Hey. This plan works

By HUBERT BEYER
LIKE ANY new organization, Forcst Renewal B.C.
had its growing pains, but after nearly two years in
operation, the still young Crown corporation is doing
what it’s supposed to do, and doing it well,

In a nutshell, Forest Renewal is a partnership of
government, forest companies, workers, environmen-
lal groups, communities and First Nations, Its
mandate is to reinvest about $400 million a year, col-
lected from increased stumpage fecs, and: royalties
paid by companies harvesting timber on Crown
lands, into the forests, forest workers and com-
munities dependent on forestry,

About a ycar ago, I mentioned that'Forest Renewal
was a little bogged down in its own bureaucracy, and
at the time, my sources told me that chief execulive
Officer Roger Stanyer’s reaction was: ‘‘Hubert’s
right, but how the hell does he know?”?

Weil, I’m happy to say Forest Renewal is doing
very well, thank you, and has overcome whatever
bureaucratic hurdles it once may have stumbled over.

To date, Forest Renewal has reinvested about $200
million of the collected revenues, and committed ta
spend an additional $200 million, some of it this year,
some of it further down the road.

There is about $700 million in the bank, waiting to
be spent on projects that wiil benefit not only our
forests, but the people working in them and the com-
munities dependent on them.

Of the money collected from forest companies and
earmarked for Forest Renewal, 50 per cent is spent
on growing better and more timber on active forest
land. Twenty per cent goes towards retraining
workers, and 15 per cent to environmental projects
such as watershed restoration and deactivation of ald
logging roads. .

The remaining 15 per cent goes in equal shares to
value- adding projects and support for forest com-
munities, It’s important to remember that these are
not tax dollars, This money comes out of the pockets
of forest companies.

So why hasn’t Forest Renewal spent all the money
it has collected? The main reason is a lack of trained
people, The educational institutions can’t crank out
qualified forestry technicians fast enough.

Forest Renewal is trying to alleviate that shortage
by operating ils own training programs. In one case,
about 40 people are going through a two-year train-
ing course in Grecnwood. The course is exactly the

Of the money collected from forest com-
panies and earmarked for Forest
Renewal, 50 per cent is spent on growing

better and more timber on active forest’

land. Twenty per cent goes toward
retraining workers, and 15 per cent to
projects such as watershed restoration
and deactivating old logging reads.

Same as the one offered at Selkirk College in Cast-
legar, .

The people taking the course are from Greenwood.
They had been laid off by a forest company. Offering
the course in Greenwood, benefits not only the town,
but also the participants who are spared to problem of
having to commute to Castlegar.

Last February, the B.C. government, Forest
Renewal and MacMillan Bloedel reached an agree-
ment, according to which Forest Renewal would pay
$3.7 million on training forest workers in new log-
ging practices to be applied to logging operations in
Clayoquot Sound.

Forest Renewal also agreed to fund up to $5.6 mil-
lion in additional costs incurred by MacMillan
Bloedel in developing operations at the higher stan-
dards required in Clayoquot Sound.

The environmentalist complained, saying it was
wrong to subsidize a forest giant like MacMillan
Bloedel.

Begging your pardon, but that’s exactly the sort of
thing Forest Renewal is supposed to do. Should these
subsidies for higher logging standards exclude a com-
pany just because it’s big? Nonsense.

Furthermore, MacMillan Bloedel agreed to repay
the $5.6 million by contributing a portion of future
Clayoquot Sound operation profits to local economic
sevelopment. And in any case, a large chunk of the
money that flaws into Forest Renewal comes from
MacMillan Bioedel to begin with.

5a, lay off and let Forest Renewal do its job. In the
end, we will all benefit.

Victoria correspondent Hubert Beyer writes a reg-
ular weekly column for The Terrace Standard.

He can be reached at: Tet:(604) 920-9300;
Fax:(604) 385-6783; E-Mail: khbeyer@direct.ca

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