of little effect.

What is essential, to enforce a lien, is the

starting of a lawsuit and the securing of a court injunction over the licensee’s timber. To enforce a charge, one must serve notice to the party owing the licensee.

This will capture that money, albeit to place it into a sheriff ’s hands to be fought over in a subsequent court case.

The legislation provides for unpaid contractors to share pro rata in all of the licensee’s timber and to share pro rata in the licensee’s receivables. In practice, two contractors working for the same licensee—each on completely different BCTS timber sales—may feel uncomfortable about a pro rata distribution. A contractor harvesting on timber sale X might be uncomfortable about his fellow contractor, who did no work in relation to timber sale X, coming and claiming a lien over that timber and a right to

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the receivables for the subsequent sale of that timber.

Interestingly, most of the cases I have been involved with have been in the northwest part of the province and we are often dealing with raw log exports.

Once logs leave the jurisdiction of British Columbia and if the accounts receivable is from an offshore company, there really is no jurisdiction to enforce liens and charges.

Here’s another interesting scenario where a lien may not work. Imagine that Company A is the successful bidder on a BCTS timber sale. In turn, it makes a deal with Company B to have Company B purchase the timber from it. And, Company B engages a contractor to fell, skid, process and deck the timber. If Company B becomes insolvent, who is the owner of the decked timber still in the forest? A lien only applies to the timber owned by Company B. If Company A remains the owner, there is no lien.

My most frustrating experience has arisen from the fact that unpaid stumpage owed to the government takes prior-

ity over a contractor lien or charge. In one case, a licensee had three BCTS timber sales. One of those was an areabased sale and it was three-quarters logged when the licensee became insolvent and the contractor stopped working. A court order permitted a seizure and sale of the timber.

Going into court, we thought we knew how much the government was owed.

But, after seizure, more stumpage bills were issued, including a final instalment for the area-based sale. After the sheriff took his fees and the government took its unpaid stumpage, only 4 per cent of the value of the timber was recovered for the contractors. Essentially the contractors, at their own expense, had acted as the government’s tax collectors. (This, by the way, was a case where the licensee did not have any bank financing. Had there been bank financing, it would also have had priority over the contractors’ claims.)

For these contractors the fund still exists and they are hopeful of recovering from it. Until that happens, the entire process has been costly without any

reward. Not even a “thank you” from government for collecting its $240,000 in unpaid stumpage. The saga continues.

These contractors look forward to that day when they might thank government for the creation and seeding of the fund.

Finally, contractors need to be aware that conflicting messages are being sent to them. The message from government is “keep working.” If a block is threequarters logged and the sale is an areabased one, then the contractor is wise to log it to its conclusion. Otherwise, the government may take all of the timber proceeds as stumpage.

The contrary message, from the fund itself, is “stop working.” The fund has rules to say that a contractor should be shutting down fairly promptly after nonpayment. A contractor cannot receive compensation for more than 60 days’ worth of unpaid work.

John Drayton is a lawyer with Gibraltar Law Group who practises in the areas of forestry and motor transport law.

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 15

James Byrne

Business MATTERS

Considerations for Today…

That Maximize your Wealth Tomorrow

• Do you want to expand operations or are you comfortable with the size and scope of your business today?

• Do you want to be known as having the best equipment?

• Do you want to transition your business to the next generation or go to auction?

• Do you know how much money you need to retire?

What are the right things to consider?

While most business objectives will boil down to making money in our business and accumulating wealth and equity, we all do things differently due to our own circumstances and goals. What we really need to appreciate is that money is a trailing indicator of doing the right things.

Making money today is the result of having already considered and done a number of things correctly in your business. Taking it to the next level, retaining and accumulating significant wealth is the result of continually doing the right things in a number of different stages and areas of your business.

The “right things” will change and vary

16 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

ation to protecting equity and ensuring that corporate structure in place will provide the optional tax advantages for expansion/growth/disbursing wealth and even potential sales of business units.

Exit: Finally, you need to determine how to exit your business. Many tax restructuring transactions must be completed several years before a sale or succession process begins. You need to start preparing long before you plan to actually exit. This will ensure maximum flexibility for estate planning, income tax minimization and capital gains considerations.

If you’ve done things right It’s quite simple. You have an effective plan and have executed that plan accordingly. Specific steps generate expected outcomes based on foresight and consideration of how actions and events will unfold.

Having a good plan in place will provide you with predictable outcomes and, most importantly, cash in your pockets. If you haven’t planned, you don’t know what the outcome will look like and are waiting to find out. However, do you really want to wait to find out if you’ve done things right or have left thousands of dollars either on the table or with the tax man? Don’t wait to find out if you’ve done it right!

James Byrne, MBA, CPA, CA is MNP’s Forestry Services Practice Leader for BC. Tel: 250.753.8251 Email: james.byrne@mnp.ca

Tabular Summary of Business Life Cycle Startup

• Do you want to run out of one location or have multiple operations?

depending on the stage of your business and which area of your business you are looking at. The key to identifying what the right things are, though, is ensuring the decisions you make in your business align with your business objectives and overall goals.

Where is your business at?

Every business goes through a series of stages in its evolution. Failure to plan properly at any stage of your business lifecycle may result in significant financial consequences or lost opportunities down the road. The first step to effective planning is to understand what stage your business is at today.

Start Up: Most new business owners don’t want to incur heavy costs until they’ve proven the business potential. So you may select a simple structure such as a proprietorship or partnership. Business focus is on establishing basic processes for finances and people.

Growth: At this point, you’ve proven your business concept and concluded, “Yes, I can make money doing this.” As your sales and revenues continue to grow, operational and people needs grow more complicated.

Financial needs become larger and HR needs become greater. Expansion puts pressure on all areas of your business.

Maturity: Now you’re really making money. With steady cash flow and a healthy bottom line, you can look at expansion, acquisitions or new ventures.

As your business matures, give consider-

Growth

lthough quotes may seem a bit cliché, I use a classic Yogi Berra quote when talking to clients as it fits so many situations and businesses: “If you don’t know where you are going, you might not get there.” This is a great quote to remember because no matter what stage of development your business is at, you need to consider what you want to achieve, otherwise it may never happen.

What is your objective and what do you want to accomplish?

The answer I hear often is “make money.”

This is too simple an answer. To start, how much money do you want to make? As much as possible? Or as much as possible while allowing you to spend six months in Maui every year? These may appear to be similar objectives. However, your business would be organized differently depending on which objective you chose—workforce makeup, customer expectations and cashflow needs to name a few. Other questions to ask yourself are:

Maturity

A

Finance

People/Management

Operations

Customers/Sales

Plan and establish:

Plan and establish:

Plan and establish:

Plan and establish:

Develop and document:

Develop and document:

Develop and document:

Develop and document:

Enhancements:

Enhancements:

Enhancements:

Enhancements:

- Basic financial reporting

- Budgeting – forecasting - Ratio analysis - Trend analysis

- Balanced scorecard review - Succession strategy - Assess tax structure

- Basic goal setting - Core values - Strategic planning

- HR systems - Employee benefits and compensation - Team building activities - Training – Education

- Board of Directors meeting - Equity & profit sharing plans - ESOP planning - Preparing the business for sale - Business valuation

- Production systems - Workflow mapping - Facilities planning - Basic KPI monitoring - Quality - Productivity - Utilization - Capacity - Cycle time - Facilities investment planning - Resource allocation reviews

EXIT / SUCCESSION

- Retirement and estate planning

- Identify ideal customer - Establish contact database - Pricing analysis - Basic KPI monitoring

- New market analysis

THE WAY WE WORK: no.

7

RELATIONSHIPS BUILD PROGRESS.

Business banking is about a shared perspective.

Being headquartered in the West has its advantages. We understand your industry and make timely decisions, locally. As a bank focused on entrepreneurs, we partner with you to find the solutions perfectly suited to your business financial needs. Learn more at cwbank.com

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 17

Ron Judd

Safety REPORT

Remote worksites are so much riskier without a solid emergency plan

A

s a former logging camp superintendent, and presently, as a WorkSafeBC senior regional officer, I’ve seen the varying results that come from having poor, mediocre, or excellent emergency evacuation plans (EEPs).

And what I’ve learned is that the willingness to accept less-than-excellent emergency plans can result in unintended consequences.

Consider this example from my past life: I recall receiving a call from the falling partner of an injured faller in a conventional falling block. The block had two points of entrance and the faller had neglected to indicate which end of the block they were working in. The faller had put his radio down and contact was lost. Crews requested a helicopter through air ambulance and constructed a

helicopter pad near the faller. A large air ambulance arrived on site but was much too large for the pad. So, the faller was packed out to the road, causing further delay. If we had known which helicopter

Even if an ETV is not required, you still need a plan for transporting the injured worker. Using 911 on an EEP in a remote area is not acceptable. was going to arrive, he would have been at the road, packaged and ready to go.

This incident changed our plan considerably. Fallers, road crews, forest engineers, and rigging crews were then required to place pins daily on operational maps to indicate their locations.

We followed a new set of procedures and relied on a flow chart developed for our

Did you know?

When there is an injury at work, an employer must file that information with WorkSafeBC within 3 days. Currently the forestry industry takes 21 days on average. Prompt claim filing means the best outcomes for the injured worker and the company, saving industry tens of millions of dollars in costs. Safety is good business.

Learn more at www.bcforestsafe.org 18 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

operation. Helicopter evacuation plans were put in place, a Billy Pugh transfer device purchased and workers were trained in the procedures. If a helicopter was requested, the specific machine

adapted for our spine board and length of long line was requested.

Our mechanics and dry land sort persons received training to be dispatchers, along with a list of questions to ask and times to record: whom they talked to, the ETA of the helicopter, radio frequencies we operated on, the injury to the worker and whether we wanted a paramedic dis-

patched. We also had a procedure for calling BC Ambulance Service to request an ambulance at the hospital for moving the injured worker from the hospital helicopter pad to the hospital.

We learned these lessons through experience. Ideally, forestry operations now have systems in place, so they don’t need to learn from their mistakes.

Nonetheless, as we discovered, the fundamentals of an emergency evacuation plan must be specific to the work location.

Responding to emergencies on southern Vancouver Island is far less complex than reaching isolated areas up the coast. A greater distance from hospital generally requires more planning, more worker training and more frequent testing of the procedure.

And, since remote sites require more preparation and travel time, it’s the responsibility of managers to operate with a higher standard of care. The bare minimum in the occupational first aid tables of Schedule 3-A may be legal, but is it sufficient? You need to ask yourself the question: “What if it were me lying there?”

Prepare and Practice Your Plan

The Occupational Health and Safety Regulation requires written rescue and evacuation procedures and, at least, annual emergency drills. As an employer or first aid attendant, you should pay attention to this yearly minimum. If you’ve moved locations and encountered new voice communication methods, due diligence suggests conducting a new drill.

Given the wide range of forestry work and worksites, the Regulation cannot provide site-specific direction for developing emergency procedures. As previously mentioned, you need to customize the EEP to the area, include worker input and communicate it to all workers on site. Plans also need to take into account small operations. If you’ve ever packed a person on a stretcher through a logging block, you will appreciate that it’s hard work. Know who is working around you and pre-arrange aid agreements between employers. Just because the first aid tables indicate that an ETV is not required, for example, you’ll still need a plan for transporting the injured worker. Using 911 on an EEP in a remote area is not acceptable. The employer is responsible for pre-arranging transport.

As a WorkSafeBC officer, I ask about the written plan: Has the plan been discussed with the crew? Has the discussion been documented in the initial safety meeting? Are workers aware of the plan, and has it been tested? If air transport is the primary method of transportation, is daily communication checks and aircraft availability established prior to commencing work?

What did the risk assessment deem a barrier to effective rescue?

Is there a secondary plan in place? Are helicopter companies on the contact list aware they are on the list and will they respond (i.e., have you paid your last bill)? Is there sufficient oxygen on site to account for delays? Are the GPS co-ordinates correct?

During my 24 years with WorkSafeBC, I’ve seen significant improvements to EEPs. However, I still tell employers: “Continue to debrief after an incident and look for ways to improve the plan.” Share your good plans with others. You will all be better prepared in an emergency.

Ron Judd, RPF, CRSP is a Senior Regional Officer with WorkSafeBC. He can be reached at Ron.Judd@worksafebc.com.

“My career in forestry is built on safety.”

We’re working with B.C.’s forestry sector to ensure current and future workers stay safe. Find helpful industry resources at worksafebc.com/safetyatwork.

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 19

3800C. IN A CLASS OF ITS OWN

CAMPBELL rIVEr 2011 14th Avenue Campbell River, B.C. V9W 4J2

kAMLooPs 1200 Chief Louis Way Kamloops, B.C. V2C 6M1

nAnAIMo 2115 South Wellington Road Nanaimo, B.C. V9X 1R5

WILLIAMs LAkE 4700 Collier Place Williams Lake, B.C. V2G 5E9

VErnon 1600 Kosmina Road Vernon, B.C. V1T 8T2

Fort st. John 10816-89th Avenue Fort St. John, B.C. V1J 6S8

PrInCE GEorGE 4759 Continental Way Prince George, B.C. V2N 5S5

Surrey - VancouVer 19067 94th Avenue Surrey, B.C. V4N 3S1

tErrACE 3830 Sharples Road Terrace, B.C. V8G 5P8

20 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

CrAnBrook 2401 Cranbrook Street, North Cranbrook, B.C. V1C 3T3

Murray Hall

Market REPORT

The Coast Pulp Log Market - Where is it Headed?

I

f you’ve been in this industry 20 years, you’re old enough to remember pulp logs selling at both $100 per metre and $30 per metre at different times. Today we have an established pulp log market price on the south coast of about $48 per metre.

First some nomenclature that will help

nitely. If supply changes, demand changes or prices move, the coast pulp log market reacts. 2014 has shown evidence of that with steady domestic demand from the pulp mills and new demand from overseas against a reasonably steady supply. As a result, prices rose and, over the year, more

The factors affecting supply and demand for coast pulp logs create dynamics favouring sellers. us make sure we are comparing apples to apples. A pulp log on the south coast is defined by government scaling practices as grade X or Y and the key physical attributes that scale logs to these grades is the (low) amount of firm wood usable for lumber.

In the past, however, there were times when sawmills would saw pulp logs despite low lumber recovery. Today this is seldom the case and most, if not all, pulp logs end up in a chip plant or pulp mill wood room and become a part of the furnish for NBSK (northern bleached softwood kraft) pulp or paper. On the other side of the coin are pulp/paper mills that routinely chip logs scaled as lower end sawlogs as well as pulp logs. As a result, logs used for pulp may not technically be a pulp log.

At $48 per metre, the coastal pulp log price is trending up after starting 2014 in the $40 to $42 per metre range. There are only a handful of buyers: Neucel Port Alice, Howe Sound Pulp & Paper, Harmac, Catalyst and a plethora of recent pulp log buyers in China. Pulp log sellers are many: WFP, Interfor, large private land holders, BCTS loggers and a myriad of medium and small tenure and private land holders. Given the limited number of buyers, is the current pulp log market a ‘true’ market reacting to the forces of supply and demand? From my perspective, most defi-

pulp was delivered from the woods at the higher prices.

So how do things look going forward?

Let’s look at the elements setting the pulp log market stage.

NBSK pulp prices are steady and forecast to stay at or above the $1,000 US per ADMT (air dried metric tonne) level through 2015 and most grades of paper, while weak, are not expected to change in price significantly in the year ahead. At the same time, lumber pricing forecasts represented by the Random Lengths composite forecast shows strength through 2015 and 2016.

The other significant factor is currency exchange. All key forest product commodities transact in US dollars and while the current $0.88 exchange rate may be on the low side of the trend ahead, all sectors of the BC coast forest industry are benefiting from the current exchange by a factor of 10+ per cent.

There is one other undeniable factor that will have a major effect on coast pulp log demand in 2015 and beyond and that is the continued shutdown of mills in the Interior as AAC’s drop in the face of the beetle. In our most recent forecasts, we predict an additional five or six sawmills may shut down in the BC Interior in the next three to four years. Mills that close

in the Cariboo and Kamloops/Okanagan regions in many cases sell their chips to coastal consumers or they are exported.

In addition, some mills in the Interior that ship to the coast are predicted to have their chips repatriated by Interior pulp mills as the domestic supply falls and that volume of residual chips will also be lost to the coast. In total over the next few years, we forecast up to 500,000 m3 of Interior chips will stop coming to coastal consumers.

When we add it all up, the factors affecting supply and demand for coast pulp logs, the dynamics clearly favour sellers: • Reasonably steady supply of coast residual chips from coast sawmills, • Near capacity operating rates for coast kraft pulp mills and paper mills, • Continued and potentially growing demand for pulp logs from overseas buyers, • The continued trend to more secondgrowth coastal logging leading to a lower yield of pulp logs, and • Reduced volumes of SPF (spruce-pinefir) chips available to coast pulp and paper mills who will replace the lost supply with pulp logs.

As a result, market forces suggest pressure for pulp log prices to rise in 2015. How much? It’s hard not to predict another $8 per metre increase which we saw in 2014; maybe more. $60 per metre pulp log price by the end of 2015—a distinct possibility.

Murray Hall is an independent fibre supply consultant with over 35 years experience in western North America fibre supply. His clients come from all sectors of the forest products and investment industries and he covers the regions of the BC Interior, BC Coast, Alberta and the US Pacific NorthWest.

The Market Report is brought to you by:

Stafford Lake

BenWest

LOGGING LTD.

LOGGING LTD.

Logging & Road Contractors Campbell River Tel: 250-287-7932

Email: benlog@telus.net

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 21

WOODLAND EQUIP. (BARKO) Client to approve AIP change or send new file.

22 Truck LoggerBC Winter Winter2015 2015

Forestry Service Providers Compensation Fund Makes a Payment

By Eric van Soeren

T

hings have been fairly good for the forest industry recently and, perhaps as a result, there have been few applications to the Forestry Service Providers Compensation Fund (FSPCF). After more than a year of operations, it was starting to look like the FSPCF would not have to be used to address the claims of eligible contractors who were not paid for forestry services provided to a licensee.

While there have been several applications made over the past year, many could not be accepted since they didn’t meet all the required criteria.

At first, enquiries received were for work done a long time before the applications were made and, as a result, they could not be addressed. Only work performed and not paid for after February 1, 2013 may be eligible. There were also applications made by contractors who

vices on Crown land, but they were working for a third-party contractor that was acting as a market logger. In this case, the third party was not the “licensee” by definition under the Act. It is only when an insolvent licensee does not pay for work done by a contractor on Crown land that the FSPCF can be involved. If you are considering doing work for a contractor who rents a license or is otherwise acting as a third party to the legal license holder, the Fund cannot help you if that contractor can’t or won’t pay you. These situations should be seen as a red flag when accepting work, especially if there is a concern over being paid.

There was, however, a successful claim and pay out from the Fund this year. In this case, a faller was contracted but knew that the timber sale holder he was contracted to work for might be in a bit

Work done for a contractor who rents a license is not eligible for Fund compensation. did work after February 1, 2013 and were not paid. However, they had also done work for the same licensee close to a year earlier for which they had not been paid. It is hard to understand why a contractor would give that much credit after not being paid the first time. In any event, the FSPCF can only provide compensation for the first unpaid invoice, plus 30 days, to a maximum of 60 days of unpaid work. Since the first unpaid invoice was well before February 1, 2013 in these cases, the fund could not be accessed for payment.

Requests have also come in for compensation from silviculture contractors that were left unpaid for work they had completed for licensees. In these cases, the fund could not be accessed because silviculture contractors are not included in the list of eligible forestry service providers under the Act. The most recent requests for compensation from the fund that were also not eligible came from applicants who were performing otherwise eligible ser-

of financial difficulty, so he got an advance before he even went to work.

He then invoiced the license holder promptly as the falling was completed but, as feared, was not paid. Shortly after that, he stopped working so as not to get into a deeper hole (consistent with the time limitation requirements of the Act). A short time later, the timber sale expired and it could not be renewed because it had already received the maximum number of extensions. In the end, the logs on the ground were forfeited by the licensee and it became clear that the license holder was now insolvent as he continued to not pay the faller.

The faller then went to the FSPCF website at www.fspcf.com, downloaded and completed the compensation claim form and provided the required supporting documentation. It was confirmed with the ex-licence holder that there was no money to pay the faller and with BC Timber Sales that there was no way the licensee could get another extension. After taking assignment of

what was almost certainly a bad debt, the Fund was able to compensate the faller.

Hopefully the industry will stay strong and situations where contractors are not paid will not occur very often. However, it was good to see that the Fund was successfully used when a licensee became insolvent and a contractor was not paid for services, as was the intent of the Fund.

That said, if contractor claims as a result of licensee insolvency grow, or if all of the applicants detailed above that were not eligible actually were, it would not take long to use up the slightly more than $5 million currently in the Fund. The Fund needs a mechanism for replenishment which is currently not in place. But that is a worry for another day.

Eric van Soeren is the Administrative Authority for the Forestry Service Providers Compensation Fund. He can be reached at 250-537-1533 or on the FSPCF website at fspcf.com/contact

Background on the Compensation Fund

The Forestry Service Providers Compensation Fund (FSPCF) was created on March 30, 2012 by the Forestry Service Providers Compensation Fund Regulation (BC Reg. 64/2012) and was seeded with a contribution of $5,000,000 provided by the provincial government. Its purpose is to provide relief to contractors that provided forestry services and were not paid for those services because the recipient of the forestry services became insolvent. Forestry services are limited to those defined in BC Regulation 3/2013, Section 3, and must have been provided to a tenure holder under the Forest Act. Insolvency for the purposes of the FSPCF is defined in the FSPCF Administrative Agreement.

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 23

Investing From The Ground Up: TLA Convention Addresses On-The-Ground Contractor Issues TLA Editorial

O

nce again there are many reasons to attend this year’s TLA Convention & Trade Show. Our theme, Investing From The Ground Up, means we will be looking at the different kinds of investments needed to promote a sustainable and healthy forest industry.

This broad perspective means everyone will find at least one session that will strike a chord and help them build their business.

Investing in yourself is the focus of this year’s much anticipated contractor panel. During this session, six veteran contactors will discuss their successes and challenges when it comes to investing in equipment, manpower, training, safety and their communities. The interactive question and answer format will allow for real-time answers from leaders of today’s forest contractor community.

24 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

This is the kind of on-the-ground information you could only get at a TLA convention.

The “Investing in Contractor Efficiencies” panel focuses on just that—keeping competitive by investing in ways to improve contractor efficiency. Four areas of opportunity will be presented including community consultation, LiDAR technology, steep slope harvesting technology and injury reduction.

These areas address four critical aspects of the business: keeping our social license, understanding new computer technology, addressing the changing landscape we’re harvesting on and keeping our industry safe so we can recruit new workers successfully.

Investment in workforce and the need to attract and retain workers is another big part of your business. We

know we need workers now and will need more in the future. And training continues to be a costly aspect of the new recruits. The “Getting Boots on the Ground Cost Effectively” panel members will discuss different aspects of recruitment and cost effective training.

In particular, the speakers will focus first on accessing federal funding when training First Nations workers and the key aspects to building a First Nations workforce. Discussion will then move to how to expand your workforce by recruiting more women. Both these groups—First Nations and women—are logical places for the forest industry to seek new workers.

“Understanding the Forest Service Providers Protection Act,” will answer the question of what to do when you aren’t paid for work completed and your

investments are in jeopardy. The TLA advocated relentlessly for the creation of the Forest Service Providers Protection Act. It is now in place and has been successfully accessed by contractors this past year. This panel will explore how the act works, who qualifies and the conditions and mechanics of accessing the fund. Good information for any forest contractor working in BC. As a prime contractor you are responsible and liable for a number of safety and regulatory compliance issues. However, we’ve heard from members that they aren’t clear on what those responsibilities are and when prime contractor status applies to them. The “Safety - Prime Contractor Responsibilities” seminar will provide a detailed understanding of what you are responsible for, the resources you need and the authority you have to ensure safe work operations.

In the “Understanding Your Rate – ‘The Interior Experience,’” PNL Consulting Inc. will explain how they worked with BC Interior contractors to

support their rate negotiations over the past year. The presentation will provide an Interior perspective on logging and road building, contract rates, contractor sustainability and contract negotiations when the objective is “profit not loss.”

Where do you see your business in five, 10 or 20 years? “Investing in Your Business’ Future” will help you realize your business goals within changing industry dynamics and provide planning considerations for you today that will maximize your wealth tomorrow.

In the end it all boils down to being informed and having a plan. Whether you’re investing in workers, new technology or your own education, you can’t go wrong at the TLA’s 72nd Annual Convention and Trade Show.

And when you add in our impressive keynote speakers and our exciting entertainment and events, it’s a three-day event you just can’t miss. This year Premier Christy Clark will speak to her vision for the forest industry and Minister Thomson will share his Ministry’s plans for 2015 and award the students’

their TLA scholarships—a convention highlight! To get the convention started with a bang, Dr. Art Hister joins us on Wednesday to give us advice about lifestyle and work related stress in his humorous and knowledgeable style.

And then there are the parties! Come join us for the Welcome Reception on Wednesday night, the Logger’s Banquet & Ball on Thursday night and Suppliers Night on Friday night followed by the It’s a Wrap! After Party. Suppliers’ Night also hosts the TLA Live and Silent Auctions which support the TLA Forestry Education Fund. We challenge you to find another event where you can buy a spa weekend for two and 1,200 ft of 7/8 Western Swaged wire rope!

From the technical information you’ll learn about investing in your business to the fun you’ll have at Suppliers’ Night, the 72nd Annual Truck Loggers Association Convention & Trade Show is an event not to be missed. We hope to see you there!

MARINE LIN K TRANSPORTATION

Full Service Marine Transportation Specialists

working to MAXIMIZE the value of your timber, logs & lumber

LOG MARKETING ADMINISTRATION

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AREA REPRESENTATIVES Larry Spencer Terry Basso RPF Wayne Ouellette Rod Powell Paul McWilliams

Port Alberni Campbell River Chilliwack Sechelt Prince Rupert

FORESTRY & TIMBER DEVELOPMENT Creative, cost-effective, and efficient problem solving in Marine Transportation. dispatch@marinelink.ca

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Bill Markvoort, R.P.F. John Iacoviello, R.P.F.

250.720.6263 250.203.3414 604.813.1430 604.220.0581 250.627.8733

LOG SALES

Jim Probyn Everett Romain

Suite 350 - 601 Sixth Avenue., New Westminster, BC V3L 3C1 Telephone: 604.526.8545

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 25

26 Truck LoggerBC Winter Winter2015 2015

AAC Certainty: An Intelligent Approach

By Les Kiss

A

ddressing the annual allowable cut (AAC) has been top-of-mind for Coast Forest Products Association (CFPA) members for years. Ever since the early 1990s, when the AAC began a sharp and steady decline by 8 million m3 to its current level of 16.5 million m3, certainty and stability of fibre supply is one of the largest challenges facing our industry. For an industry that today provides over 38,000 livelihoods to British Columbians and contributes to the provincial economy, a further decline will have a devastating impact.

objectives that support the recreation and tourism industry.

Interfor started by asking forest professionals, engineers and biologists to remove all the previously identified constraints on their planning maps.

This blank sheet approach allowed the review of the region with a fresh perspective and the identification of areas that could support a combination of species and/or value(s) by the virtue of co-location. From there, they were able to take an integrated approach across the planning area, essentially increasing

If the status quo continues, the AAC is projected to decrease by another 40 per cent in the next 20 years.

Our goal is simple—yet a suitable solution has proven elusive. The path to delivering a competitive forest economy to British Columbia, while delivering world-leading forest management practices that account for environmental values, is an arduous, continuous journey. But we believe that there is a way to improve delivery of these goals.

The solution lies in an integrated, multi-faceted approach. Sometimes dubbed “intelligent design,” this strategy uses a rational reserve design that optimizes wildlife habitats (including species at risk), old growth retention, biodiversity and socio-economic objectives concurrently. It comes from a combination of years of operational experience and the best available scientific information derived from ongoing research by scientists and a number of forest professionals.

Bob Craven of Interfor illustrated this work approach in his piece, Opportunity for Change: A New Era of Integrated Resource Management? published on the CFPA “What’s New?” blog. Faced with the challenge of a greatly reduced land base and timber supply, Interfor explored innovative ways to access the forest resources while providing habitat for ungulates, species at risk such as the northern goshawk and marbled murrelet, old-growth areas and visual

their capacity to better consider the cumulative value of each and every hectare in the Stella Lake area. The result was a solution that provided for all of these important values and, at the same time, minimized the timber supply impact to 23 per cent rather than 35 per cent.

The Stella Lake example suggests a viable opportunity for stabilizing the AAC in other areas of the Coast. CFPA will be initiating additional study areas at various scales (watershed, LUP, TSA etc.) to assess if the Stella lake findings are replicated. If these studies validate this integrated approach, we will have an improved science-based model that will enhance forest management, stabilize harvest levels, provide greater stability for communities and quality products for our customers—all the while preserving and improving the ecological integrity of the managed forest.

Alternatively, if the status quo continues, the AAC is projected to decrease by another 40 per cent in the next 20 years.

This is even greater than the mountain pine beetle epidemic devastation caused to the BC Interior timber supply. This would marginalize the industry and its ability to provide a quality way-of-life for the people and communities who depend on it. Clearly, something needs to be done now.

The implementation of this integrated

approach will not come easily but it can and should be done. Success hinges on the establishment of science-supported wildlife targets, set timelines to get things done and ongoing basic economic analytics of the harvestability of the coast timber profile. It depends on the use of advanced 3-D technology such as LiDAR and continued monitoring and research. It will require close collaboration between government and forest industry professionals as well as First Nations and communities providing their input on areas of interest at the front end of the planning process. It is a tall order for numerous stakeholders to come together for the good of our provincial economy, the stability of BC communities, and our forest dependent species, but we know collaboration will allow us to achieve these goals.

The coastal forest industry is here today because of its innovative and creative approach to daunting challenges. We’re ready to solve the AAC downward spiral by stabilizing it in the medium term and creating an upward trend in the longer term. To ensure success we will continue to share our knowledge, findings and expertise with our government, First Nations and community partners.

Let’s collaborate to intelligently design our forest management activities to improve habitat, forest stewardship, and to strengthen economic stability across the coast.

Les Kiss, RPF, is the Vice President of Forestry at Coast Forest Products Association.

He can be reached at kiss@coastforest.org.

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 27

INTRODUCING THE NEW

LOG CHAMP 550 • One piece move • Smooth, powerful and fast • Modern, responsive, adjustable control system • Easier to operate • Excellent visibility • Best ever service access COST EFFECTIVE FINANCING OPTIONS AVAILABLE

28 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

Coastal Log Markets: Making the Case for Cypress Log Exports

By Bill Markvoort and Duncan Chisholm

Y

ellow cedar has suffered a depressing fall from grace in the coastal log market over the past 20 years.

The reasons are complex and speak to changing market tastes, technological improvements and Japanese government subsidization. With these reasons in mind, we believe it is time to review the policy of banning yellow cedar log exports.

housing starts obviously had a lot to do with the downturn in demand for yellow cedar, but other societal factors also came into play. Younger Japanese did not have the same appreciation for clear yellow cedar as the previous generation.

Advances in manufactured wood processing meant laminated clear yellow cedar over a low grade core looked just as impressive as the solid clear product

There are very few buyers at any price and booms of yellow cedar inventory languish in Lower Mainland storage locations. at a fraction of the cost. More recently, Japanese Hinoki forests are achieving merchantable age and the government subsidizes the use of home grown Hinoki in their domestic mills.

As a result, over the past two years the yellow cedar log market has gone into a trough. There are very few buyers at any

The Case for Yellow Cedar Log Exports While yellow cedar only contributes 3 per cent of the coastal inventory, it grows intermixed with high altitude, poorer quality hemlock and balsam stands (hembal) which comprise close to 50 per cent of the coastal land base.

The market for hembal has been encouraging these past few years and the China market has a steady appetite for the product. BC Timber Sales (BCTS) has responded by developing and offering for sale more hembal timber sales in 2013 and 2014. But the yellow cedar inventory bottleneck has put a damper

Continued on page 62

Coastal Cypress Log Values by Grade - 1994 to Current $/m3 (2014 CPI Inflation Adjusted Dollars)

$/m3 Adjusted to 2014 $ Values

The History of Yellow Cedar Also known as cypress (Chamaecyparis nootkatensis), yellow cedar is unique to the Pacific Northwest and was a species much utilized by Aboriginal coastal cultures for boatbuilding.

In the 1960s, the Japanese discovered our yellow cedar had properties similar to their Hinoki timber and this created a strong demand as the domestic supply of Hinoki was reduced. Used for timber framing, foundation sills, restaurant countertops, shoji screens and temple logs, yellow cedar was held in high regard. For two decades, the Japanese trading companies bid fiercely against each other to secure supplies.

The ’70s and ’80s were the boom time for yellow cedar when prices reached $2,500/m3 for high grade logs (in 2014 inflation adjusted dollars). Two coastal BC mills were dedicated to the yellow cedar market as well as several custom cut mills for larger diameter logs. Then in the mid ’90s, yellow cedar log prices started a downhill slide following in the footprint of the Japanese recession, a trend that has continued. By 1994, an “H” quality sawlog could still capture close to $700/m3 (Chart 1, all prices in 2014 Inflation Adjusted $). Today, the market price sits closer to $100/m3.

price and booms of yellow cedar inventory languish in Lower Mainland storage locations. This severe downturn in the yellow cedar market shows no sign of abating and creates problems not only for the coastal forest industry but also for the BC government.

Reasons For The Market Changes The Japanese recession that started in late 1990 and the concomitant drop in

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 29

30 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

WORKING HARD, ACHIEVING TOGETHER: SUPPORTING BC’S FOREST INDUSTRY

By Christy Clark

E

very morning in British Columbia, some 60,000 men and women get up with the sun, lace up their boots and go to work in our forest industry.

They live in cities, towns and camps all over BC, from Vancouver Island, to the Kootenays, and up to the Yukon border. They work in woodlots, sawmills and logging trucks. They work hard and do it proudly.

My team and I are hard at work as well—doing everything we can to ensure the BC forest industry, and the people who depend on it, are better off tomorrow than today.

The industry has endured some rough patches.

While coastal forestry workers were spared the worst impacts of the Interior pine beetle epidemic, the softwood lumber dispute and the great recession in the United States took their toll.

Today, things are looking up. Our forest product exports in 2013 stood at $11.6 billion—up 53 per cent from 2009 and one-third of BC’s total exports. And our total timber harvest amounted to 72 million cubic metres—up by nearly half from 2009.

That’s good news—but it just means we need to keep working.

As you know, some of the brightest prospects for BC’s 7,000 forest businesses lie across the Pacific. Since 2001, we’ve increased the volume of our softwood lumber exports into China by

an incredible 33 times over, with a value of over $1.4 billion last year.

There is also great potential to increase our exports into other growing Asian markets including India, Korea and Japan. But we also have room to grow within China itself, where an expanding economy creates opportunities for higher-grade lumber and other value-added wood products—areas where BC excels.

Our forest industry’s depth of experience and commitment to innovation position us to compete with the best in the world—as we always have.

Today, British Columbia produces more lumber certified to environmental standards than any other region on Earth—and as sustainability is increasingly a core value around the world, this is a key advantage.

This fall, we participated in opening the Wood Innovation and Design Centre in Prince George—a six-storey jewel of a building that demonstrates the superb quality and capabilities of BC’s value-added wood products.

Small businesses power much of our forest industry, especially in coastal communities. That’s why we set out to make BC the most small business friendly jurisdiction in Canada.

That effort requires a governmentwide commitment to consider the needs and impacts on small business of every decision we make. First and foremost, we’ve tried to make life easier for the men and women who take the risks of setting up businesses by reducing unnecessary regulations. We’re the only province to receive the CFIB’s ‘A’ grade—and we continue to see BC small

business confidence leading the country.

A successful forest industry requires certainty on the land base—balancing resource development with other important uses. That means ensuring adequate habitat for species at risk, and maximizing the potential of our tourism industry.

The Supreme Court of Canada’s verdict in the Tsilhqot’in case underscored the importance of respectful relationships and equal partnerships with First Nations. That’s why this September I convened a historic gathering of First National leaders from across BC with my cabinet, where we began a renewed effort towards recognition and reconciliation.

Negotiating instead of litigating, bringing First Nations into responsible economic development projects as full partners, will benefit all of our natural resource sectors—and forestry is leading the way. Since 2002, we’ve signed agreements with 177 First Nations, providing access to more than 69 million cubic metres of timber—with Aboriginal workers a key part of the forestry workforce, now and in the future.

None of these achievements happen by accident. They come thanks to forestry businesses, large and small, dedicated to quality, innovation, and excellence— with a partner in government committed to expanding market access, a strong voice for forest families, communities and companies.

Some say that hard work is its own reward. I would add that hard work, coupled with innovation, is the only way we can provide for our families and communities today—and guarantee a better future for generations to come.

Thank you for your hard work. As we look to a bright future for BC’s coastal forest industry, and for the sector as a whole, my team and I have your back.

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 31

BC’S FOREST INDUSTRY: CONNECTING LOCALLY, PROMOTING GLOBALLY

By Minister Steve Thomson

A

s BC’s Forests Minister, I always look forward to the TLA convention. It seems to be the start of “convention season” and is always a great opportunity to connect with the men and women who form an integral part of the forest sector—and provide the economic backbone of the communities they live in.

This year is on track to be another good year for the forest sector. To the end of September, total value of forest product exports has increased by 7 per cent to $9.3 billion, compared to $8.7 billion for the same time period last year.

I see this as evidence that government’s commitments to continuing to grow Asian markets and to have policies in place that support competitiveness are effective. The breadth and reach of BC’s world class forest product exports continue to amaze me—that what was once a tree in a remote area of BC is now lumber used in a roof in Nanjing, China, or to help build an elderly care facility in Japan, or in a new community being built in Korea.

On this year’s forestry trade mission to China, Japan and Korea, I had the privilege to sign a memorandum of understanding with the Chinese Province of Jiangsu, and to meet with the Vice-Minister of the national Ministry of Housing and Urban and Rural Development to discuss renewing a memorandum of understanding set to expire in March 2015. I am pleased to say that not only were discussions positive, but

32 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

government officials from the Province of Yunnan also expressed interest in exploring wood frame construction.

In Japan, I had a meeting with government officials, and also had the opportunity to participate in celebrations commemorating the 40th anniversary of the presence of a Council of Forest Industries/Canada Wood office in Japan. It was interesting hearing the stories of the earlier adopters and how it takes time and persistence to develop and grow new markets.

In Korea, I participated in the grand opening of Maple Hall, the community centre in a new subdivision outside Seoul, showcasing wood-frame construction. Korea is extremely interested in green building policies and is beginning to realize the green benefits of building with wood. As well, with the recent signing of the Canada-Korea Free Trade Agreement, tariffs on BC lumber will be eliminated by 2017. There may well be an opportunity to further grow the Korean market for wood products.

However, there is no doubt that the real opportunity for expansion continues to lie in China. We have made significant inroads in the 11 years we’ve had an office in China, but there are more inroads to be made. While we have partnerships in some key cities, there are still over 150 cities in China with populations in excess of one million people.

Given a lot of TLA, ILA and NWLA members are active with BC Timber Sales, either as licensees or contractors, you’ll likely be interested in the BC Timber Sales Effectiveness Review.

The review was conducted in two phases. Phase 1 confirmed that BC Timber Sales’ goal is to provide credible representative price and cost benchmark data for the market pricing system through auctions of public timber.

This goal is supported by three objectives: 1. Sell the full BC Timber Sales allowable annual cut over the business cycle, consistent with sustainable forest management.

2. Generate net direct revenue and indirect provincial government rev-

enue over the business cycle.

3. Pursue continuous business improvement within BC Timber Sales, across government and with thirdparty partners and customers.

Phase 2 recommendations focused on strengthening BC Timber Sales’ role. In June 2014, Premier Christy Clark directed me to implement the recommendations from the effectiveness review. The recommendations range from strictly operational in nature to those that may require legislative changes. Staff have been busy doing the analysis and policy work necessary to support a strengthened program.

The recommendations from the effectiveness review are in many different categories. They range from auction systems refinements such as deposit policy, bidder qualifications and licence terms to reviewing upset rates, no-bid sales, cutblock composition and cruising policies for BC Timber Sales. The recommendations also relate to improved business processes and data accuracy and ensuring timber sale licences accurately reflect the timber profile. The recommendations set out clear objectives for business improvement agreements with third parties, such as community forest agreement holders and First Nations. It is also recommended that Category 2 timber sale licences continue to be offered.

Core values held by BC Timber Sales remain intact. BC Timber Sales remains committed to environmental sustainability and its corporate goal of having 100 per cent of its timber volume certified to an internationally recognized sustainable forest management standard.

BC Timber Sales is also committed to remaining a leader in safe work practices. As I do each year, I would again challenge all of you to keep worker safety as your top priority each and every day.

Best wishes for a successful convention!

72ND ANNUAL TRUCK LOGGERS ASSOCIATION

Convention & Trade Show 2015

JANUARY 21 – 23, 2015 Victoria Conference Centre

and The

Fairmont Empress Hotel

annual sponsors Diamond Sponsor

Strategic Sponsor

Strategic Sponsor nd

Premier Sponsor

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 33

INVESTING FROM THE GROUND UP The labour market strategy is complete and the coastal industry is working cooperatively on its implementation. The focus is now on investing in partnerships to improve the forest sector workforce, training certification and safety best practices. How will we turn these strategic efforts and the market demands into a reality that capitalizes on local and global forest sector economic stability and sustainability?

SD

Skill Development

KN

Keynote Speaker

Wednesday, January 21, 2015 Registration Opens Coffee Service

IF

Informational Session

Room

Start Time

End Time

Victoria Conference Centre

7:00am

5:00pm

Saanich Room

7:30am

8:30am

Saanich Room

8:30am

10:00am

EN

Entertainment & Networking

OFFICIAL ACCOMMODATION

SD01 - Safety - Prime Contractor Responsibilities Accepting the role of a Prime Contractor carries significant legal and financial responsibilities. Understanding this responsibility, your capability to meet requirements and what is expected of a Prime Contractor from the WorkSafeBC and BCFSC perspectives will be addressed in this interactive presentation.

When making your reservations, be sure to mention that you are a delegate of the TLA’s 2015 Convention.

Speakers: Bjarne Nielsen, CRSP; Senior Regional Officer, WorkSafeBC Gerard Messier, RPF; Manager Training & Program Development, BCFSC Coffee Service

Book before January 10, 2015 for the TLA Group Rate!

Saanich Room

10:00am

10:30am

Saanich Room

10:30am

12:00pm

Crystal Ballroom

12:00pm

2:00pm

CONVENTION REGISTRATION

Saanich Room

2:00pm

2:30pm

Order your event tickets online!

Saanich Room

2:30pm

4:00pm

SD02 - Understanding Your Rate - “The Interior Experience” PNL Consulting Inc. worked with BC Interior contractors to support their collective rate negotiations over the past year. In this presentation, Aaron will provide an Interior perspective on logging and road building contract rates, contractor sustainability and contract negotiations when the objective is “profit not loss.”

Hotel reservations: 250.384.8111 or toll free: 1.800.441.1414

Speaker: Aaron Sinclair; Principal, PNL Consulting Inc.

TRADE SHOW VIEWING HOURS Thursday, January 22, 2015 3:00pm – 5:00pm Friday, January 23, 2015 9:00am – 5:00pm 6:00pm – 10:00pm

KN01 - Keynote Luncheon: Stay Safe, Stay Healthy - Dr. Art Hister The humorous and knowledgeable health analyst provides relevant clinical facts and advice about lifestyle and work related stress.

Coffee Service SD03 - Investing in Your Business’ Future You have worked hard to develop your business over the years. With changing industry dynamics and business goals, James will provide planning considerations for today that will maximize your wealth tomorrow.

Speaker: James Byrne, CPA, CA; Regional Leader Forestry & Forest Products, MNP EN01 - Welcome Reception Here’s the deal! We are kick-starting the welcome reception with a casino! We’re betting you should be there!

Crystal Ballroom

6:30pm

11:00pm

Cancellation policy: For cancellations prior to or on January 16, 2015 a 10% administration fee applies.

Cancellations received after January 16, 2015 are non-refundable. Please allow 30 days for refunds.

If you wish to transfer your registration to another individual please give us at least 24 hours advance notice.

KN Keynote Speaker

IF

Informational Session

WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2015 SD01 - Safety - Prime Contractor Responsibilities SD02 - Understanding Your Rate - “The Interior Experience” KN01 - Keynote Luncheon: Stay Safe, Stay Healthy - Dr. Art Hister SD03 - Investing in Your Business’ Future EN01 - Welcome Reception PACKAGE DEAL Gold Passports ($985.00 value: Does not include the Ladies Luncheon or the Logger’s Banquet & Ball)

EN

Entertainment & Networking

MEMBER $20.00 $20.00 $60.00 $20.00 $30.00

Member Rate is Sold Out

INVESTING FROMWinter THE2015 GROUND UP - TLA CONVENTION 2015 34 Truck LoggerBC

The TLA online registration system is secure, easy to use and provides you instant confirmation of your registration.

Registration is available 24 hours a day; whenever you are ready to book a passport or individual events.

Don’t forget, you are able to go back into your registration to make changes on your own!

BECOME A TLA MEMBER!

INDIVIDUAL EVENT PRICES: WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 21, 2015 SD Skill Development

www.tla.ca/convention

Registration is available online only.

NON-MEMBER $25.00 $25.00 $70.00 $25.00 $45.00

$685.00

Have A Voice With Government Save With Our Benefits Programs Build Your Networks & Business Compete With Better Knowledge & Support Be Informed With Current News

Thursday, January 22, 2015 Registration Opens Exhibitor Move - In Annual General Meeting & Logger’s Breakfast *Free for Members Only

Room

Start Time

End Time

Victoria Conference Centre

7:00am

Carson Hall

8:00am

2:30pm

Saanich Room & Oak Bay Room

7:30am

10:00am

Theatre

10:00am

11:30am

SPONSORS GOLD

IF01 - Understanding the Forest Service Providers Protection Act The FSPPA is in place and has been successfully accessed by some contractors. This panel will explore how the act works, who qualifies and the conditions and mechanics of accessing the fund.

SILVER

Moderator: Jim Girvan, RPF, MBA; Owner, M.D.T. Ltd. Speakers: Stephen Ross; Partner, Miller Thomson LLP Payment Protection for Forestry Service Providers Under the Act Lance Williams; Partner, Davis LLP Putting the Act in a Legal Perspective Eric van Soeren, BSc, MBA, CPA; CA Admin Authority, BC Forestry Revitalization Trust The Mechanics of Accessing the Fund KN02 - Premier’s Luncheon With natural resource development, growing First Nations participation and burgeoning global demand for forest products in the media every day, come and support Premier Christy Clark and listen to her thoughts and hopes for the coastal forest sector in her first address of the year at this traditional luncheon. Tickets always sell out for this event!

BRONZE

Crystal Ballroom

12:00pm

2:30pm

Theatre

2:45pm

4:30pm

Trade Show Floor

3:00pm

5:00pm

Crystal Ballroom

7:00pm

Midnight

IF02 - Investing in Contractor Efficiencies Keeping competitive by investing in ways to improve efficiency is key to contract logging. Four areas of opportunity are presented.

Trade Show Opens – Reception

72nd Annual Truck Loggers Association Convention & Trade Show 2015

Moderator: James Byrne, CPA, CA; Regional Leader Forestry & Forest Products, MNP Speakers: Norm Kempe, RPF; Planning Forester, BC Timber Sales Efficiencies in Community Consultation - Getting to YES! Jonathan Lok, RFT; Managing Partner, Business Development, Strategic Natural Resource Consultants and Cliff Roberts, RFT; General Manager, Chartwell Consultants Ltd. Using LiDAR to Make Things Easier for the Logger Tyson Lambert; Design and Customer Support, T-MAR Industries Ltd. Logging Steep Slope Second-Growth Efficiently.

Reynold Hert; CEO / Board Chair, BC Forest Safety Council Improving Business Efficiencies Through Injury Reduction

EN02 - Logger’s Banquet & Ball *Dress Code: Semi-Formal You won’t want to miss out on this semi-formal dinner and dance featuring Wunderbread, the disco extravaganza dance band. Get your groove on and join in the fun and merriment!

Cancellation policy: For cancellations prior to or on January 16, 2015 a 10% administration fee applies.

Cancellations received after January 16, 2015 are non-refundable. Please allow 30 days for refunds.

If you wish to transfer your registration to another individual please give us at least 24 hours advance notice.

INDIVIDUAL EVENT PRICES: THURSDAY, JANUARY 22, 2015

SD Skill Development

KN Keynote Speaker

IF

Informational Session

THURSDAY, JANUARY 22, 2015 AGM (Members Only) & Logger’s Breakfast IF01 - Understanding the Forest Service Providers Protection Act KN02 - Premier’s Luncheon IF02 - Investing in Contractor Efficiencies EN02 - Logger’s Banquet & Ball PACKAGE DEAL Gold Passports ($985.00 value: Does not include the Ladies Luncheon or the Logger’s Banquet & Ball)

EN

Entertainment & Networking

MEMBER FREE $70.00 $100.00 $70.00 $80.00

Member Rate is Sold Out

NON-MEMBER $45.00 $90.00 $110.00 $90.00 $100.00

$685.00

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 35

Friday, January 23, 2015

Room

Start Time

Victoria Conference Centre

7:00am

Crystal Ballroom

7:30am

10:00am

Carson Hall

10:00am

10:30am

Theatre

10:30am

12:30pm

Carson Hall

12:00pm

1:30pm

Ivy Ballroom

11:30am

1:30pm

Theatre

1:30pm

3:30pm

Trade Show Floor Reception – Bars Open

Carson Hall

3:00pm

5:00pm

EN05 - Suppliers’ Night & Dinner Always the most popular event of the convention, the TLA welcomes you to the tradition of delivering business, networking and fun! Come for dinner, refreshments and the Donor Auction fun! Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers will once again host our LIVE auction!

Carson Hall

6:00pm

10:00pm

EN06 - It’s a Wrap! After Party Don’t go anywhere! Join us next door as the delegates take over the Crystal Ballroom, with the traditional french-fries at midnight and as always, some fun surprises!

Crystal Ballroom

10:00pm

1:00am

Registration Opens KN03 - Minister of Forests Breakfast & Address Minister Thomson joins us for his fourth Minister of Forests Breakfast! He will provide an update on the coastal forest sector natural resource policy and award this year’s TLA forestry education scholarships.

Coffee Break on the Trade Show Floor

End Time

IF03 - Getting Boots on the Ground Cost Effectively Everyone needs workers and training is always a costly aspect of new recruits. These panel members will discuss new opportunities for recruiting workers and undertaking cost effective training.

Moderator: Don Banasky, TLA President Speakers: Michael Izen, BA (Hons.), MPA; Izen Consulting How to Access Federal Funding for First Nations Training Klay Tindall, RPF, Forest Operations Manager; Lil’wat Forestry Ventures LP Building a First Nations Workforce Melinda Morben RPF, Supervisor, Production Harvesting Department; Island Timberlands Women as a Way to Expand Your Workforce EN03 - Lunch on the Trade Show Floor EN04 - Ladies Luncheon – Cea Sunrise Person, Author of North of Normal Join us to hear the captivating story of Cea Sunrise Person, author of the bestselling memoir North of Normal: A Memoir of My Wilderness Childhood, My Counterculture Family, and How I Survived Both (HarperCollins). Born into an eccentric hippie family, Cea spent the first decade of her life living in and out of tipis in the Canadian wilderness before launching an international modelling career at the age of thirteen. From living completely off the grid, to modelling in the photo studios of New York, Paris and beyond, Cea’s story of resilience as she struggled to find her normal, has already inspired many!

IF04 - Investing in Yourself - The Contractor Perspective Successes and challenges when it comes to investing in equipment, manpower, training, safety and their communities will be explored by these five veteran contractors in an interactive question and answer format.

Moderator: Justin Rigsby, CFO/Controller; Holbrook Dyson Logging Speakers: Graham Lasure; W.D. Moore Logging Ltd. Greg Munden; Munden Ventures Ltd. Howie McKamey; The Goat Lake Group Jacqui Beban; Nootka Sound Timber Co. Ltd. Reid Hedlund; Mid-Boundary Contracting Ted Beutler; Aggressive Timber Falling

Cancellation policy: For cancellations prior to or on January 16, 2015 a 10% administration fee applies. Cancellations received after January 16, 2015 are non-refundable. Please allow 30 days for refunds. If you wish to transfer your registration to another individual please give us at least 24 hours advance notice.

INDIVIDUAL EVENT PRICES: FRIDAY, JANUARY 23, 2015 SD Skill Development

KN Keynote Speaker

IF

Informational Session

FRIDAY, JANUARY 23, 2015 KN03 - Minister of Forests Breakfast & Address IF03 - Getting Boots on the Ground Cost Effectively EN03 - Lunch on the Trade Show Floor EN04 - Ladies Luncheon - Cea Sunrise Person, Author of North of Normal IF04 - Investing in Yourself - The Contractor Perspective EN05 - Suppliers’ Night & Dinner EN06 - It’s a Wrap! After Party PACKAGE DEAL Gold Passports ($985.00 value: Does not include the Ladies Luncheon or the Logger’s Banquet & Ball)

INVESTING FROMWinter THE2015 GROUND UP - TLA CONVENTION 2015 36 Truck LoggerBC

EN

Entertainment & Networking

TLA MEMBER RATE $90.00 $70.00 $40.00 $75.00 $70.00 $90.00 $20.00

NON-MEMBER RATE $110.00 $90.00 $45.00 $100.00 $90.00 $100.00 $25.00

Member Rate is Sold Out

$685.00

AUCTIONS

You are invited to join the fun at the TLA fundraising auctions at this year’s convention. Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers will once again entertain you while conducting the live auction at Suppliers’ Night!

Proceeds from the TLA auctions go to our TLA Forestry Education Fund, generously founded and supported

by TLA members and donors, which provides scholarships to students in post-secondary forestry programs at Vancouver lsland University, North Island College, University of British Columbia and British Columbia Institute of Technology. These funds also support a number of valuable forest education and awareness-raising projects and programs. Please see pages 38 and 39 for more details!

LIVE AUCTION ITEMS

LOT 1 Ingersoll Rand 1” Heavy Duty Air Impact

Donated by Mountain Forestry Ltd.

LOT 2 Four M-55 all position Toyo Tires

Donated by Associated Tire & Auto and Toyo Tires

LOT 3 Four Long March 11R24.5 - 16ply LM306 Loggers Lug Highway Logging truck tires

Donated by Roc-Tire Ltd.

LOT 4 Four LT265/70R17Toyo M55 tires

Donated by Jacks Tire Sales & Service Ltd.

LOT 5 Set of four tires - Severe service Nitto HD grapplers size LT265/70R17 10 ply installed and balanced

Donated by Kal Tire

LOT 6 One #487 Opsal Haulback Block and one #925 Tommy Moore Block Donated by Opsal Steel Ltd.

LOT 7 1200 ft of 7/8 Western Swaged wire rope Donated by Western Equipment Ltd.

LOT 8 $6000 (no cash value) towards any purchase of parts or labour

Donated by T-Mar Industries Ltd.

LOT 9 $2500 gift certificate towards parts

Donated by Leemar Manufacturing Inc.

LOT 10 $2500 gift certificate for in-house services

Donated by Leemar Manufacturing Inc.

LOT 11 Team photo shoot, with 20 11x14 prints

Donated by Hans Peter Meyer

LOT 12 Norco mountain bike

Donated by Southstar Equipment Ltd.

LOT 13 Electric Motorcycle - Streaker Sport Donated by Lordco

LOT 14 Two tickets to see the Vancouver Canucks vs.

Toronto Maple Leafs March 14, 2015 with twonights’ accommodation (March 13 & 14, 2015) in a deluxe suite at the Wedgewood Hotel & Spa and a $250 gift certificate for Wedgewood Spa or Bacchus Restaurant Donated by Tsibass Construction Ltd.

LOT 15 One one-hour Bell 206 Jet Ranger flight for a maximum of 3 people Donated by E & B Helicopters Ltd.

LOT 17 $1500 gift certificate to the Black Rock Oceanfront Resort in Ucluelet

COAST KAMLOOPS HOTEL AND CONFERENCE CENTRE One-night’s accommodation in a Coast comfort room, including complimentary parking

LOT 18 Two hockey tickets to see the Vancouver Canucks vs. St. Louis on March 1, 2015 combined with two-nights’ stay with Coast Hotels and Resorts and a $250 gift certificate to the Keg Steakhouse + Bar

COLUMBIA FUELS Columbia Fuels branded golf shirt and Scuderia Ferrari men’s water resistant carbon fibre sports watch

Donated by Dyer Logging Co. Ltd.

Donated by Blue Thunder Contracting Ltd., North Arm Transportation and Coast Hotel & Resorts

DARCY’S PUB Two $25 gift certificates

LOT 19 Four Adirondack chairs and a gas fire pit including 10ft propane hose, regulator, natural gas conversion orifice and storage cupboard

DORMAN TIMBER LTD. Four-hour sturgeon fishing trip for four with STS Fishing Charters

VMAC Fleece jacket, mechanic gloves, travel mug, tool pen, USB charger, ladies t-shirt and toque WALKERS SAW SHOP Echo CS 310 Chain saw W.D. MOORE LOGGING CO. LTD. One-night’s accommodation in the Guest House at Burrowing Owl Estate Winery, threecourse dinner in the Sonara Room Restaurant and a Wine Country breakfast

LADIES LUNCHEON PRIZES

Donated by Alberni District Secondary School, Brutus Truck Bodies by Nor-Mar Industries Ltd. and Seaspray Log Scaling Ltd.

HARBOUR AIR SEAPLANES One one-way voucher redeemable to Jan. 2016

LOT 20 Two tickets for Vancouver Canucks vs. Buffalo Sabres on January 30, 2015, two-nights’ accommodation in a harbour-view room including breakfast for two, round trip for two anywhere in the Pacific Coastal network excluding seaplanes, $250 gift certificate to the Keg Steakhouse + Bar

INLAND GROUP MC317RX-3100 PSI gas pressure washer

DELTA VICTORIA OCEAN POINTE RESORT & SPA One-night’s stay in a newly renovated Mode Room

JCB TRUCKING Retired aluminum hardhat, air brushed with logging truck, boom boat and TLA artwork

JOHNSTONE’S BENEFITS Wine gift basket

Donated by Pacific Cachalot, Westin Bayshore, Pacific Coastal Airlines and Blue Thunder Contracting ltd.

LOT 21 OGIO duffel bag, windbreaker, one dozen golf balls, golf towel, hat and luggage tags combined with one-night’s stay in a jacuzzi suite, one round of golf for two with shared powered cart and two-nights’ stay in a one bedroom suite, two one-hour relaxation massages, two hydro therapy tub sessions at Oh Spa, $100 gift certificate to Locals Restaurant and two bicycle rentals for two days Donated by Canada Culvert, Crown Isle Resort & Golf Community and Old House Village Hotel and Spa

LOT 22 TLA BBQ with the Minister

Donated by The Truck Loggers Association

SILENT AUCTION ITEMS AFD PETROLEUM LTD. Go-Pro Camera BAILEY WESTERN STAR & FREIGHTLINER TRUCKS Wine rack with an assortment of wine BOB MARQUIS CONTRACTING LTD. Two engraved Bowie hunting knives CANADIAN TIRE 2.5qt crock pot and two trunk organizers with removable soft sided cooler CARIHI SECONDARY SCHOOL Carihi Foresty suspenders and t-shirt CARMANA PLAZA, VANCOUVER One-night’s accommodation in an executive bedroom suite

LOT 16 Scenic Rush - The Whistler Experience, includes COAST BASTION HOTEL, one passenger, damage waiver, lunch in NANAIMO Whistler, Sea to Sky gondola, gas and gratuities One-night’s accommodation in a premium king Donated by Cokely Wire Rope Ltd. and Coastal Bridge & guest room Construction Ltd.

VANCOUVER ISLAND AIR LTD. Two-hour flightseeing gift certificate

LOG MAX FORESTRY SERVICE LTD. 32” Sony LED television MACANDALE’S Framed photograph of two bear cubs METROPOLITAN HOTEL, VANCOUVER One-night’s accommodation for two in a luxury king guest room NATIONAL ENERGY EQUIPMENT INC. Transfer Pump 12V 3/4 12’ Hose NORTH ISLAND COMMUNICATIONS Kenwood TK 7360 Mobile 128ch 50 Watt twoway radio including programming & set-up NORTHERN ROPES & INDUSTRIAL SUPPLY LTD. 4-3/8 250ft Strawline extensions PORT METRO VANCOUVER Survival kit containing 72 hours of postemergency essentials ROYQUIP Mussels & More serving bowl - handcrafted in Campbell River

FAIRMONT EMPRESS HOTEL Three one-night accommodations KAJOHL MANAGEMENT LTD. Two bottles of wine PI FINANCIAL CORP. Viva Roma Gourmet Basket, Gourmet Warehouse PILLDOLLA CREEK CONTRACTING LTD. / SOUTHVIEW FOREST SERVICES LTD. Six bottles of wine PROBYN LOG LTD. Native bracelet REXALL Ladies care package ROYQUIP Pandora Bracelet SLADEY TIMBER LTD. $250 gift certificate to Holt Renfrew T-MAR INDUSTRIES LTD. Mussels & More serving bowl - Handcrafted in Campbell River

CONTRIBUTORS LIST ADVERTISING IN PRINT

SEASPRAY LOG SCALING LTD. Ladies vintage jewelry

BEAR LAKE LOGGING CO. LTD.

SLADEY TIMBER LTD. Stihl gas chain saw

FORESTECH EQUIPMENT LTD.

ST. JOHNS AMBULANCE, VICTORIA BRANCH WorksafeBC, Level 1 first aid kit STRATHCONA HOTEL One-night’s accommodation and a $50 Sticky Wicket gift certificate (valid to Dec 30, 2015) TJX CANADA $50 gift certificate (Winners/HomeSense)

BENWEST LOGGING LTD. MIKE HAMILTON LOGGING LTD. L’ORÉAL NOOTKA SOUND TIMBER CO. LTD. ORICA CANADA INC. SHOPPERS DRUG MART THE GOAT LAKE GROUP WESTLAND INSURANCE GROUP LTD.

A SPECIAL THANK YOU TO ALL OF OUR 2015 CONVENTION CONTRIBUTORS

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 37

72nd Annual Truck Loggers Association Convention & Trade Show 2015

2015 LIVE & SILENT

TLA Forestry Education Fund: What Your Money Achieves The TLA Forestr y Education Fund only exists because each year TLA members and suppor ters graciously donate items to the live and silent auc tions and then bring their cheque books with them to the TLA Convention for auc tion night. In the hurly-burly of the auc tion, it ’s easy to forget what we’re suppor ting. So here’s a reminder! All the projec ts highlighted below are suppor ted by the TLA Forestr y Education Fund. Thank you for your continued investment in the future of forestr y! Find out more on page 47.

Photo: Stacie Woodall

Above: Every year the TLA Forestry Education Fund sponsors community logger sports competitions throughout the coastal region.

Supporting these kinds of forestry focused community events helps build support for the industry at a grassroots level and invigorates the forestry community itself. The photo above is from Squamish Days Loggers Sports last summer. Approx annual spend: $5,000

Photo: Courtesy of Festival of Forestry

Above: Each year the Festival of Forestry takes 15-20 teachers to a BC forestry community and shows them on-the-ground forestry. The tours provide teachers an interactive learning experience and gives them ways to integrate what they learn about forestry into their teaching. Annual spend: $5,000

Right: The BC Forest Discovery Centre is a hub for forestry education in the Cowichan Valley.

Among its offerings are programs in both forest ecology and forest heritage.

The programs meet ministry-prescribed learning outcomes for grades K-6. Last year, the Centre had almost 2000 students take part in their education programs.

Annual Spend: $10,000

Photo: Courtesy of BC Forest Discovery Centre

Find out how to apply for funding from the TLA Forestry Education Fund. See page five.

INVESTING FROM THE GROUND UP - TLA CONVENTION 2015 38 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

Photo: Courtesy of UBC Faculty of Forestry

Left: Scholarships are given annually to students planning to join the forest industry. Last year, 24 were awarded.

Whether they are scaling students, heavy duty mechanic apprentices or forestry students, the Fund has a scholarship for them. Approx annual spend: $30,000

Photo: Brian Dennehy Photography

Photo: Jason Kerluck

Above: This year the Fund supported the purchase of a bus for the Carihi forestry program. Now students can easily travel to forests and work sites as a class. Total spend: $10,000

Photo: Stacie Woodall

Left: The Fund has been a strong supporter of the high school forestry programs in Port Alberni (Alberni District Secondary) and Campbell River (Carihi Secondary). Both programs introduce forestry to high school students and both programs have transitioned students into the forest industry upon graduation. You can’t get more grassroots than this on-theground forestry worker recruitment. Spend to date: $58,800

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 39

72nd Annual Truck Loggers Association Convention & Trade Show 2015

Above: The TLA Forestry Education Fund made a three-year commitment to support the building of the new dining hall at the Loon Lake Research & Education Centre at UBC’s Malcolm Knapp Research Forest.

Established in 1948, the camp hosts a variety of forestry related groups as well as Camp Goodtimes, a camp for children living with cancer. Total spend: $45,000

2015 EXHIBITOR LISTING AFD PETROLEUM LTD. 646 Industrial Way Victoria, BC V9B 6E2 (250) 478-5893 www.afdpetroleum.com

ARMTEC 1848 Schoolhouse Road Nanaimo, BC V9X 1T4 (250) 754-1238 www.armtec.com

AUSTIN POWDER LTD. 4919 North Island Hwy Courtenay, BC V9N 5Z2 (250) 334-2624 www.austinpowder.com

BAILEY WESTERN STAR & FREIGHTLINER TRUCKS 1440 Redwood Street Campbell River, BC V9W 5L2 (250) 286-1151 www.baileywesternstar.com

BC FOREST SAFETY COUNCIL 420 Albert Street Nanaimo, BC V9R 2V7 (250) 741-1060 www.bcforestsafe.org

BC TIMBER SALES PO Box 9507 Stn Prov Govt Victoria, BC V8W 9C2 (250) 356-1918 www.for.gov.bc.ca/bcts

BRANDT TRACTOR LTD. 1830 Schoolhouse Road Nanaimo, BC V9X 1T4 (250) 754-7735 www.brandt.ca

BRUTUS TRUCK BODIES BY NOR-MAR INDUSTRIES LTD. 682 Okanagan Avenue East Penticton, BC V2A 3K7 (250) 492-7866 www.brutusbodies.com

CANADA CULVERT INC.

GREAT WEST EQUIPMENT

5741 Production Way Langley, BC V3A 4N5 (604) 530-1151 www.canadaculvert.com

2115 South Wellington Road Nanaimo, BC V9X 1R5 (250) 716-8804 www.gwequipment.com

CHEVRON CANADA

INLAND KENWORTH/ PARKER PACIFIC

1200 - 1050 West Pender Street Vancouver, BC V6E 3T4 (604) 668-5300 www.chevron.ca

COASTAL CAMP SOLUTIONS

PO Box 753 Campbell River, BC V9W 6J3 (250) 287-8303 www.coastalcampsolutions.ca

COASTAL MOUNTAIN FUELS

1720 Maple Street Campbell River, BC V9W 3G2 (250) 287-4214 www.cmfuels.ca

COLUMBIA FUELS

4436 Boban Drive Nanaimo, BC V9T 5V9 (250) 751-2000 www.columbiafuels.com

COKELY WIRE ROPE LTD.

4536 Glenwood Drive Port Alberni, BC V9Y 4P8 (250) 724-3356 www.wribc.com

CWS INDUSTRIES (MFG) CORP. 19490 - 92nd Avenue Surrey, BC V4N 4G7 (604) 888-9008 www.cwsindustries.com

FINNING (CANADA)

19100 - 94th Avenue Surrey, BC V4N 5C3 1-888-FINNING www.finning.ca

FOUNTAIN TIRE 301 - 1006 103A Street SW Edmonton, AB T6W 2P6 (780) 464-3700 www.fountaintire.com

INVESTING FROM THE GROUND UP - TLA CONVENTION 2015 40 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

2482 Douglas Road Burnaby, BC V5C 6C9 (604) 291-6021 www.inland-group.com

IRIS THE VISUAL GROUP

2 - 8948 202nd Street Langley, BC V1M 4A7 (604) 881-0353 www.iris.ca

JLT CANADA

350 - 4396 West Saanich Road Victoria, BC V8Z 3E9 (250) 388-4416 www.jltcanada.com

KAL TIRE

2294 McCullough Road Nanaimo, BC V9S 4M8 (250) 897-2811 www.kaltire.com

LEEMAR MANUFACTURING INC.

1390 Springhill Road Parksville, BC V9P 2T2 (250) 248-2611 www.leemar.ca

LIEBHERR-CANADA LTD.

140 - 21320 Gordon Way Richmond, BC V6W 1J8 1 (800) 363-7950 www.liebherr.ca

LOGGING & SAWMILLING JOURNAL

PO Box 86670 North Vancouver, BC V7L 4L2 (604) 990-9970 www.forestnet.com

LOG MAX FORESTRY SERVICE INC.

954D Laval Crescent Kamloops, BC V2C 5P5 (250) 372-9986 www.logmax.com

2015 EXHIBITOR LISTING

MACK SALES & SERVICE OF NANAIMO LTD.

2213 McCullough Road Nanaimo, BC V9S 4M7 (250) 758-0185 www.nanaimomack.com

MNP LLP 96 Wallace Street Nanaimo, BC V9R 0E2 (250) 753-8251 www.mnp.ca

MURRAY LATTA PROGRESSIVE MACHINE INC. 8717 - 132nd Street Surrey, BC V3W 4P1 (604) 599-9598 www.mlpmachine.com

NATIONAL ENERGY EQUIPMENT INC. 1940 Schoolhouse Road Nanaimo, BC V9X 1T4 (250) 753-4188 www.nee.ca

NORTH ARM TRANSPORTATION 2582 Kent Avenue South East Vancouver, BC V5S 2H8 (604) 321-9171 www.northarm.bc.ca

PACIFIC BLUE CROSS PO Box 7000 Vancouver, BC V6B 4E1 (604) 419-2000 www.pac.bluecross.ca

RANGITANGS 1864 Trutch Street Vancouver, BC V6K 4G3 (604) 992-6296 www.whalenwrks.com

RITCHIE BROS. AUCTIONEERS 9500 Glenlyon Parkway Burnaby, BC V5J 0C6 (778) 331-5500 www.rbauction.com

SAFER

300 - 3920 Norland Avenue Burnaby, BC V5G 4K7 (604) 683-1117 www.safer.ca

SHEARFORCE EQUIPMENT

107 - 2707 Progressive Way Abbotsford, BC V2T 0A7 (604) 855-5101 www.shearforce.ca

SOUTHSTAR EQUIPMENT LTD.

728 Tagish Street Kamloops, BC V2H 1B7 (250) 828-7820 www.southstarequipment.com

STEVE MARSHALL FORD

1384 -16th Avenue Campbell River, BC V9W 2E1 (250) 287-9171

www.stevemarshallfordcampbellriver.com

T-MAR INDUSTRIES LTD.

5791 Duncan Bay Road Campbell River, BC V9H 1N6 (250) 286-9500 www.tmarequipment.com

THE TRUCK LOGGERS ASSOCIATION

725 - 815 West Hastings Street Vancouver, BC V6C 1B4 (604) 684-4291 www.tla.ca

UAP - HVPD

VMAC

1333 Kipp Road Nanaimo, BC V9X 1R3 (250) 740-3200 www.vmacair.com

WAJAX EQUIPMENT

2093B South Wellington Road Nanaimo, BC V9X 1R5 (250) 755-2005 www.wajaxequipment.ca

WARATAH FORESTRY CANADA

930 Laval Crescent Kamloops, BC V2C 5P5 (250) 377-4333 www.na.waratah.net

WESTCOAST TUG & BARGE

PO Box 40 - Stn. A 1324 Marwalk Crescent Campbell River, BC V9W 4Z9 (250) 286-1234 www.westcoasttug.ca

WESTERN EQUIPMENT LTD.

114 - 5219 192nd Street Surrey, BC V3S 4P6 (604) 574-3311 www.westernequipmentltd.com

WESTERN OIL SERVICES LTD.

114 - 1039 Langford Parkway Langford, BC V9B 0A5 (250) 382-5541 www.westernoilservices.com

WORKSAFEBC

6951 Westminster Highway Richmond, BC V7C 1C6 (604) 231-8888 www.worksafebc.com

7025 Ontario Est Montreal, QC H1N 2B3 (514) 256-5031 www.uapinc.com

V.I. EQUIPMENT LTD.

1465 Island Highway Nanoose Bay, BC V9P 9A3 (250) 468-1000 www.viequipmentltd.com

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 41

72nd Annual Truck Loggers Association Convention & Trade Show 2015

LUBRI-LAB BC

654 Durango Drive Kamloops, BC V2C 6Y5 (250) 573-5723 www.lubrilabbc.com

LAST YEAR, THE TRUCK LOGGERS ASSOCIATION WAS NOMINATED BY CANADIAN SPECIAL EVENTS,

FOR TWO STAR AWARDS!

Don’t miss your chance to attend this much anticipated 72 nd annual tradition of business, networking & fun!

INVESTING FROM THE GROUND UP 62 ‐ Leemar

61 ‐ TLA Sidney Room

Live Auction

63 ‐ AFD Petroleum 64 ‐ Rangi‐ tang's

65 ‐ VMAC

Bar (1)

Door way open to trade show floor

Bar (1)

1 & 2 - Inland Kenworth / Parker Pacific

5 & 6 - Finning

9 & 10 - Brandt

Door

Door

W/C

7 - PetroCan / Coastal Mtn. Fuels

15 & 16 - Austin Powder

13 & 14 - T-Mar Industries Ltd.

Langford Room

Suppliers Night Bars (2)

Suppliers Night Buffet Table

Door

W/C

Colwood Room

View Royal Room

Door

19 Liebherr Canada 20 - CWS Industries

25 - West Coast Tug & Barge

26 & 27 MNP

21 - Kal Tire

8 - Ritchie Bros.

Auctioneers

31 - Pacific Blue Cross

37 - BC Timber Sales

32 - National Energy Equipment

38 - JLT Canada

33 North Arm Transport.

39 Chevron Canada

11 & 12 - Waratah Forestry

17 & 18 - Bailey Western Star & Freightliner Trucks

43 & 44 Wajax Equipment

49 - Mack Sales & Service 50 - UAP HVPD

45 Western Equipment

51 Fountain Tire

22 Armtec

28 WorkSafe

34 & 40 - Great West Equipment

46 - Cokely Wire Rope Ltd.

52 - IRIS

23 - Coastal Camp Solutions

29 Logging & Sawmilling

35 - Western 41 - Canada Oil Services Culvert

47 - Murray Latta

53 - Safer

24 - Steve Marshall Ford

30 BCFSC

36 SouthStar Equipment

55 58, 59 & 60 - Brutus Truck Bodies by Nor-Mar Lubri-Lab Industries Ltd. BC nd

42 Columbia Fuels

56 & 57 - V.I. Equipment

48 & 54 - Shearforce Equipment Ltd.

Trade Show Floor Lunch & Suppliers Night seating

THURSDAY, JANUARY 22 : 3:00pm - 5:00pm 5:00pm & 6:00pm - 10:00pm

rd INVESTING FROM THE GROUND UP - TLA 2015FRIDAY, JANUARY 23CONVENTION : 9:00am 42 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

Bar (1)

3 & 4 - Log Max Forestry Service Inc.

Silent Auction

Door

Bar (1)

Metchosin Room

Interior Logging Association 57th Annual Conference and Trade Show

Putting the Membership First May 7th, 8th & 9th, 2015 Vernon, BC HOST HOTEL: Best Western Vernon Lodge 3914 - 32nd Street Vernon, BC, V1T 1P1 Tel: 250-545-3385 vernonlodge@rpbhotels.com EVENTS: Displays (May 8th & 9th) Location, TBA - Thursday Evening, Meet & Greet (May 7th) - Friday Evening, Dinner & Dance (May 8th) - Seminars Best Western Vernon Lodge

For registration and further information, contact the ILA office.

Tel: 1-250-503-2199 or E-mail: info@interiorlogging.org Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 43

REDUCING RISKS IN THE WOODS: SMART FOR BUSINESS

By Pam Jorgenson

F

orestry is not an industry for the weak of heart. We have a legacy of operating around extreme hazards, of tackling difficult terrain and for overcoming huge obstacles. Risk has been an inherent part of business. But the times have changed. Companies are recognizing that accepting these high risks, and coping with the consequences, are not good business practices. And many companies are building strategies to move away from the old git’er done attitudes.

In their efforts to eliminate serious injuries in the woods Interfor is in the midst of a coastal initiative. This began with a detailed review of their work sites and safety results across BC, in which the number one issue causing serious injuries was identified: Workers accept a level of risk that is too high.

get across the block faster by crossing the ravine on a suspended log.

In most of these cases, the workers are extremely committed to their employers and the overall operation. So committed, in fact, they may risk their lives to conduct a routine task. The supervisor has a big role to play in changing these accepted levels of risk.

To encourage supervisors to become more actively involved in lowering workers’ exposure to hazards, Interfor is asking staff and contract supervisors to have one-on-one safety conversations with their workers on a regular basis to discuss hazards and risks. These are not the safety conversations that have been happening all along; they are in depth conversations where the worker is encouraged to identify the hazards

Let your guys know you care. Let them know you don’t want them taking any risks on your behalf.

But isn’t this the way of the woods?

Not everyone thinks it needs to be this way. Mike Hamilton, of Hamilton Logging, doesn’t believe this should be the status quo any more. He has teamed up with Interfor in their work to talk to every supervisor—both staff and contractor—that works on their claim.

Mike’s message is simple: “Let your guys know you care. Let them know you don’t want them taking any risks on your behalf. We haven’t done a very good job as an industry in letting the employee know this.”

Safety professionals would agree that supervisors and company owners play a key role in reducing a worker’s level of risk. They need to set up their systems to protect their workers, and they need to clearly communicate their expectations.

Consider the incidents you’ve been exposed to – is the worker being neglectful or defiant, or might he be doing ‘what he thought his boss wanted him to do?’

• Think of the faller going after the questionable tree to get the valuable log.

• Think of the log hauler driving on icy roads to get the last load in.

• Think of the field engineer trying to

44 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

and risks and to explain how they will be managing the risk. Interfor’s coastal operations are tracking these conversations in a pilot project and they hope the results will show that as conversations about risks and hazards increase, incidents will decrease. These types of results have been seen in other industries using similar programs.

Hamilton supports this approach. He believes that having open conversations with his staff is the key to success in keeping his guys safe and in running a smooth business. By setting time aside to get to know their concerns at the job, to redirect them when they’re working in risky situations and even to flag personal issues, Mike and his supervisors are able to recognize when someone needs more support. And by providing that support, whether it means more training, a discussion of how to approach an onsite hazard, or sending someone home because his head isn’t in the game, Mike’s company is poised to reduce its risks and consequent losses.

Dean Fauchon, Woods Foreman with Helifor Canada has also been actively involved with Interfor’s initiative

to reduce his workers’ level of accepted risk. He believes he has already made progress with his staff, and is using some specific strategies to engage them in conversations where hazards can be raised and addressed before they cause incidents and loss to the individual and the company. He says he will continue to use these strategies, even after Interfor’s project is complete.

Some of the principles that the companies are using to encourage discussion of risks at a site include: • Set aside a time that is convenient for both the worker and the supervisor. Shut off any machines and have the discussion one-on-one.

• Ask open-ended questions that can’t be answered with a yes or no. “Got any concerns?” won’t get a supervisor very much information. Rather, try “What are your concerns?”

• Listen to the worker’s response. Stay focused on his answers and don’t get distracted by other things going on at the operation. Ask for clarification of any issues or concerns to show you’ve heard his points.

• If action is required, take it! A worker will stop raising his concerns if his supervisor doesn’t act.

• Explain what you are going to do and when you will update the worker.

How often has a supervisor wondered after an incident, “Why did my employee decide to do that? Why did he do something so risky?” With open lines of communication and an opportunity to discuss the challenges, concerns and risks on a site, hopefully supervisors won’t have to say these words—the incidents and consequent losses will simply be avoided.

Pam Jorgenson, RPF, is a Training Manager at the BC Forest Safety Council. She can be reached at jorgenson@bcforestsafe.org.

It is with great pleasure that all of us at Tamihi Logging Company and The Dorman Group welcome Don Banasky as Senior Vice President.

Grapple yarding in Adams Lake, BC.

Tamihi Logging Company is diverse and offers a variety of services across BC: • cable and ground-based logging • engineering • road building • log marketing • dry land sorting • forest management services We continue to develop and maintain great working relationships with First Nations and other communities across the province, while managing our own licences in the Fraser Timber Supply Area.

Our divisions allow us to meet your needs anywhere.

Vancouver Island || Lower Mainland || BC Interior Don Banasky 250-668-7746 don.tamihilog@shaw.ca

Brian Dorman 250-713-2138 brian.tamihilog@shaw.ca

Tamihi Logging Co. Ltd. || Phone: 604-796-0314 || Fax: 604-796-0318 || 14250 Morris Valley Rd., Harrison Mills, BC Dorman Group || Phone: 1-250-741-1993 || Fax: 250-741-0012 || 2496 Pirart Rd., Nanaimo, BC Chilliwack Forestry Engineering Office || Phone: 604-823-4830 Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 45

Insurance policies are not all the same Your TLA equipment and liability programs have been customized exclusively for TLA members.

The program offers: • The most comprehensive coverage available • The most competitive rating available • Enhancements only available to members To learn more about your exclusive TLA membership, contact us today.

Jardine Lloyd Thompson Canada Inc. (JLT Canada) is part of the Jardine Lloyd Thompson Group plc (JLT), one of the world’s largest providers of insurance, reinsurance and employee benefits related advice, brokerage and associated services.

JLT is quoted on the London Stock Exchange and owns offices in 39 territories with some 9000 employees. Supported by the JLT International Network, it offers risk management and benefitWinter solutions 46 employee Truck LoggerBC 2015 in 135 countries.

Peter Pringle Managing Director Direct 250 413 2712 Cellular 250 361 5702 ppringle@jltcanada.com Steve Hicks Senior Vice President Direct 250 413 2723 Cellular 250 588 1410 shicks@jltcanada.com Jardine Lloyd Thompson Canada Inc. Suite 350 4396 West Saanich Road Victoria, BC V8Z 3E9 Phone 250 388 4416 Toll Free 888 216 8018 Fax 250 388 9926 www.jltcanada.com

GETTING THEM WHEN THEY’RE YOUNG: TLA AND ILA EDUCATION FUND ACHIEVEMENTS

R

aise your hand if you think Port Alberni is the forestry capital of Canada? How many of you would call Campbell River the forestry capital of the

By Sandra Bishop

high school experience. “Twenty years ago if we were asked, ‘How many of your family and friends work in the forest industry,’ pretty much every hand in

These high school programs focus on real-world projects that make them a transformational learning experience, which in many cases leads to students pursuing promising careers in forestry. coast? The answers are obvious, right?

You would think so, but you’d be wrong.

Alberni District Secondary School Teacher Ryan Dvorak acknowledges today there is a serious disconnect between people in rural communities and the forest industry. Dvorak recalls his

the room would go up.” If he were to ask that question today to the students he teaches forestry to, there would be two hands up.

That is why the TLA and the ILA are committed to investing in forestry education by helping teachers from K – 12

Photo: Courtesy of ADSS

educate their students about the forest industry in British Columbia. Both associations achieve this by providing financial support to school programs through the TLA Forestry Education Fund or the ILA Donor Fund, which are supported from proceeds from the auctions at their annual conventions.

“I think there are a lot of people in school and in the province, for that matter, who don’t know much about forestry and forest practices in BC,” explains Jason Kerluck, Carihi Secondary’s forestry program instructor. “It’s so important, especially for those living within a logging and forestry community to know where our wood products come from and how they are made, and where the jobs are within our communities that are supporting our local and our provincial economies.”

These two impassioned high school teachers are the change makers leading two distinguished Vancouver Island high school forestry programs which aim to ensure the next generation of forestry workers is being trained in the

Jules Tuinstra

Jules Tuinstra took the grade nine forestry class at Alberni District Secondary School (ADSS) and then took the Sustainable Resources Forestry class as a high school senior. Both classes provided hands-on, in-depth learning about forestry. After Jules graduated in 2013, he decided to find a career in the forest industry. Aftertaking some Transport Canada approved marine training, Jules started as a boom man deck-handing, towing booms and stowing bundles in the Alberni Inlet. As he worked more, he had the opportunity to work on the dry land sort banding bundles. He now works in a full-time bucking position on a dry land sort in the Alberni Valley. He’s working full-time, learning about the industry and building his forestry skill set. He credits the courses he took at ADSS for putting him on the forestry career path and helping him achieve his goals.

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 47

48 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

Photo: Strategic Natural Resource Consultants

communities where they will be needed.

The overriding challenge facing BC’s forest industry is replacing an aging workforce. It’s a challenge that is made more difficult by an industry that was in decline for a number of years.

TLA Education Committee Chair Dave McNaught is vocal about the serious need to bring youth into the forest industry. “In this day and age with attrition and retirements going on there’s 4,700 people needed to fill forestry jobs over the next 10 years on the coast. The forest industry offers young people a long-term stable career.”

The TLA’s Brenda Martin couldn’t agree more. Martin is also co-chair of the Festival of Forestry, an organization whose goal is to educate K – 12 teachers about the forest industry by conducting forestry tours and providing them with relevant teaching resources. “Coastal communities are trying to retain their young people and keep their communities vibrant. Forestry is one way this can happen. If teachers are able to educate young people about the industry and what it offers—well-paying, secure jobs in their community that allow them to make a good wage and live locally—

Eighteen-year-old Ira Ellingsen is a product of Carihi’s initial forestry class, which launched three years ago. Ira says he might have considered a career in forestry without the high school program, but he wouldn’t have had that jumpstart. “Just coming out of high school, it opened the door for me,” said Ellingsen. He is now an assistant field technician at Strategic Natural Resource Consultants in Campbell River. that’s an important piece.”

But the first step is raising awareness

about the industry and the benefits of working in it. By starting at the grade 9 level with project-based learning, Dvorak is able to build an interest in forestry for the senior program in Grades 11 and 12.

“In Grade 12 students are looking at forestry as a career,” Dvorak emphasizes.

“They learn hands-on how forestry actually works and gain some entry level skills around tree planting, silviculture planning, engineering, compass work, block layout, running deflection lines, and we even do one week of heavy equipment training. I get the kids out on hoe chuckers, excavators, and we teach them how the machines work and how to maintain them. That’s always a highlight!”

Dvorak believes forestry also offers an opportunity for students to look at a career where they can make a difference in the world. “Many students gravitate towards careers in the environmental sciences and we argue that forestry is THE most important environmental science, responsible for 60 per cent of the land base. Our students gain an understanding of what the industry really is, not the hyperbole or propaganda they read in the newspaper, magazines or online.”

Dvorak’s colleague in Campbell River, Jason Kerluck, echoes this philosophy and reiterates the results of students

working on collaborative hands-on projects where they become engaged and fully motivated. “I wanted to make it the type of class where students could

“It’s an awesome job. Being outdoors is the best part and second best is flying in helicopters and going on boats all the time. When I work in the office,” he

From a business perspective, being a strong supporter of the Carihi program allows Strategic to see employees grow from a young age and develop their passion for the industry over time. learn about forestry within BC and build employment skills so that if they did want to go into forestry they would have some really good options and connections and skills to make them employable.”

Both teachers credit the TLA with providing the leadership and financial support that ensures these innovative programs succeed. Last year, the TLA sponsored a crew bus for the Carihi Secondary program. “Having that bus allows us to get to places, out to areas that show different types of trees, different landscapes. Within our afternoon or morning we can go to T-Mar Industries to look at harvesting equipment. We can go to the nursery and see how they’re producing seedlings. We can experience it all,” said Kerluck.

These high school programs focus on real-world projects that make them a transformational learning experience, which in many cases leads to students pursuing promising careers in forestry.

“We look at soils, we look at some of the policies within forest management practices and people in those careers come in to talk to us so students can make connections with people in the industry and industry makes connection with our students,” Kerluck explains.

Eighteen-year-old Ira Ellingsen is a product of Carihi’s initial forestry class, which launched three years ago. “I might have considered a career in forestry without my high school program, but I wouldn’t have had that jumpstart.

I wouldn’t have had the extra knowledge beforehand. Just coming out of high school, it opened the door for me.”

Ellingsen is now an assistant field technician at Strategic Natural Resource Consultants in Campbell River. He spends his days working on laying out cut blocks with RFTs and RPFs, mapping and conducting field work, and running deflection lines.

quips, “that’s a grumpy day.”

In high school Ellingsen remembers visiting active logging sites “which was mostly my favourite part, just going around and looking at all the different stuff they were doing on different logging slopes in different settings. That was pretty fun. We got to see things from the planning stages to the sorting and scaling operations at the end.”

Ellingsen spent one week at Strategic where he shadowed several different forestry professionals doing their daily work, which resulted in a seminal moment for the young teen. “I got to go

along with them out in the bush and in the office to see how they did things and that’s when I realized I really do want to do this.”

Strategic recognized Ellingsen’s passion for the industry. “I think Ira’s still unsure of which area he will pursue,” comments Ellingsen’s supervisor Aaron Nelson, Timber Development & Engineering Manager, “but we’re working with him to help him make that choice.

Either way what he got out of school and his experience with us is going to set him up with a really good foundation, whether he decides to go on the planning side or the heavy equipment operating side of the industry.”

From a business perspective, being a strong supporter of the Carihi program allows Strategic to see some employees grow from “a super young age, with a passion for the industry and see them through the high school program and hopefully, see them go even further to the degrees. At the end, when they’ve graduated we try to hire them full time.”

In the Interior, the ILA has long been

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Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 49

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The funds the ILA donate to Canadian Women in Timber allow the women to travel to classrooms and teach students about forestry. Here three children take part in the interactive displays in the Forestry Van. focused on targeting young minds for forestry education. By providing financial support to the Canadian Women in Timber they are able to do classroom visits to educate young people with a variety of forestry education materials and

ILA General Manager Wayne Lintott.

All these educators and industry representatives agree there’s one major lesson learned from the challenges facing the forest industry. “We have to do more,” affirms Nelson. “We need young

Through funding from our ILA Donor Fund, the Canadian Women in Timber have been able to develop an activity book for younger children, a forest education book geared to older children and timely industry facts for teachers. take the ILA Forestry Education Van to visit schools throughout the region.

“Through funding from our Donor Fund, the Canadian Women in Timber have been able to develop an activity book for younger children, a forest education book geared to older children and timely industry facts for teachers,” notes

50 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

people to know we’re cutting down trees but in a sustainable way. We have the richest growing sites in the world and trees grow way faster here. We’re also planting twice as many new ones as we’re harvesting.”

That means there’s a bright future for forestry and for young British Columbians who want to be a part of one of the greenest workforces on earth.

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To learn more, attend our presentation “Investing in Your Business’ Future” and visit our booth at the TLA Convention & Tradeshow in Victoria, January 21 to 23.

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 51

TOUGH DECISIONS FACING THE LOGGING SECTOR TLA Editorial

W

All photos: Stacie Woodall

ith growing demand for BC’s forest products, combined with a labour and contractor shortage that has been the focus of recent industry recruitment efforts, it would suggest growing opportunity for the well capitalized logging contractors of BC. Unfortunately, this doesn’t seem to be the case, as two prominent BC contractors recently decided to throw in the towel, selling their equipment at the Ritchie Bros. auction in Chilliwack this past fall.

Ritchie Bros. Auctioneers is the world’s largest industrial auctioneer. From humble beginnings in the BC Interior in 1958, they have grown to serve equipment buyers and sellers all over the world, holding 356 auctions in 2013 with transactions topping more than $3.8 billion. How do they do it? By staying focused on great customer service and a commitment to unreserved public auctions.

And the Chilliwack auction held on October 15 was no exception.

More than 3,100 bidders participated online and in person at this multi-million dollar, unreserved

52 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

public equipment auction.

There were 50+ forestry equipment items in the October 15 auction. Bidders came from 36 countries, including nine Canadian provinces and two territories and 42 US states. By the end of the day, more than 70 per cent of the forestry items were purchased by buyers from within BC with the rest being purchased by buyers from Alberta, Manitoba, the United States and from as far away as France. Online bidders purchased 57 per cent of all the equipment sold in the auction.

“Forestry equipment prices in our October Chilliwack auction were strong.

Not only did we achieve high values for the late-model equipment, but the older, well-maintained gear also received good results,” says Adam Pruss, Regional Sales Manager, Ritchie Bros.

Auctioneers. “We recently sold a similar number of forestry equipment items in Prince George this past April; however, in terms of gross auction proceeds, this was one of our largest forestry auctions in BC. The last time we had an auction with this much high-dollar forestry equipment was back in 2008.”

“The current market for used forestry equipment is very strong,” says Pruss. “The market is being driven by an overall shortage of both new and used forestry equipment and manufacturers continue to push back delivery dates for new equipment, which is resulting in contractors holding on to their used equipment longer.”

company, Gregson and sons Dave and John provide a variety of services to the logging and civil construction sectors.

On the civil side they do road and bridge work across BC and the Yukon, have been awarded four times for the quality of their work and have recently been nominated as the Deputy Minister’s Contractor of the Year for 2014 in

We were constantly told our rates were too high but at the same time, the return on the capital we had invested in equipment was simply not there anymore.

The majority of the logging equipment sold at the auction came from two prominent long-time contractors, one on the coast and one from the Interior.

Bryan Gregson has always been involved in the forest industry. Prior to contracting, Gregson worked at Madill for over 12 years in mechanical production and new machine set up. From his start with Bryan Gregson Bulldozing in 1978 to Copcan Contracting, his current

bridge construction.

But logging has been a lifetime passion for Gregson and reducing exposure in the sector with the sale of his equipment at Ritchie Bros. Chilliwack auction was a particularity difficult decision.

“We were constantly told our rates were too high but at the same time, the return on the capital we had invested in equipment was simply not there anymore,” notes Gregson. Recent changes in

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the union conditions they work under combined with growing costs for equipment, supplies and maintenance, all in the face of stagnate rates for logging services led to the decision to simply sell most of the equipment. They have now positioned the company to reinvest the capital in higher return work as it presents itself.

“Logging is a high capital, high risk, low return business,” notes Dave Gregson. “If we were making money at it, why would we have sold so much equipment,” he responds to those who questioned their decision. “The inconsistency of the work, frequent shut downs, low rates and ongoing cost increases for employees and benefits just made no sense to us anymore.”

At 63, Bruce Jackson had no intentions of leaving the logging business, but exited the industry by selling his equipment at Ritchie Bros., and for many of the same reasons. Having been a contract logger for 45 years in the southern Interior, Bruce Jackson Contracting provided local employment for 10 to

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15 people. But they finally threw in the towel, struggling to stay ahead for most of the last five years.

dictating that we hoechuck on grades above 35%.”

“And when you try to discuss these

Jackson’s 19-year-old grandson, who had recently entered the business as a skilled equipment operator, has left logging and gone north to find work in other industries.

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“There is work available,” says Jackson. “But if you agree to the work, the contracts show up in the mail three weeks after you have started and the industry standard rate is all that is provided. There are no negotiations, no discussion of site conditions, nothing! Is there recognition for fuel costs, rising wages, parts or repairs? The answer is no. The industry standard rate is what you get.

Take it or leave it.”

In their two months in PM business, Wood Gundylast3/17/08 1:27 Page costs were simply more than they were paid. “The mill supervisor even suggested we could be more efficient by parking the hoechucker, despite WorkSafeBC

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types of concerns, you can expect to be laid off when your contract is complete and in an effort to keep your crew, we end up chasing other work that doesn’t pay much better. You can’t keep doing that and ever expect to have something to pass along to the next generation,” adds Jackson. “I did not want to leave, but there was simply not enough money to justify me continuing.”

And while Gregson’s sons continue to provide top-quality civil construction services and some logging related work at Copcan, Jackson’s 19-year-old grandson, who had recently entered the business as a skilled equipment operator, has

left logging and gone north to find work in other industries. “It is a shame,” notes Jackson. “We had a succession plan in place. We are trying to attract people to a business that simply cannot afford to hire them anymore.”

High capital investment, low rates, risks of shutdown, rising costs and ongoing uncertainty are not new issues to contract loggers in BC since the recession, and in many cases, even before.

More disheartening is that almost a third of their equipment was sold to bidders outside BC, not likely to come back.

At a time when employee retirement and a growing demand for workers and contractors face the industry, it is unfortunate that both of these successful operators have left. Maybe they made the right decision while they could?

Are they gone for good? Time will tell.

But from Dave Gregson’s perspective, something will have to change to make the risk of being a logging contractor more tolerable before they re-invest.

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54 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

Photo: TLA Staff

RATE MODELS AND DERIVATION OF RATES — IT’S IN THE VARIABLES

By Justin Rigsby

O

ver the past several years we have seen many contractors close their doors, seek creditor protection, file for bankruptcy or, if they were lucky, sell their business or simply retire. To say the least, the exit from the industry has reached epic proportions.

As licensees seek to reduce delivered log costs, the path of least resistance appears to be the logging contractor and many have had enough.

concern. For many, the indicated rates of return are nowhere near what many earn today.

The catch phrase, “It’s all about the rate model,” has been bandied about as contractors and licensees negotiate rates. But is it?

Licensees have their rate models while many contractors have developed their own. So is it the difference between rate models that creates the gap

For rate models to work, contractors and licensees need to physically assess each cut block to determine a reasonable measure of production and agree on that input.

Recent issues of the Truck LoggerBC magazine have highlighted the calculation of logging rates and the need for contractors to earn a reasonable return.

At the TLA convention in January 2014, one panel speaker spoke in layman’s terms on what a contractor needs for a return on investment in order to reinvest in equipment and remain a going

between what a licensee is willing to pay and what a contractor needs to earn for a reasonable rate of return? Possibly.

But the real truth lies in the variables and assumptions used by each party in a rate model. These are the real determining factors.

It has been suggested by many that inputting the licensee’s variables and as-

sumptions into the contractor’s model likely produces the licensee’s rate and vice versa. So let’s look at the variables.

Productivities – The Dynamic Variable Every cut block is different. Variables affecting productivity range from volume per hectare, stem size, quality of timber (sound versus rotten), terrain (steep versus flat), logging chance, deflection and distance to yard wood to the roadside.

These variables are specific to each individual block and are a dynamic input in calculating a rate. Simply put, the steeper the terrain and the requirement for high lead/cable systems versus second growth logging systems the greater the impact on the amount that volume equipment can produce on a per hour basis; the tougher the going, the lower the volume per hour.

For rate models to work, contractors and licensees need to physically assess each cut block to determine a reasonable measure of production and agree on that input. Unfortunately, too often

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 55

Photo: Dreamstime

that measure of productivity is the key to disputes. Contractors who keep production statistics and a production history for each block harvested will have stronger support for their argument, while the licensees are using production data that gives their desired rate.

Hourly Rates for Equipment – The Static Variable The static variable in most rate models is the hourly rate. It is based on the premise that a piece of equipment will operate at a given level of cost over a pe-

riod of time. This is a key component in determining the cost per cubic metre harvested. Some contractors have developed sophisticated costing systems for their equipment to aid in determining what the true cost per hour is to operate each piece of equipment. For a grapple yarder for example, costs can be broken down as follows: • Ownership Costs: Depreciation and amortization, insurance, financing and/ or lease costs • Operating Costs: Labour (operator and accompanying crews), fuel and lubes, parts replacement, shop/mechanics labour, wire rope and rigging, radios, supplies, saws, major maintenance—replacements of large components (engines, undercarriages, etc.)

This is where a potential disparity arises again. Hourly costs can vary depending on the historical information used to derive cost inputs. Life-to-date costs for a particular machine, over a long period, will effectively determine the true cost to operate a piece of equipment. Over a typical 15,000 hours of a

useful machine’s life, it will have depreciated together with most major components being replaced and regular maintenance costs incurred.

Costs per hour can also vary by the type of equipment (hydraulic loader vs. grapple yarder vs. off-highway log truck) and by the crew complement working with that equipment (operator and bucker on a log loader operator, hook tender and chaser on a grapple yarder).

Those parties with sophisticated costing systems will have truer costs than those parties who rely on estimates, rules of thumb and WAGs. Knowing your costs allows contractors to determine their profit requirement more readily and, ultimately, the final rate needed to earn a return on investment.

It would seem reasonable that if both parties approached the rate model inputs this way, then the disputes over rates would be lessened.

But again, are licensees and contractors playing on the same field? They are if both employ sophisticated costing systems for their equipment and can speak intelligently as to the make-up of those costs. If not, agreement becomes difficult and emotion takes over.

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Simply put, for the model to work, the cost inputs need to be based on a factual data, not on assumptions as to costs.

Overhead and Administration Costs – The Other Variables The final element of cost in a rate model is the provision for overhead and administration costs, usually calculated on the basis of the total volume to be contracted for the year or the period the contract is to last.

Normally, these costs include salaries and benefits for supervisors and administration personnel, office and computer equipment, rent and utilities, camp costs, safety and first aid costs, environmental expenses, fire suppression, and shop costs that cannot be attributed directly to the cost of production of logging phases. These costs are generally “fixed” and do not fluctuate on the basis of production.

Again, however, these costs and what to include are subject to debate. What is a reasonable overhead provision cost per cubic metre? That too can vary on the contracted volume.

Provision for Profit and Risk – The Dirty Variable The final variable (that is if rate models are to work) is the provision for profit and risk, generally applied to the rate as a percentage of the total cost of all logging phases and overhead/administration.

The assumed percentage can vary depending on the scope of the work (single phase-hoe chucking vs. full phase-stumpto-dump). Industry norms can range from as low as 7 per cent to as high as 20 per cent depending on the risk of the work involved, with an average of 10-15 per cent.

In determining a rate that works best for you, you need a model that accurately reflects the type of work to be done, an appropriate measure of productivity, costs that accurately reflect the labour and equipment complement required to complete the work and finally a reasonable profit and risk component that will provide the required rate of return to operate as a going concern and reinvest in replacing aged equipment.

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Without detailed and accurate allowances for all of these inputs, rate models simply don’t work and continue to be the source of conflict between those who need logs and those who know how to get them.

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 57

5844 Truck TruckLoggerBC LoggerBCWinter Winter2015 2015

Photo: iStock

FIRST NATIONS AND LICENSEES: LOOKING AT TODAY’S SUCCESSFUL PARTNERSHIPS

By Ian McNeill

W

hen Leonard Munt arrived on Haida Gwaii in the fall of 2003, relations between licensees and the Haida could best be described as dysfunctional.

They continued to deteriorate and two years later the Haida, together with the island communities, set up a blockade called “Island Spirits Rising” and forestry operations ground to a halt. The blockade had been sparked by an announcement that Weyerhaeuser was selling its timber rights and assets to Torontobased Brascan. However, it was further fueled by longstanding Haida grievances about inadequate consultation and what the coastal First Nation considered to be unsustainable forest practices.

The Haida Example

“There has to be a better way,” thought Munt, the newly minted district manager for the provincial forest ministry.

Then he set about helping to create that better way. Even without the blockades, the system was frustrating for all parties. Licensees had to apply to a variety of ministries to get permits and the process could take years. Left out at so many levels, the Haida often felt blindsided by the time they were included and felt, in more extreme circumstances, that they had no recourse but to shut things down. The whole thing looked like a Gordian knot that could only be undone

by the sharp blade of a sword, but Munt, in consultation with the Haida, figured out a way to carefully untie it.

one through in seven days. It’s not perfect—there’s still a learning process involved—but there’s an increasing level

Using the Solutions Table generates results such as a licensee getting a road permit through in seven days.

The solution path had two tracks. The first was to encourage the government to bring all the ministries involved in the permitting process under one roof, which it did through the creation of the Ministry of Forest, Lands and Natural Resource Operations. The other track involved getting the Haida involved in the process from the get-go, encouraging licensees to consult with the Haida and respect the First Nation’s own blueprints for land use and operations. He even set up a forum for consultation, the Solutions Table, where Haida representatives and government negotiators could sit down and discuss plans at the technical level. This isn’t a perfect world and there are no perfect solutions but since the process began three years ago it has led to a greater level of trust between all parties and a smoother road to approval.

“In the past getting a road permit approved could take years,” says Munt.

“But using the Solutions Table generates results such as a licensee getting

of trust growing, less friction with both sides having a better understanding of each other going in. It’s a lot better than when all sides worked in isolation from each other.”

It’s important to note that the Solutions Table itself does not make final decisions; that’s the responsibility of provincial decision makers and senior Haida council members. But nowadays the council understands that at least by the time they are called upon to make a decision the process has been studied and approved by their own negotiators.

In other words, the kind of consultation the Haida were looking for in 2005 is now taking place and the new way of doing business has been welcomed by all parties.

According to Jonathan Fane, a forester with Husby Forest Products, which has an AAC of 200,000 cubic metres and has been operating in Haida Gwaii since the seventies as a contractor and the mid80s as a licensee, it’s definitely a better world for industry. “We have improved

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 59

relations and any issues we might have are brought up right away; there’s less delay in getting permits,” he says.

“There are good things about it, and bad,” he adds. “We’re under a way stricter regime now as to what we can and cannot do on the same land base. That’s good in some respects, but it adds costs; more surveying, more roads required in order to access the same amount of wood, and we’re bypassing all sorts of areas where we would have been logging before. There are more ‘no-go zones’ and protected areas now, but it’s definitely a better world.”

doing the interpretation. Still, it’s been better for the Haida as well.

“This has been a long process,” he says. “The Solutions Table and the way things work now are an improvement over the past, but it’s a work in progress. We aren’t at the place yet where we can say with confidence that we are satisfying the needs of the Haida people on Haida Gwaii, but we are at least on that journey.”

To even begin the journey required approaching the situation with a new cast of mind. “When we first walked into that house it was difficult,” he says.

The Heiltsuk have a working relationship with licensees based on mutual trust, respect, communication, good will, and the exchange of information in good faith.

Colin Richardson, who sits on the Solutions Table representing the Haida Council says the blueprint for how licensees may operate in Haida Gwaii is still a work in progress, in many cases because interpretations about what clauses mean differ depending on who’s

• • • • • • • • • •

“I was one of those guys that got arrested on Lyell Island, but I believed that if we’re going to truly manage human activity on Haida Gwaii then we needed to do it together.”

That togetherness, he adds,JBwas the Ad BenProg result of a lot of hard work. “Nobody

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handed us anything,” he says. “We’ve been on this journey for nearly 50 years and we have never deterred from our goal; our progress has been won by being consistent in our objectives.”

The Heiltsuk Example

The Haida aren’t the only First Nation to have established a good working relationship with the licensees operating in their traditional territories. According to Kelly Brown, the Heiltsuk people centred on Campbell Island on the central coast have also made significant progress. They have set up an agreement where companies agree to come to Bella Bella and work with the tribal representatives on preliminary application forms. “We use their technical staff and our own to examine any plans they want to put into place—engineering, road building, dump sites, storage sites—you name it; basically anything to do with the technical aspect of operations in our territory.”

These industry partners include Interfor, Western Forest Products, BCTS, and even the band’s own company Heiltsuk Coastal Forest Products, all of 2:48 whom Nov2012-OUTLINED.pdf 1 12-11-08 PM must observe these protocols. “In the

past we would have just received a referral, which meant that an application had gone to the province. This created a lot of inefficiencies,” says Brown.

Now, he says, the Heiltsuk have a working relationship with licensees based on mutual trust, respect, communication, good will, and the exchange of information in good faith. “On the ground it means that the logging companies bring in their technicians to work directly with our office and look at all the preliminaries so at the end of the day what we do is send a letter of support for an application to the province, which makes it a lot easier for the province to rubber stamp it.” He adds that as a further show of good faith the licensees pay 90 per cent of the salary of a full-time forestry technician who is hired by the Heiltsuk and both serves and answers to them.

These kinds of relationships prove that with the right attitude going in licensees and First Nations can work together to the benefit of both parties, but of course the elephant in the room is what happens down the road as land claims get settled through the courts. In June the Supreme Court of Canada granted title

to more than 1,700 square kilometres of land in BC to the Tsilhqot’in First Nation in what has come to be known as the Tsilhqot’in Decision. Will licensees suddenly find themselves barred from traditional territories as land titles are granted to First Nations?

amples, says Munt, but each situation is unique and must be treated as such.

The Stó:lō Example

“Unique” hardly begins to describe the situation in Stó:lō country in the Fraser Valley, traditional territories of

It used to be each First Nation would get referrals sent to them individually leading to stacks of paper on everyone’s desk.

Not necessarily, says Brown. “None of this negates the need for First Nations to go to court for rights and title,” he says. “But by establishing these kinds of working relationships between partners there’s a better chance that regardless of the how those cases turn out First Nations and industry will have worked out a mutually beneficial and respectful way of doing business together.” In other words, it could be business as usual.

So, can other licensees and First Nations use the experience of the Haida and the Heiltsuk to establish working relationships based on mutual respect and trust? “There are lots of nuggets of learning” to be mined from working ex-

not one but as many as 18 First Nations.

However, according to Dave Schaepe, GM of the Stó:lō Research and Resource Management Centre, the permitting process developed there in the last three years is as unique and progressive as the people it serves. “It used to be each First Nation would get referrals sent to them individually leading to stacks of paper on everyone’s desk,” he says. “Each one had their own way of dealing with things leading to a lot of stress both for them and the proponents.”

That changed thanks to the Strategic Engagement Agreement project, which led to the organization and streamlining of referrals through the Resource Man-

Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 61

Photo: Courtesy of Husby Forest Products.

Continued from 29

One of the big issues has always been cut blocks. Dealing with them used to come a lot later and consume a lot of time and energy. Now they are dealt with a lot earlier. agement Centre representing and serving all the First Nations communities affected. In addition to providing a single web portal proponents use to submit applications, the agreement contains a detailed framework for engagement.

“There’s a clear process with respect to where to send things and to whom, how to interact with the communities as well as clear and specific time frames for completing the process,” says Schaepe.

Along the way individual First Nations can review progress and provide input and comments to the referral team.

One of the virtues of the system is that it allows the referral team to tackle some of the more problematic issues at an earlier stage. “One of the big issues has always been cut blocks. Dealing with them used to come a lot later and consume a lot of time and energy. Now we’re dealing with them a lot earlier,” says Schaepe.

The new way of doing business has dramatically improved relations between First Nations communities and licensees. “It’s opened up a degree of transparency, including forums for discussion that didn’t exist before but are absolutely critical to maintaining the relationships that are fundamental to the

62 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

whole process,” says Schaepe.

Either way, going into discussions with First Nations with the right attitude will go a long way toward making the process work for all parties regardless of the territory and the players involved.

“It starts with a desire to make things work,” says Munt.

“To be successful you’re going to have to go in with an open mind and learn as you go,” says Colin Richardson.

“Go in with an open mind and listen to the very real concerns the First Nations have with you operating on what is their traditional lands,” says Jonathan Fane.

As for the rights and title issues, Kelly Brown recommends focusing on the technical details of working relationships, establishing an air of mutual respect and let the chips fall where they may. “Take an administrative approach knowing that we still have to deal with title and rights. On an interim basis make things work for yourself. Develop a Memorandum of Understanding on the operations side and the rights and title stuff will take care of itself.”

on BCTS’s ability to sell these high elevation mixed hembal/yellow cedar sales.

BCTS sales with a significant yellow cedar component are not aggressively bid and in one case, a large volume sale on the Sunshine Coast received no bids twice.

It is time to review the policy that restricts all yellow cedar log exports.

Allowing the export of yellow cedar should increase the overall harvest of high altitude hembal leading sales. Selling yellow cedar logs at a higher value and into a more sustained global market will also support the costs of harvesting the hembal component.

Yellow cedar exports would still require advertising and scrutiny under the surplus test to flush out any potential domestic buyers and only where there is no interest within BC for the logs would the seller have access to the global market.

There are still many sawmills in Taiwan, Korea and Japan who would cut yellow cedar logs if they could count on a steady supply of logs. Despite the fact that yellow cedar makes up only a small fraction of the coastal harvest in any given year, export of these logs where no local domestic buyer was available would support the numerous small “mamapapa mills” in Asia.

Allowing yellow cedar logs to be exported would also support BCTS’s initiatives to advertise and sell their apportioned cut and ensure higher elevation hembal is harvested and provided to the domestic market, thereby creating a winning situation. Domestic mills would always have first option to purchase yellow cedar under the surplus test.

The future is notoriously difficult to predict, but making yellow cedar more available to the global market might just ensure a much desired resurgence in yellow cedar demand and support the harvest of BC’s working forest!

Bill Markvoort, RPF, is Vice President of Probyn Log Ltd. and Duncan Chisholm is a Log Trader with A&A Trading.

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THE CHANGING FACE OF CONTRACTOR REPRESENTATION IN BC TLA Editorial

T

he headline read: “CILA Gone” in the October 16, 2014 issue of 250 News. In its 47th year, the Central Interior Logging Association, which has been the voice of those in the forest harvest sector throughout northern BC, has shut down, closing its office on Queensway and pulling the plug on its website.

When the CILA was first established, most contractors were small and lacked the collective voice that the CILA provided for those working in the north.

But while many contractors have grown and now have the resources to do the things the CILA provided, there still is a need for collective logging contractor representation across the BC Interior.

To the south, the Interior Logging Association (ILA) represents logging and road building contractors and suppliers in the southern Interior and, like the CILA, has had a long history of advocacy. The Truck Loggers Association (TLA) fills that role for coastal contractors and in the northwest, the North West Loggers Association (NWLA) speaks on behalf of contractors in that area.

So why join a logging association and perhaps more specifically, why should those that once supported the CILA now join one of the other associations?

The answer is simple. With a common

64 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

voice and broad membership, the associations work to change policy, advocate for change and often times provide direct support for the rural BC communities where member logging, trucking

Another positive outcome followed the collective push from all of BC’s logging associations to get the Forestry Service Providers Protection Act (FSPPA) in place, finally replacing a decades old

When the issues impact a lot of members collectively and the solutions or asks are not simple ones, the collective voice of your logging association can make the difference. and road building contractors operate.

“Sure there are things the large contractors can do for themselves,” notes Wayne Lintott, General Manager of the ILA, “but when the issues impact a lot of members collectively and the solutions or asks of government, WorkSafeBC, the BC Forest Safety Council or other regulatory bodies are not simple, then the collective voice of your logging association can often times make the difference.”

Such was the case when Pope & Talbot went bankrupt leaving contractors across the southern Interior holding the bag for unpaid logging invoices. The ILA worked directly with government and got the bills paid. No single contractor could have done what the collective voice of the ILA did.

statute that provided no protection at all to contractor claims for non-payment of services. While we continue to work for improvements to the Act, it has already helped some contractors who were not paid for services.

But advocacy of this type takes time and resources.

Revenues for the associations are derived from the membership dues, from affinity programs such as the medical and dental benefits for small contractors provided by the TLA and ILA, from equipment and liability insurance programs at the TLA and from membership events and conventions.

All of the associations have paid staff, but a lot of the work, issue identification, solutions development and support for the advocacy effort comes

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Whether you’re driving on logging roads near Prince George or near Vernon, forest contractors in both regions have many overlapping concerns. from the volunteer boards of directors who all contribute their time for the betterment of the industry and their fellow contractors.

But one thing is clear. With more resources, the TLA, the ILA and the NWLA could do more to improve the working conditions for logging contractors across BC.

limit and we are all looking for support to get the job done.

So if you were a CILA member and benefitted from the work they did on behalf of contractors over the past 47 years, if you need health benefits or insurance, if you have some time to help with the advocacy effort or if you just want to see changes made that will help

With the CILA shut down, I am already discovering that getting logging and trucking concerns addressed is much more difficult.

A permanent funding mechanism for the FSPPA Fund, resolution to ongoing ABS brake regulation issues, support for rate improvement, Blue Book assessments for logging specific equipment, improvements to WorkSafeBC regulations, steep slope harvesting guidelines and rates, industry recruitment and protecting the working forest land base are just a few of the areas that we deal with constantly. All of us are stretched to the

you, the logging contractors in northern BC to be more successful, we encourage you to heed the plead by past-CILA President Tim Menning when he noted: “With the CILA shut down, I am already discovering that getting logging and trucking concerns addressed in this part of the Interior has become much more difficult …. Think about the advantages the CILA gave you and seriously consider joining the ILA.”

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Winter 2015 Truck LoggerBC 67

Photo: TLA Staff

BREAKING THE PATTERN: CONTRACTORS GARNERING INFLUENCE IN USW NEGOTIATIONS

By Rob Wood

I

spent part of the summer representing logging contractor/employers as one of the three members of the Forest Industrial Relations (FIR) bargaining team negotiating a renewal of the FIR-United Steelworkers (USW) Coast Master Logging Agreement. It was a positive experience overall. The FIR negotiators, Tom Getzie and Ross Stryvoke, were thorough and professional and the USW negotiators showed that they understood some of the unique problems of coastal logging contractors.

Over a three-month period, we moved from opposing positions to an agree-

68 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

ment both parties can probably live with. It was a learning experience and it reinforced some of the concerns I have about the current collective bargaining process that has evolved in the coastal forest industry.

of forest industry bargaining, “Union Negotiations: Taking A Look At All The Angles.� In short, for 60 years up until 2007, almost the whole forest industry participated in Forest Industrial Relations and one collective agreement. It

USW did not change its negotiating approach and continued to strive for one common set of terms and conditions of employment across the entire province.

The spring issue of Truck LoggerBC had a good article describing the history

took a major effort to achieve consensus among the players, but each company

shared in the costs of negotiations and could have input into the eventual bargained settlement. After 2007, major industry players felt they could do better negotiating on their own so they moved to what can be described as an enterprise bargaining model where they could negotiate their own individual agreements and thereby get the collective agreement that best fit their particular operations.

This seemed to be a logical concept, but the USW did not go along with it.

They did not change their negotiating approach and continued to strive for one common set of terms and conditions of employment across the entire province.

They do this by concentrating negotiations and strike threats on one major large employer and once they achieve a settlement with that one employer they force the terms and conditions of that agreement onto all other employers claiming it is the pattern agreement for the industry. To date, no major company has succeeded in breaking the pattern agreement in any significant way.

This pattern bargaining model means that only the pattern setting company (in 2009 and 2013 it was Canfor) has input into what will become the final settlement for all the unionized forest products companies large or small, major licensee or small phase contractors. Although Western Forest Products (WFP), the largest coastal forest company, is seen as negotiating for the coastal companies, in effect, all the high profile cost issues have already been settled by the Canfor bargaining process because of the USW insistence on maintaining the pattern agreement.

Coastal logging bargaining, however, has an additional complication. Many of the unionized contractors prefer to avoid union negotiations altogether as they think it takes less time, effort, and money to just sign a me-too agreement.

There are some real hazards for the contractors who do it that way.

When there was one industry-wide collective agreement (i.e., the FIRUSW Coast Master Agreement) me-too agreements may have made sense. They were simply an agreement in advance to be bound by the terms of the next Coast Master Agreement. The USW now sends out a form for company sig-

nature that according to legal counsel is contrary to the Labour Relations Code of BC. By signing the form you agree that collective bargaining between WFP and the USW constitutes collective bargaining for your company. This means that any discussions that take place during those negotiations are deemed to be discussions between you and the USW. It also means that any pre-strike voting done by WFP’s USW members is deemed to have been done by your employees and that any strike notice given

to WFP is deemed to have been given to your company.

In the FIR-USW negotiations this year, there was relatively little time spent reviewing wage and benefit improvement issues. We all knew that if the major companies in the province didn’t have enough leverage to change the wages and benefit pattern, there was no real chance that a smaller group could break through. The monetary settlement is the same as the Canfor pattern agreement that WFP had accepted; the

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total labour cost per hour for an average coastal logger operating under this Agreement will rise by 18 to 19 per cent over the five-year term. We did spend a

standing some of the contract wording changes that the USW has introduced.

There are several changes in this agreement that will have a significant effect

Coastal logging bargaining has an additional complication. Many unionized contractors prefer to avoid union negotiations altogether and just sign a me-too agreement.

on the way we run our operations. The language can be complex and subject to different interpretations. The words may have a different meaning if applied to a company that negotiates its own agreement as compared to one that is following another company’s agreement by signing a me-too agreement in advance. For example WFP and the USW have the following sentence in their new agreement: All USW certified con-

Photo: iStock

lot of time talking about the differences between contractors and major licensee employers when it came to operational efficiencies and how they can best be achieved. The USW displayed understanding and sympathy for the plight of contractors. Since FIR does not represent all coastal contractors, it was easy for USW to take the convenient way out and say that the pattern was set and they couldn’t vary from it. In the end, for FIR member companies, we achieved agreement on some flexibility with regard to bonus payments and hiring procedures for new employees.

The real value for contractors to participate in negotiations may be in under-

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tractors in logging operations shall not sub-contract out any part of their work to non-union contractors. This statement is also in the FIR-USW agreement. Currently held contracts between WFP and FIR contractors do not capture the intent of this wording thus the expectation to meet this requirement is unrealistic.

There are several changes in this USW agreement that will have a significant effect on the way we run our operations.

Labour relations’ negotiating is not a lot of fun for contractors and collective bargaining requires time and patience.

Some contractors may question why they should work cooperatively with other contractors who are their competitors. In my view, it is worthwhile to join FIR and have professionals represent you in bargaining and reaching a final agreement and also help you understand the extent of the true burden you are taking on. If the logging contractor membership in FIR grows, the contractor community will have more leverage with the USW and more input and control over our future collective agreements. Signing a me-too agreement in advance of what others negotiate is shortsighted and can be costly in the long run.

How Will The New USW Coast Master Agreement Affect Your Business?

Find Out Here!

The TLA has asked Gregory Heywood and Michael Kilgallin, lawyers with Roper Greyell, to lead a half-day seminar looking at the new USW Coast Master Agreement and explaining what it means for logging contractors operating on BC's coast.

When: Where: Meals: Cost:

Saturday, February 21 from 9 am to 1 pm Coast Bastion Inn, 11 Bastion St, Nanaimo Complimentary light breakfast & lunch Free (However, you must be a TLA member to attend)

You must register in advance for this free event: www.tla.ca/coastmaster

TLA MEMBERS ONLY

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Advertiser Index: Page # A&A Trading Ltd. A. Wood Bulldozing Ltd. Aggressive Timber Falling BC Forest Safety Council Benwest Logging Ltd. Best Western Plus & Conference Centre Vernon Lodge Brandt Tractor Ltd. Brutus Truck Bodies Canada North Resources Expo Canadian Western Bank Carlwood Lumber Limited Catalys Lubricants CIBC Wood Gundy Coastal Camp Solutions Davis LLP Dyer Logging Co. Ltd. Edwards, Kenny & Bray LLP Finning Canada FPInnovations Gibraltar Law Group Great West Equipment ILA Convention Inland Kenworth / Parker Pacific -LinkBelt

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Safer Inland Kenworth / Sibola Mountain Falling Ltd. 75 Parker Pacific -Tigercat 46 & 72 Sladey Timber Ltd. Jardine Lloyd Thompson T-Mar Industries Ltd. 60 Johnstone's Benefits Tamihi Logging Co. Ltd. / 48 Kineshanko Logging Ltd. The Dorman Group 72 Langley Excavator Parts Exchange V.I. Equipment Ltd. Letourneau Technologies / Joy Global Inc. 24 72 W.D. Moore Logging Co. Ltd. 30 Log Max Forestry Service Inc. 9 Wajax Equipment 49 Main Logging LTD. 56 Waratah Forestry Canada 25 Marine Link Transportation Group 57 Wesgroup Equipment 73 Mike Hamilton Logging 17 Doosan 56 Miller Thomson LLP 48 Wesgroup Equipment 51 MNP LLP 54 Vermeer 53 National Energy Equipment Inc. 54 West Coast Tug & Barge 49 Nootka Sound Timber Co. Ltd. 70 Woodland Equipment Inc. 61 North Arm Transportation 65 -Barko 60 North Island Communications 72 Woodland Equipment Inc. 67 Northwest Wire Rope Ltd. 71 -Hyundai 71 6 & 72 Olympic Forest Products Woodland Equipment Inc. 4 Pacific Blue Cross 66 -Peterson Petro-Canada/Coastal 73 WorkSafeBC 63 Mountain Fuels 20 69 Pierce Pacific Manufacturing 43 25 Probyn Log Ltd. 72 Royquip 2 4 53 70 18 21

Page # 50 73 72 28 45 73 72 15 76 10 13 14 22 26 58 19

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MEETING YOUR LEGAL REQUIREMENT WHEN HARVESTING A TIMBER SALE

By Dave Clarke

I

n March 2014, the Forest Practice Board published a report titled, “Bridge Planning, Design and Construction” that looked at 216 bridges built in the last three years in five forest districts across the province. The results were surprising; there were a lot of substandard bridges.

Fortunately, the government, the forest industry and the professional associations acted swiftly and appropriately to address deficiencies in how bridges are planned, designed and built. Many in the forest industry inspected all their bridges and ensured documentation was current and accurate. Government has reviewed the bridges it is responsible for; BCTS is establishing measures to ensure accountability between what BCTS, as the planner, designs and what the timber sale licence holder builds. And the professional foresters and engineers associations are ensuring their members are informed about their obligations as professionals.

We did this work because we have a mandate to provide oversight of forest practices under the Forest and Range Practices Act and the Wildfire Act—a mandate we have carried out since 1995 on behalf of the public. We conduct audits, complaint investigations, appeals and special investigations and we publish about 30 reports a year on our web site, www.bcfpb.ca.

How does this relate to you? Well if you are responsible for forest tenure such as a timber sale, woodlot, community forest, etc., then you need to understand the planning, the practice and the reporting requirements and when to involve a professional forester or engineer.

For example, if you are awarded a timber sale there are a lot of documents to understand and obligations to manage for. This includes a site plan, a harvest plan and a road construction plan. As well, you are expected to be SAFE certified and have EMS, WHMIS, OFA and S-100 training. With all this training and information, are you ready to operate on the sale? Do you know what is

74 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015

required if you want to change some aspect of how the timber sale is logged, including when to bring in a professional forester or engineer? The fact is, many timber sales that we audit have problems that indicate this question has not been considered by the licence holder to the extent it should be.

These examples of what to consider when working on a timber sale actually apply to any forest tenure. And, we have a guide available to help you be aware of what to expect if you are part of a Board audit: “What to Expect During a Board Compliance Audit.” It is available on our website. The most common issues we

Harvesting a timber sale is typically a straight forward practice and seeking a qualified professional forester or engineer’s advice early will help ensure the operation meets legal requirements.

Harvesting a timber sale is typically a straight forward practice and, as with all other forest tenures, seeking a qualified professional forester or engineer’s advice early will help ensure the operation meets the legal requirements. It is also necessary to document what you change and why you change it so that everyone involved (including the Forest Practices Board) understands the reasoning.

Some questions to consider as you carry out your work include: • In preparing your budget, have you factored in the cost of hiring professional foresters and/or engineers to provide professional guidance?

• On a stream crossing, have you changed the crossing type or length of span, if so do you need an engineer’s advice?

• Have you changed the yarding method, and if yes, have you considered the risk of increased site degradation?

• During fire season, do you know the daily fire danger rating and your fire equipment and operating time requirements?

• Are you aware of the minimum plantable spots per hectare you must manage your slash to?

• Have you determined, and documented, the fire hazard risk of your slash and have you abated it?

find in our audits relate to the following obligations: install stream crossings as designed, adhere to professionally prepared plans, maintain natural surface drainage patterns, maintain road, meet fire protection requirements, avoid soil disturbance and manage riparian areas appropriately. For a complete list of the top 10 audit findings and what you can do to avoid them, please refer to the guide.

When a licensee understands their obligations, uses the expertise of an appropriate professional and documents their reasoning for doing something, then they are more likely to fulfill the planning and legislative requirements.

In the long run, your costs will be better controlled and the risk of an unexpected expense reduced. Finally, roads and bridges will be safer, stream siltation risks will be reduced and the ability to grow a vibrant new forest on the block is more likely.

If you want to know more about how we conduct our business please visit our website: www.bcfpb.ca.

Dave Clarke, RPF, is the Executive Director of the Forest Practices Board.

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76 Truck LoggerBC Winter 2015