Prince George, B.C. – Council of Forest Industries president and CEO James Gorman is headed to BC’s interior next week.

He’ll be speaking in both Williams Lake and Prince George to discuss the state of the forest industry – an industry he says has a bright future despite recent challenges.

James Gorman – President & CEO, Council of Forest Industries

“I think it’s an exciting time for the BC forest industry and for me it’s an opportunity to get into the communities and talk a little bit about the relevance of our industry – not only to BC’s economy but to the regional economy.”

Gorman plans to address work being done to overcome timber supply challenges, discuss new markets, developing new technologies, and what can be done to improve the competitiveness of the industry.

He says there will also be an opportunity for residents to ask questions and express community concerns “to see what communities believe are some of the opportunities for the industry that perhaps we might be missing.”

Gorman brushes aside concerns that the provincial government’s main focus these days seems to be on liquefied natural gas (LNG).

“I think that the province quite rightly sees an opportunity to develop an important new industry from which British Columbians can benefit tremendously economically but having said that certainly forestry is the backbone of many economies across BC and I think the government realizes that.”

Gorman’s talk is entitled “Keeping the BC Interior Forest Industry Strong” and will take place November 12th from 7:00 to 8:30 pm at the Gibraltar Room in Williams and November 13th from 7:00 to 8:30 pm at the Prince George Public Library (Bob Harkins Branch).