Raw log exports a factor in forestry downturn, says Councillor Skakun 

Prince George City Councillor Brian Skakun believes the recent Canfor saw and pulp Mill closures point to a larger issue. 

Canfor announced yesterday (Thursday) that two Prince George mills, Intercontinental and Northwood NBSK, would have temporary shutdowns for an undetermined amount of time through July and August. 

The announcement comes on the heels of Canfor sawmill curtailments throughout the province, and the sale of Conifex’s sawmill in Fort St. James.  

According to Skakun, the province needs to take a look at raw log exports and try to keep some of the created jobs here in the province.  

“In 2017 the province exported 805 million dollars worth of raw logs,” he told MyPGNow. 

“The big thing is the lack of fibre, and have to convince the province to reduce the amount of raw log exports. If the mills had the fibre, a number of those would stay running and they don’t have it.”  

“I think with the pulp mills going down now and the permanent closure of sawmills, this puts more pressure on the province to say something and somehow respond to some of the concerns. It will be up to them to say we are going to keep some of those logs here, we’re going to think about all of BC first.”  

Despite local curtailments, Skakun said the Northern Capital fares better than communities which rely completely on their mills.   

“Prince George is resilient, we have CNC, we have UNBC, we have Northern Health, we have a lot of big employers that don’t necessarily rely on the forest industry and I think it’s really helped our community cushion some of these blows. But it still does cost us our economy.”