Major changes must be made to Canada’s Pacific coast forest industry if it is to survive, according to three of the region’s largest producers.
International Forest Products (Interfor), TimberWest Forest Corp and Weyerhaeuser Canada are trying to formulate a joint strategy to reduce operating costs and combat falling sales, trade sanctions and environmental campaigns against clear-cut logging.
Interfor chief executive Duncan Davies has warned the industry: “We’ve reached a crossroads and it is time to make a choice.”
While Industrial Wood and Allied Workers Union members are deciding whether or not to strike, the companies have told them they have a role to play in reducing labour costs.
The companies also said the industry needed to invest millions of dollars to retool sawmills so they could handle smaller logs.
