LAKELAND - In order to keep up with the times, the Province of Alberta has amended an act that hasn't seen any changes in five decades.
The provincial Forests Act has remained the same for 50 years, so it was due for an upgrade, Minister of Agriculture and Forestry Devin Dreeshen told Lakeland This Week.
“There’s a lot of red tape reduction in the changes to it. It was an old act that hadn’t had any changes for about 50 years. There had been some redundant licensing requirements so that was one of the big things we removed," he said.
One example was requiring companies to apply for two licenses. Following the most recent amendments, they will only need to put in the paperwork for one.
“We also increased the transparency about how our dues are calculated in the province. It won’t solve the lumber dispute, but it does address some of the concerns that the United States has had on how and why our dues are calculated,” explained Dreeshen.
Other updates include setting timber dues "in a more timely fashion so that the fees forestry companies pay government in exchange for being allowed to cut down trees on Crown land better reflect current market and industry costs," a press release detailed.
They also give companies more flexibility in deciding when to harvest trees they have been granted access to.
“This industry, unlike a lot of industries, is very government-regulated. We wanted to make sure this was as streamlined of a relationship between foresters and the government so that they are doing what they should be doing on Crown land, public forested land. But, also gives them more flexibility when they harvest and also helps on wildfire and if there are any damages to trees due to wildfires or the Mountain Pine Beetle, it gives them more flexibility to go into a salvage area and maybe harvest where Mountain Pine Beetles are going, to help limit that spread, just to keep our forests healthy,” outlined Dreeshen.
With forestry being Alberta's third largest industry, the province is hoping these changes will only help it grow.
“When you look at the bundle of legislative and regulatory policy changes that we’ve made, the forestry industry is highly supportive of the government direction of having a more competitive forestry sector and making it easier for forestry companies to do their work and to hire people, expand, and attract investment,” expressed Dreeshen.
He added, “But also, having in place safe guards and world-class environmental standards to make sure our forests will always continue to regenerate and grow and Albertans can also use the 87 million acres of full public forest we have in the province for generations to come."
In a media release, Jason Krips, president and CEO, Alberta Forest Products Association said, “Alberta’s forest industry is committed to our forests and our communities. We take our responsibility to ensure healthy forests for future generations very seriously, make detailed plans for sustainability and plant two trees for each tree harvested. We also take our role to provide well-paying, sustainable jobs for Albertans seriously. By eliminating unnecessary red tape and supporting forestry job creators, the Government of Alberta is supporting a vibrant forest industry and healthy forests that benefit Albertans.”
The amendments weren't made without the input of those working within the industry, Dreeshen stressed.
The province set-up a red tape reduction committee and "we've been in constant consultation with them to find ways of how we as a province can attract investment and create jobs here,” he noted.
“Everything from our low corporate tax rate to legislative and regulatory hurdles they saw here in Alberta that they don’t have here in other places in Canada, we wanted to make sure we were the best when it comes to being business-friendly, so we can attract, in some cases, global capital to the province.”
According to Dreeshen, capital investment goes where there's the best economic environment to set-up shop.
"That’s why we had a very consorted effort to make sure we could attract this investment and create more job opportunities for Albertans," he explained.
Dreeshen believes the “combination of legislative changes and regulatory changes goes a long way of approvals being done faster, more certainty being provided for forestry sector, because it is a long-term play."
In most cases, forestry companies have plans that can span 100-years or more in addition to their yearly agendas.
"They will have an annual plan where they will cut in any given year, but they have 100-year out plans of how they can replant trees two-to-one for every tree that they harvest, going in certain areas that are mapped out and coordinated with the government," Dreeshen explained.
