Forestry Open House draws in more interest as four local forestry companies share their plans for the year

 

The Annual Forestry Open House was held on Wednesday, April 25 at the Allan & Jean Millar Centre. As required by the province, all forestry companies need to make their plans known to the public and allow for consultation. MLA Oneil Carlier, Whitecourt-Ste. Anne, attended and said that the event is important for understanding where the harvest areas are and to be able to ask questions.

“It’s a great opportunity for lumber companies (Blue Ridge Lumber, Millar Western, Weyerhaeuser) and for the Alberta Newsprint Company (ANC) to have an open house and be able to show what their plans are for the year, including their harvest plans and other plans too” said Carlier, adding that forestry and lumber continue to be an important part of the economy in Whitecourt and across the province. “Lumber prices are remaining good. We have the softwood lumber dispute still with the United States but regardless of that the lumber is still doing fairly good.”

Public who attended were able to look over maps from each company and see exactly which areas they will each be utilizing. Leanna Penner, forester with ANC Timber, said that open houses help build relationships with the public and other industry. “It’s very important to have a good relationship with oil and gas companies in the area. If we can use any access routes that are the same, then we will do that, so we can minimize our footprint.”

For the first time a few years, Weyerhaeuser attended as they will be working in an area that is close to town. “We have a bit of a presence south of Whitecourt planned for the next couple of years, so we are looking for input from any interested parties. We are willing to share what we do in the forest” said Ian Kwantes, planning coordinator with Weyerhaeuser in Edson. The area they will be in is near Paddle River and Hard Luck Creek, near Anselmo in the W13 quota.

He said that consultation with the public gives everyone the chance to share concerns. “There’s the landscape level concerns which all four of the companies here have a contribution to so we can speak to that and we can also speak finer level of detail if someone is interested in a particular piece of the forest or road network. We’re operating on the public landscape so anybody who has an interest in this part of the world is encouraged to come speak with us.”

Stacey Pike, silviculture superintendent with Blue Ridge Lumber, said that they had their harvest plan, herbicide use and their general development plan on display. “If there’s questions or concerns that they have with our harvesting or silviculture activities then they can contact us about it. We can work together to collaborate and address both of our needs” said Stacey.

Attendance at the open house was far better than previous years and Gabrielle Nicol, silviculture supervisor at Millar Western, was very happy to see more people coming by. “We’re off to a really good start here. The last two years that wasn’t the case. I think the first year that I started, I don’t think I talked to one person so there seems to be more interest this evening and that’s good. It makes it all worthwhile.”

Gabrielle said that she spoke to two trappers and that their concerns were with Millar’s technical advancements. “We log at a quick and efficient pace and to them it’s a little alarming, so they are worried about habitat and trying to keep that open communication between Millar Western and themselves.” She added that having that communication is incredibly important. “’It’s public land so we must work together.

Residents who couldn’t make the open house event are encouraged to contact any of the four companies mentioned above and to relay any questions or concerns directly to them.