Have Smart Rules That Protect The Environment And Encourage Investment

We need good rules to protect the environment. And, we need clear and simple rules to allow businesses to know what is expected of them, and how to live up to those expectations, without encountering needless delays or expenditures.

B.C.’s regulatory structure should keep forests healthy and help businesses be successful. This will secure jobs and communities.

Being agile and flexible is how industry will meet its competitors head on, and continue to serve our customers around the world, while sustaining employment here at home.

We have a lot of rules and regulations and, from time to time, they need to be updated. When that happens, there must be adequate time to engage industry, communities, First Nations, and other stakeholders. Consultation must be sincere and disciplined and policy changes must be informed by good analysis so that we understand how a change may impact workers, communities, and the economy.

CHOICES FOR A BETTER FUTURE:

SIMPLIFY RULES AND PROCESS

15. Streamline permitting practices, eliminate redundancy and work with industry to find ways to reduce time, cost, and complexity without jeopardizing environmental protections.
16. Move to a broader area-based planning process at the landscape-level to ensure multiple forest values are considered in planning, and to provide for earlier engagement and a longer-range view for communities and First Nations.
17. Identify and analyze the key forest attributes required to achieve desired public and government objectives such as the management of species-at- risk. Use “co-location” to meet these objectives and maximize the use of existing protected and conservation areas.
18. Create a Fast Track Resolutions process to support the timely resolution of the points of tension, disagreement, and friction that will inevitably arise among different interests.
19. Convene a semi-annual meeting of government and industry to discuss issues and advance understanding. Use this venue to clear hurdles, identify opportunities, and strengthen relationships.
20. Increase coordination and information sharing between ministries to enhance effectiveness and efficiency of authorizations.

Increase predictability and competitiveness

21. Benchmark B.C.’s forest sector’s competitive position against competing jurisdictions annually.
22. Clearly articulate the criteria for Ministerial approval of tenure transfers. Criteria should consider the need for mills to have adequate, reliable access to timber to operate mills efficiently.
23. Mandate that all policy proposals undergo socio-economic analysis to ensure that the impacts of potential policy changes are well-understood before decisions are made.
24. Identify opportunities to ensure the Market Pricing System (which determines stumpage) better reflects current market conditions.
25. Maximize available timber supply, ensure BC Timber Sales (BCTS) sells its full allocation of the Allowable Annual Cut (AAC) by delivering 90% annually and 100% full allocation over the business cycle.
26. Adopt best practices for consultation processes and stakeholder engagement, to ensure the process is accountable, transparent, and provides for adequate consideration of meaningful stakeholder and public feedback in government decision-making.
27. Implement process improvements that reduce costs and improve efficiencies in the movement of logs and chips such as larger truck configurations and automatic log scanning technology.