The forest is more than a paycheque - it's a way of life
The special relationship of the people of New Brunswick with the forest didn't begin yesterday.
From the first settlers to today, the forest has always been and continues to be an important development opportunity for our communities.
In fact, the forest is so anchored in our customs that it has become, across the centuries, an integral part of the culture of our communities.
The Salon de la forêt in Edmundston, the Woodmen's Museum in Boiestown and the many activities that take place throughout the year in our forests (hiking, sugar bushes, camping, hunting, sport fishing, etc.) all illustrate this involvement.
This is particularly true in the north of the province, where the forest is more than a paycheque - it's a way of life.
The major reduction in financing for the silviculture program by government puts at risk the economic future of a number of communities. The massive layoffs are, in effect, signing the death warrant for those communities that depend on the forest for their income and their quality of life.
Premier Shawn Graham has publicly declared that there are no more communities in the province, but only one community - New Brunswick.
In slashing silviculture, government is prepared to uproot these communities from their corners of the province, principally in the rural regions of the north and centre, and send them to the south. To do this, they are using the forest industry as the bait.
Nevertheless, the people of the north have not had their last word. Neither has the Progressive Conservatives as the official Opposition in the legislature.
The party caucus opposes the decisions taken by the present government in the forestry sector. Last year, the Opposition tabled a bill that would have allowed communities to take part in the decisions affecting their forestry resource.
We have also proposed to government to keep access to the resource in the communities for three years, which allows time to find a solution. We have also proposed to government to make the north of New Brunswick the forestry hub.
While government has given the back of their hand to each of our initiatives, the Opposition is convinced that designating the north as the forestry hub is a well-conceived plan that is bound to be successful.
New Brunswick is far from having taken advantage of all of the possibilities for using our forests. The Progressive Conservative caucus recognizes the enormous potential of the forests as a tool for the development of northern communities.
Potential areas for improvement include, among others: research and development, recreation and tourism, biomass and new technologies.
In our view, value-added activities will allow maximum profit from the resource, while respecting the environment. For this to happen, close co-operation with our institutions of higher learning and our research centres will enable us to find other uses for our fiber and our forests. Do not forget that the resources are available - we must find new possibilities to utilize them.
The Progressive Conservative caucus is firmly convinced that our natural resources must first and foremost benefit the communities where they are located.
These communities know their needs and must be involved in making the decisions. Our natural resources must be used for the common good of all of the people, not only to enrich large corporations.
We believe that a government must have confidence in the people of New Brunswick. They have been elected to represent the people in all regions - from the north to the south, rich and poor, rural and urban, francophones and anglophones.
For our part, we have complete confidence that the people of New Brunswick possess the creativity and the talent to develop new products and services in the forestry sector.
With support and initiatives from government, communities have the human and natural resources to take control. They need tools to develop their full economic, social, environmental and tourism potential.
This is why we're asking the Graham government to create a summit on forestry. There's no reason that forestry, as well as aquaculture and fisheries and agriculture, should not have the right to a distinct summit to discuss the future of the sector in the province.
The official Opposition is committed to working closely with all parties, including the public, to ensure the success and the viability of our forests.
Jeannot Volpe is the interim leader of the official Opposition and the Progressive Conservative MLA for Madawaska-Les-Lacs.
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