Whereas BCs broader forest sector including harvesting, pulp and paper product manufacturing, and wood product manufacturing continues to make a vital contribution to BCs overall economic and social well-being, supporting some 44,000 direct jobs and close to 100,000 more jobs in total, generating billions of dollars in wages, exports, and government revenues, and forming the economic foundation of dozens of rural and remote communities; And whereas in the last two decades, BCs forest industries have experienced a perfect storm of repeated and interesting crises, and a combination of economic, environmental, and global challenges continues to destabilize the broader forestry sector: Therefore be it resolved that the provincial government be lobbied to enact measures for stronger BC forestry sector, including: - creating a permanent province-wide Forestry Sector Council; - developing a province-wide plan for stable, sustainable, economic fibre supply; - creating a Forest Adjustment Bureau to redesign and integrate worker and community adjustment supports; and - developing a strategy to maximize value-added jobs from stable fibre harvesting.
