From Jasper’s fires to Alberta’s forests: a call for action

The Alberta Forest Products Association just wrapped up our 82nd AGM and conference. This year’s event was held in Banff, which is new for us, as we’ve been going to Jasper for decades. Sadly, the fires in Jasper meant that community was not able to host us this year. As an industry, we are heartbroken to see what happened in Jasper. We were also very saddened to learn that firefighter Morgan Kitchen was killed fighting the Jasper fire. Our wildland firefighters make tremendous sacrifices to protect our communities and deserve our gratitude.

Jasper is a cautionary tale about the hazards of leaving forests unmanaged. Our industry has been expressing concerns about the situation in Jasper for more than a decade now.

Our annual trips to the park have allowed us to witness the forests grow increasingly old, with a sea of red as pine beetle has ravaged stands throughout the park. Sadly, the risks of unmanaged forests were realized in an event that affected many people.

A second big focus this year in Alberta is the Species at Risk Act (SARA). Our view is that there is a fundamental flaw in the federal government’s approach to forest management. This is the assumption that older forests should remain unmanaged, regardless of fire risk. This view is not only applied in National Parks, but extended out to the broader landbase through SARA. In Alberta, companies are currently prohibited from managing large tracts of older forest because of the application of SARA to caribou management. We know, however, that these forests are at risk of the same kind of catastrophic fire that affected Jasper. And when those fires happen, it will be a bad outcome for caribou, for communities, and for the long-term sustainability of the forest industry. Forestry communities across Canada are in a similar predicament with regard to caribou and SARA. We are joining our partner associations in advocating for a collaborative approach to reform the Act.

One of the major highlights of 2024 for our industry was the Mackenzie Region’s designation as  Forest Capital of Canada by the Canadian Institute of Forestry. For those not familiar with Alberta’s geography, the Mackenize Region is a huge area in the province’s northwest. In fact, it is bigger than P.E.I. Despite the remoteness of the area and long distances between communities, the region is very close-knit and a there is a strong northern spirit of entrepreneurism and getting things done no matter the challenges. The organizing committee for Forest Capital of Canada put that spirit on full display, absolutely knocking it out of the park to celebrate forestry. They came up with a mascot and video games, put infrastructure in parks throughout the region to leave a lasting legacy, delivered educational kits to schools, did podcasts and videos, and held events throughout the year. A huge congratulations to co-chairs Lisa Wardley and Melanie Plantinga and volunteers in communities throughout the region for a job well done!

Finally, the AGM was a great opportunity celebrate our successes as an industry and as an association. Despite ups and downs in markets and in the forest industry across Canada, Alberta has remained relatively stable. This means that we are able to not only focus on the present, but also on the future. Three initiatives that we are especially proud of are the Work Wild Program, Love Alberta Forests campaign, and our Forestry Talks podcast.

As an industry, we can’t operate without a supportive public environment. Social license is the ticket to fibre security.

We are proud to be bold and loud about the incredible work that our sector does and to highlight the world-leading sustainability practices, premium products, and the wealth of local knowledge and expertise that we have here in the province. These tools are a powerful way for us to communicate with Albertans about exactly that and to let them know all the reasons they should be just as proud of Alberta’s forest industry as we are.

Jason Krips is President and CEO of the Alberta Forest Products Association.

Reach him at jkrips@albertaforestproducts.ca

Article source.

Canada Forest Industries (CFI) – www.woodbusiness.ca