A British Columbia First Nations leader says the province must rethink its approach to the forest industry in light of Canfor Corp.鈥檚 decision to shutter two sawmills and leave 500 workers without jobs.

Nak鈥檃zdli Whut鈥檈n Chief Colleen Erickson says First Nations must play a bigger role in the industry鈥檚 future in B.C. because Indigenous entities would not be 鈥渟ending our profits elsewhere鈥� as corporations not headquartered locally would.

Erickson鈥檚 comments Friday come after Canfor announced it will close mills in Vanderhoof, B.C., and Fort St. John, B.C., by the end of the year.

The Vancouver-based company says the challenge of accessing economically viable timber for fibre, ongoing financial losses, weak lumber markets and a big increase last month in U.S. tariffs all played a role in the decision.

But Erickson says most First Nations members in the area weren鈥檛 surprised Canfor could not access affordable fibre anymore due to what she calls 鈥渦nsustainable鈥� harvesting practices.

She also says an industry with heavier First Nations involvement would not shutter mills in B.C. and invest elsewhere because local community members 鈥渁re not going anywhere.鈥�

鈥淚 think most people have come to that (conclusion) because of the fact that they can just close their doors and go elsewhere to log, and everybody鈥檚 basically left on their own (here),鈥� Erickson says.

鈥淭here鈥檚 no remediation on their part. There鈥檚 nothing to compel them to use some of the profits to help people diversify into something else. If things were local, then it would be a local discussion.鈥�

The call for more local management of forest assets has been echoed by unions, including the Prince George, B.C., local of United Steelworkers whose members comprise 325 of the 500 positions lost in the closures.

鈥淭here needs to be a better effort by government to decide what vision they have for the industry in B.C.,鈥� Scott Lunny, director of the union鈥檚 Western Canada district, said in a previous statement.

鈥淚f Canfor won鈥檛 do it, find a company that will invest in B.C.鈥�

Public and Private Workers of Canada national president Geoff Dawe says while members of his union are not directly impacted, he agrees that companies that are not invested in local communities should lose their forest tenure rights.

鈥淭he government needs to step in and say, 鈥楲ook, if you鈥檙e not going to use this tenure, then we need to give it to somebody that is,鈥欌�� Dawe says. 鈥淏ecause we have a community here, and they should be looking after that community鈥檚 best interest.鈥�

Provincial industry group BC Council of Forest Industries has said in light of the Canfor closures that advancing new agreements with First Nations is one key priority the province should have in safeguarding the sector鈥檚 future.

鈥淣ew approaches to First Nations stewardship, forest tenure, treaty, and equity and investment will support economic reconciliation and build stronger partnerships with Indigenous communities,鈥� council CEO Linda Coady said in a previous statement.

But the group also says the province also needs to be 鈥減roviding a reliable supply of fibre to the industry.鈥�

Erickson says that is where the province need to talk to First Nations more because she feels her community is more knowledgeable about sustainable management of forests locally than others from elsewhere.

鈥淚t鈥檚 very frustrating that we鈥檝e come to this point,鈥� she says. 鈥淏ut for sure we need to look at the remaining resource that we have and see how we can do better.

鈥淲e definitely need to do something different.鈥�

鈥� Chuck Chiang in Vancouver

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Sept. 6, 2024.

The Canadian Press