Pat Bell

Gordon Hamilton
Pat Bell's portfolio faces collapsing markets, layoffs and closures
It can't be said that new Forests Minister Pat Bell doesn't know the issues that afflict his portfolio.

He's the MLA from Prince George North, whose riding includes Mackenzie, where more than 1,000 forest workers have been laid off and every major forestry operation in town has been shut down.
He follows Rich Coleman, a minister who oversaw huge changes in the industry only to see them fail to achieve the desired results, being hamstrung by collapsing markets, a rising dollar and the policy constraints of the Canada-U.S. softwood lumber agreement.

Coleman was under fire for not doing enough. He couldn't stem the loss of forestry jobs -- 12,000 people have been laid off either permanently or indefinitely in the last year alone -- and the stumpage system the Liberals introduced has pushed up log costs at a time when prices are down.
Bell's appointment has been well received by the industry. He is a former contract logger himself. But a lot is riding on the new minister.
"I think he knows a lot of our issues well. With the support of the premier and the government, we are hopeful that the new minister can help us define a vision for our industry well into the future," said Dave Lewis, executive director of the Truck Loggers Association.
"He's an excellent choice," said Rick Jeffery, president of the Coast Forest Products Association.
But the government Bell represents is widely perceived, whether rightly or wrongly, as partly responsible for not having made forestry a top priority on its agenda. Further, as agriculture and lands minister, Bell played a significant role in shaping some of the issues that affect the industry today.
"He was the lands minister. There is still uncertainty on the land base. The industry, and investors in particular, need to be given that certainty," said investment analyst Kevin Mason of Equity Research Associates.
Mason said Bell is seen as very supportive of the industry in general and was involved in trying to stop job losses in Mackenzie.
However, Bell steps into his job at a time when everything is going wrong for the troubled forestry sector.
"Welcome to the deep end of the pool," said sawmiller David Gray of the coastal forest company Mill & Timber. "He's got a big challenge."
The collapse of the U.S. housing market has decimated the Interior forest industry while on the coast, provincial policy changes introduced by the Liberals have had unintended consequences. Most of the timber is now in the hands of three companies, sawmills have closed, log exports have increased and fewer logs are available for independent mills.
It's not just workers and resource town residents who are angry. Independent sawmillers who have gone out of business have directed their anger at government, not markets, for destroying the business climate.
"Definitely there has been a core of people within the industry who have not been happy," said Mason. "There is angst and distress over the way things have unfolded for the industry."
He said while there are some things Bell can do to restore confidence, he risks being blamed when those unemployed Mackenzie residents go to the polls next May.
"There could be repercussions."
MLA - member of Legistlavite Assembly