Employment
Nearly all of the form letters and many other submissions, including those from the Sunshine Coast Forest Coalition and IWA, Local 1-71, express concern over employment issues in the Sunshine Coast Timber Supply Area.
Over a hundred form letters express concern that the assignment of visual quality objectives on 55 per cent of the timber harvesting land base will cause a loss of jobs and an allowable annual cut reduction.
More than 50 per cent of the letters suggest that the unemployment rate, set at 7 per cent in the Socio-Economic Analysis, could actually be 20 per cent or higher. Thirty-eight letters state province-wide reductions in timber supply could affect some of the 970 people employed in the forest industry on the Sunshine Coast.
Other respondents maintain a decrease in the allowable annual cut could reduce wages for loggers. Eleven letters recommend the allowable annual cut not be reduced any further due to the community and lifestyle impacts.
Four letters express concern about a lowered standard of living for forest workers, and four others contend that steady employment will do more to ensure community well-being than a reliance on revenue from tourism.
Forty-four letters cite impacts on local employment arising from changes in other timber supply areas.
Two submissions reiterate the statement in the CFLA Report that forestry-related job projections in the Socio-Economic Analysis are underestimated by 50 per cent.
Most of the industry and labour submissions express concern that harvest-dependent employment is underestimated in the Socio-Economic Analysis because:
• Howe Sound booming and sorting jobs aren't considered
• the use of "person-years" underestimates the actual number of jobs
• the inclusion of the public sector in the basic economy minimizes the significance of forestry jobs to the local economy
One substantial submission maintains that the Socio-Economic Analysis assumes all timber supply area harvesting employment accrues to the region. It goes on to note that forest employment in the Sunshine Coast Regional District declined by 40 per cent over the eight-year period prior to 1993, even though the allowable annual cut remained constant and the population base increased by 25 per cent.
Two submissions contend that the 24 per cent reduction in 1993 has not affected jobs.
Two submissions state that the ratio of 0.57 jobs to 1000 cubic metres is too high. One cites the Resource Systems Management International Report for International Forest Products Ltd. as indicating a coefficient of 0.37 jobs per 1000 cubic metres. This results in a total of 407 direct forestry jobs or person-years of employment for the timber supply area.
Another submission questions the assumption that jobs per cubic metre harvested is a constant through time, unaffected by current and ongoing choices in harvest flows.
Five respondents stress that forests provide jobs in the form of recreation and tourism.
One submission recommends a detailed study of the tourist sector be done to distinguish between revenue from that source and revenue from the forest industry and other sources.
Another submission states that renewable resource industries such as fisheries, tourism and recreation have very little supporting economic or employment data but are described as being important employment sources.
One submission maintains that the creation of economic diversity through small, area-based tenures could improve the ratio of employment to volume.
Three respondents assert that value-added processing is required to increase local employment. In contrast, another respondent contends that the value-added criteria used by the Small Business Forest Enterprise Program removes jobs from the local community.
One letter states that setting sustainable cutting levels now will support long-term timber values and community stability.
Presentation of data
Some submissions state that the Socio-Economic Analysis does not adequately assess alternative timber harvest forecasts, and question why harvest-level increases and decreases are constrained to changing by an equal percentage each decade without falling below the estimated long-term harvest level.
One respondent is concerned that the Socio-Economic Analysis supports the status quo, and suggests a true economic analysis would investigate the forces that drive the industry dynamics, rather than assume that society is trapped in the position of protecting forests or protecting jobs and that the goals are mutually exclusive. The submission also states that the incentives of stumpage fee systems and tenure systems should be acknowledged in the analysis and considered adjustable.
List of contacts
Seven submissions question the list of contacts published in the Socio-Economic Analysis and how this affects basic data for decision-making. The Sunshine Coast Forest Coalition and IWA, Local 1-71, provide lists of further contacts. Another submission states more community and environmental groups should have been contacted.
Recreation
A number of submissions maintain that the already high and increasing recreational use in the Sunshine Coast Timber Supply Area has not been recognized. One respondent further states that there are no indications that consideration is being given to future requirements for the full spectrum of recreational opportunities in the district, particularly along the lower Sunshine Coast.
Many respondents express concern that allocations for other forest values and uses are not examined.
Watersheds
In addition to those respondents who are concerned that the Chapman-Gray watershed was included in the land base, one submission states that the Clayquot Sound Scientific Panel's precautionary principle must be applied in the Chapman-Gray watershed before any further industrial activity is allowed in this region.
